Southampton vs West Bromwich. Prediction and Preview. Probable Lineups, Team News, Stats, and more
Southampton FC will host West Bromwich Albion FC in the Sky Bet Championship playoff match at the St. Mary’s Stadium. The fixture will take place on Saturday, May 18, beginning at 00:30 IST.
Parimatch News will tell you everything you need to know ahead of the upcoming match.
Southampton News & Current Form:
Under Russell Marti, the Saints have been able to significantly transform their game. After the summer reorganization, only those footballers who wanted to stay at the club have remained in the squad, and it is with them that the head coach has done a great job. Southampton began to show bright combinational football based on dominance.
However, the problems in the defensive and goalkeeping lines did not allow a direct promotion to the elite of English football. But the mission has not yet failed, it is enough to win in the playoffs, which will not be easy, because the competitors are strong and ambitious.
In the regular season in the Championship Southampton played 46 matches, in which they won 26 times, nine times shared points with their opponents and lost in 11 outings. After such results, the team scored 87 points, which can be considered a good result, but now there is no point in talking about it, the season will be considered a success if the club makes it to the EPL.
The team in the last round defeated strong Leeds United FC, who finished third, with a score of 2:1. The match turned out to be a tense confrontation, Southampton players showed their strengths, creating many dangerous moments and successfully completing attacks thanks to their individual abilities.
Will Smallbone stood out, scoring the first goal for the team, Adam Armstrong also contributed to the success, scoring the decisive goal of the fixture. However, some points of the team also showed up. Aggressive behaviour of the players and a large number of individual errors could have caused difficulties. Nevertheless, through effective play and strategy, the collective was able to overcome these difficulties.
Adam Armstrong of Southampton scored 22 goals for his team
Leeds also performed decently but could not cope with the pressure of the opponent. The goal scored by Joel Piroe gave hope for a possible comeback in the game but was not enough to change the outcome of the match. In the end, the victory went to Southampton, who showed their superiority in creating chances and successfully completing attacks. The mentioned success allowed them to break the series of three consecutive defeats.
Coach Martin hopes that Che Adams can get rid of his calf problems to take his place in the team’s attack. The only change may be the substitution of Sekou Mara for the Scot, with Ross Stewart remaining on the bench after his recent return to action. Gavin Bazunu, who has been absent for a long time due to injury, and Juan Larios will not take part in this match.
In the last 3 face-to-face matches with the upcoming opponent Southampton won 2 times, while the Black and Whites did not win a single match, the goal difference in these games is 4:1.
West Bromwich News & Current Form:
The Baggies also failed to impress towards the end of the season, finishing fifth in the Championship table after 46 matches, earning 75 points. The team secured 21 victories and 12 draws, suffering defeats in the remaining 13 matches.
In their last match, the Black and Whites secured a convincing 3:0 home win against Preston North End FC. Players of Carlos Corberán showcased their strengths, creating numerous dangerous opportunities and effectively finishing their attacks. They demonstrated skill in scoring from long-range shots and set-pieces.
The goal-scoring spree began in the 45+2nd minute when Alex Mowatt opened the scoring. In the second half, in the 61st minute, Kyle Bartley doubled the team’s advantage, assisted by Darnell Furlong. Then, in the 68th minute, Furlong found the net again, with Conor Townsend providing the assist. This success had significant psychological value as it halted a streak of three consecutive defeats.
Before this, the Baggies suffered three defeats in the Championship against Sheffield Wednesday FC (2:3), Leicester City FC(1:2), and Sunderland AFC (0:1). In terms of away statistics, the visiting side managed only six victories in 23 matches, losing nine times.
Moreover, under Carlos Corberán, the Baggies became one of the most prolific teams in the Championship, scoring 70 goals. They also boast a solid defence, ranking third-best in the season.
Top scorer of West Bromwich – Brandon Thomas-Asante with 11 goals to his name
The first playoff match for promotion to the Premier League between West Bromwich and Southampton ended in a goalless draw. Both teams displayed their strengths, creating numerous dangerous opportunities towards the opponent’s goal.
Initially, the match was filled with active attacks from both sides of the field. In the 14th minute, the Saints earned a corner but failed to convert it. There were moments for both teams throughout the game, but the goalkeepers of both teams excelled, denying shots on goal.
In the 68th minute, Flynn Downes from Southampton attempted a long-range shot but missed the target. West Bromwich defender Darnell Furlong also tried to score but his shot went over the crossbar in the 94th minute.
The match remained tense and unpredictable until the end, with neither team able to breach the opponent’s defence. The next match promises to be even more exciting as both teams aim for success and a place in the English elite.
There will be few changes to West Brom’s lineup, although Jed Wallace may replace Tom Fellows on the right flank. Jayson Molumby and Daryl Dike will definitely not participate in the match, but Josh Maja will be given every opportunity to prove his fitness and earn a place in the lineup.
Southampton form guide: W-L-L-L-W-D
West Bromwich form guide: W-L-L-L-W-D
Southampton vs West Bromwich Head-To-Head Record:
| Southampton | Draw | West Bromwich |
| 34 | 25 | 25 |
- November 11, 2023: Southampton 2 – 1 West Bromwich Albion (Championship);
- February 16, 2024: West Bromwich Albion 0 – 2 (Championship);
- May 12, 2024: West Bromwich Albion 0 – 0 (Championship Playoffs).
