The South Coast Derby takes place at the St. Mary’s Stadium where Southampton welcome Brighton. Both sides have 4 points each and both are hoping to get something out of this game as tough times might be coming soon. After this match, Southampton travel to Liverpool, while Brighton welcome the Spurs. Obviously, winning points on Monday evening is the plan of both teams. Make sure to read this Southampton vs Brighton match preview to find out on which outcome you should put your betting money.
Southampton
They did struggle quite a lot last season, narrowly avoiding relegation. And they also had a pretty bad summer, during which Soton sold a couple of key men, without bringing any big-name players. But, they did sign Danni Ings, who’s been fantastic so far. Actually, he’s the guy most responsible for Southampton’s first win of the season, which happened in the previous round when they beat Crystal Palace 2:0.
Unfortunately for Soton fans, not many players apart from Ings have been playing too well so far. Especially not those up front. Long, Austin, and Gabbiadini seem to be totally out of form, which is one of the reasons why Southampton aren’t higher on the table.
Their defense, on the other hand has been pretty decent. Actually, the back line seems to be their strongest point this season, with several pretty tough guys at the back. They also have a couple of defensive-minded players in the midfield, like Romeu and Lemina, which makes me think they will be able to deal with Brighton’s attacks easily. Or, maybe Brighton have an antidote?
Brighton
This is the side that beat Manchester United a month ago 3:2, but that doesn’t mean they’re super-strong. It just means Man United were terrible in that game. Still, no one can say that Brighton are a bad side. They showed they have the mental strength to come back from 2:0 down in the last round, in which they managed to snatch a point from Fulham.
The problem is that all of the points they’ve won this season, they won at their home turf. And the similar was the case in the previous season of the Premier League. When playing at the AMEX Stadium, Brighton are awesome. But, when they’re away from home, they’re much, much worse. Actually, in 2017/2018, they were the worst away team in the league.
Plus, it seems that they’re relying too much on a single player to bail them out. I’m talking about Glenn Murray, a 34-year-old who’s already scored three goals. Other strikers have been totally out of form. On the bright side, Pascal Gross has started playing better in the midfield, as well as Davy Propper. But, I don’t think they’re good enough to be able to pull all the strings against Southampton.
Team News
Southampton absentees:
- Shane Long (doubtful)
Brighton absentees:
- Florin Andone (doubtful)
- Jose Izquierdo (doubtful)
- Bruno Saltor (injury)
Possible Lineups
Southampton
McCarthy – Vestergaard, Hoedt, Soares, Bertrand – Romeu, Lemina, Armstrong, Redmond, Hojbjerg – Ings
Brighton
Ryan – Duffy, Dunk, Bong, Montoya – Stephens, Knockaert, Propper, Gross – Locadia, Murray
Southampton vs Brighton Match Prediction
Southampton are a slightly better team than Brighton, which means that if they win, it won’t be a big win. In fact, I don’t think we’re gonna see more than one or two goals in total in this game. Therefore, rather than betting on the outcome, my betting advice is to stick to the goals. Under 2.5 Goals seems like the best betting tip.
Southampton vs Brighton Betting Tips
- Under 2.5 Goals @1.62 (Bwin)
- Under 1.5 Goals @2.95 (Unibet)