Preview - Southampton vs Cardiff City 9 February 19

[Harry85]

Match Day 26
Southampton vs. Cardiff City
Saturday, February 9th 2019
23:00pm (GMT+8 Timing)
Stadium: St Mary's Stadium

Southampton: 
Last five matches form: D W W D D
Average goals per match: 1.08
Average goals against per match: 1.68
Top Scorer: Danny Ings (7)

Cardiff City:
Last five matches form: L D L L W
Average goals per match: 0.88
Average goals against per match: 1.84
Top Scorer: Callum Paterson & Bobby Reid (4)


There's barely a week goes by without a big relegation clash on the slate of fixtures in the Premier League and things are no different on Match Day 26. This week's big battle of the basement boys comes on the south coast as a resurgent Southampton outfit play host to Neil Warnock's Cardiff City side.


Cardiff picked up the points in the reverse of this fixture when coming out narrowly on top in a 1-0 win at the Cardiff City Stadium.


Top-scorer Danny Ings is out for Southampton, along with Mario Lemina and Michael Obafemi. Sean Morrison looks like being the sole absentee for Cardiff City.


Southampton have improved massively since the managerial change and head into this game unbeaten in their last five in the Premier League. Seconds away from a big win at Burnley last time out, they will be expecting to pick up the points against another of their relegation rivals here. They have only been beaten four times at home this season, but have been held to a draw on six occasions.


Cardiff did what they simply must do in winning at home against Bournemouth last week and will look to build on that with a positive result in this one. They have however lost nine of twelve on the road.


The loss of Danny Ings makes things that but tougher, but Southampton are playing the better stuff of these at present and can pick up the points against poor travellers Cardiff.




Prediction: Southampton 2 - 1 Cardiff City

[Harry85]

Half time:  0 - 0
Full time: 1 - 2
Shots:  14 - 6
Shots on target: 7 - 3
Corner Kicks: 8 - 2
Possession: 67% - 33%

Three bookings for each side at St. Mary's, with referee Martin Atkinson taking the names of James Ward Prowse, Nathan Redmond and Oriol Romeu of Southampton and Aron Gunnarsson, Sol Bamba and Kenneth Zohore of Cardiff City.

Purely on the stats Southampton could be judged to have been a little unlucky to lose this one. Well ahead in the shot and corner count and having dominated possession they were nevertheless undone in dramatic circumstances by a determined Cardiff City outfit.

The first half was a fairly insipid affair, with a total of only four efforts on goal of any description. The home side probably just about edged it though and continued to do so after the break.

Cardiff City were always in this game though and it was they who took the lead in the 69th minute. A corner from the left being flicked towards the far post by Callum Paterson and Sol Bamba steaming in to finish on the volley from a few yards out to the right-hand side.

And it looked as though that would be that as we headed into stoppage time. Then in the first minute of added time Southampton were back on level terms via a corner from the left of their own. The ball being flicked on at the near post by Charlie Austin and making its way all the way through to Dale Stephens arriving to finish at the back post from point blank range.

Far from cling on for a point though, Cardiff then went and won it. A ball played in from the right and a scuffed shot from Harry Arter arriving at the feet of Victor Camarasa around six yards out, Camarasa laying the ball back a yard and Kenneth Zohore scuffing an effort into the bottom right. Wild scenes in the away end. 1-2 final score.

Simply huge win for Cardiff City and a desperately disappointing result for Southampton, particularly given their recent improvement in form. So big was this result that it sees Cardiff City fourth bottom and safe as it stands, whilst Southampton drop into the dreaded bottom three. Long way to go yet though.