Southampton vs West Bromwich Predicted XI:
Southampton’s possible starting lineup (3-5-2): McCarthy; Harwood-Bellis, Bednarek, Stephens; Walker-Peters, Smallbone, Downes, Aribo, Manning; Adams, Armstrong.
West Bromwich’s possible starting lineup (4-2-3-1): Palmer; Furlong, Bartley, Kipre, Townsend; Yokuslu, Mowatt; Wallace, Diangana, Johnston; Thomas-Asante.
Statistical preview of the match Southampton vs West Bromwich:
- Southampton’s First XI average age is 27.0 years, and Bromwich’s First XI average age is 27.7 years.
- The total value of hosts’ squad is 189 mln euros, while the total of guests comes up to 53 mln euros.
- Tim Robinson has been appointed as the centre referee. The match official has already served 30 games this season, showing an average of 4 yellow cards and also whistles 23 fouls per game.
- Southampton have not lost in 8 of their last 10 matches against this opponent.
- In the last 5 games, Southampton conceded an average of 1.80 goals per game and scored an average of 0.60 goals per game.
- In the last 5 games, West Bromwich conceded an average of 1.20 goals per game and scored an average of 0.80 goals per game.
- Southampton and West Bromwich have only one win each in their last five matches.
- In 11 of Southampton’s last 15 matches, the goal total has been more than 2.5 goals.
- Southampton have served more than 4.5 corners in 12 of their last 15 matches.
- There have been less than 11.5 corners awarded in 11 of WBA’s last 15 games.
What has been said before the match:
Russell Martin, coach of the Saints, reflects on their recent match and looks ahead to the next leg:
“It was a tough game, as expected. Good atmosphere, hot, which made it difficult – the heat definitely dried the pitch up a bit, and it was sticky. I liked some stuff, I really liked some stuff, some other stuff we need to improve on and work on.”
“Against a team that has brilliant home form, is a difficult place to come, the atmosphere was rocking, I think a clean sheet is huge for us. Now we can go back to St Mary’s with one game, at home, with our crowd, who I have no doubt will create the same if not better atmosphere than here. It’s in our hands, we’re at home and I’m looking forward to it already.”
“We’ve shown a different side of our game the last couple of weeks in and around our final third which I’ve really liked: a real commitment to stop crosses, to force a team back, so we had to do all of that. I spoke to them about that, that there would be a spell in the game at some point where we would have to suffer a little bit.”
“When the game calmed down I thought we opened them up a little bit and there were some great chances, but they’re good, they’re organized and they made it tough.
“To avoid defeat away from home in the first tie is really important, but we came to win. We didn’t set up negatively, we dominated the ball but we need to do more with it. The pitch was difficult at times where it was so hot, but the lads stuck to it.”
Boss of Baggies Carlos Corberan discusses the first game against the Saints:
“It was a very equal, very balanced, very tough game as you can expect when you are fighting between four teams to reach the Premier League – the best league in the world.”
“You have to expect tough and difficult challenges. The key is that you need to enjoy the difficulty of the challenge. Any result that any of the teams achieved on Sunday would have had an impact on the second leg, but would not have been decisive for the next round.”
“I like how the team competed. I was enjoying the atmosphere that our fans created. All these things together have helped to not lose the game. This was the first time that we have not lost in 90 minutes against Southampton so we have taken a positive step. The challenge that we are going to play on Saturday is probably going to be the strongest one we have faced this season.”
Southampton vs West Bromwich Prediction:
The hosts of the return leg of the EFL Championship playoff semi-final for promotion to the English Premier League can boast a classy attack that has had a productive season with 87 goals. Only Leicester City and Ipswich Town who moved directly into the EPL from the top two positions have scored more. At home, Southampton have a 65% win rate and have scooped an impressive 54 goals in the league – an average of 2.35 goals per game (2nd best in the Championship). Their matches are usually flamboyant: at least 3 goals have been registered seven times in the ten most recent games in home walls, with both teams scoring on the same seven occasions in that stretch.
Southampton feel great against the Blue and White: in eight head-to-head meetings, Southampton have six wins, including two this season (the Red and Whites have scored two goals on both occasions). At St Mary’s, the Saints have won four of their last five head-to-head matches against West Bromwich. The wards of Russell Martin were dominating in the first leg and have outshone their opponents in terms of xG – 1.87 vs. 0.8.
West Bromwich, in turn, can not prove successful in away games, in the EFL Championship they are 14th in this respect. Carlos Corberan’s side have seen just two wins and five defeats in their last twelve matches on the road. Only once have the Whites and Blues recorded a clean sheet in that stretch. Pretty mediocre stats for a team that made it to the playoffs.
The Baggies were unable to capitalise on the pitch factor in the first leg and now they have minimal chance of reaching the final. Southampton are higher in class and play soundly at home, they have every chance to return to the English Premier League.
Parimatch News staff prediction:
We say: Southampton will reach the final – Yes.
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