Two sides in strong form go head to head at St Mary's this weekend as Southampton host Stoke City in the Premier League.
Ronald Koeman's side will be looking for a third straight win, while the visitors have four wins from their last six ahead of the international break.
Southampton
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Southampton sit seventh in the Premier League table coming into this fixture, having beaten Sunderland 1-0 in their last outing before the international break.
Dusan Tadic scored the only goal from the penalty spot in the victory at the Stadium of Light, leaving the Saints unbeaten in their last six league fixtures, as well as in their highest position in the table so far this season.
Although Southampton are unbeaten away from home during the 2015-16 campaign, the team's performances at St Mary's have not been as strong, with the side dropping points in half of their home fixtures so far this season.
Discipline has also been a problem in recent weeks, with Victor Wanyama and Sadio Mane both picking up red cards in the last three matches for this weekend's hosts, while only Sunderland, who have 28 yellow cards, have had more players booked so far this season.
Southampton's defending was patchy at the start of the season, but the team have shown signs of improvement in recent weeks, with the side keeping back-to-back clean sheets for the first time in their last two outings.
The form of Tadic and Graziano Pelle in front of goal has also given the team one of the strongest attacks in the top flight, with the side netting 19 times in their 12 matches so far. The Italian leads the team with nine goals in all competitions, while Tadic has five.
Recent form: WWDDWW
Recent form (all competitions): WDDWWW
Stoke City
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With four wins and just one defeat in their last six league outings, Mark Hughes's side head to St Mary's as one of the in-form teams in the Premier League, with only this weekend's opponents and Arsenal picking up more points from their last six fixtures.
The Potters backed up their League Cup win over Chelsea with a 1-0 win over the reigning champions prior to the international break, leaving them 12th in the table, just a point off a spot in the top half.
Stoke had a difficult start to the season, failing to secure a win in their first six matches, but Marko Arnautovic's form has boosted the team in recent weeks, along with the return of Bojan Krkic from injury, with both scoring twice in their last seven games.
Veteran striker Jonathan Walters has scored just twice in the top flight so far this season, but the Republic of Ireland international has been busy over the break, netting twice for his country to secure their qualification for Euro 2016 at the expense of Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Goals have been difficult to come by for the whole Stoke squad though, with the side netting just 10 times so far this season, which is the joint-lowest in the division alongside Aston Villa and West Bromwich Albion.
The form of England international Jack Butland between the posts has given Stoke one of the strongest defences though, with the goalkeeper keeping four clean sheets while conceding just 12 times.
Recent form: WWWLDW
Recent form (all competitions): WWLWDW
Team News
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The Stoke manager has confirmed that Erik Pieters is available for this fixture, despite breaking his nose in two places in the win over Chelsea last time out.
Marc Muniesa is the only player ruled out for the visitors as he continues to recover from a hamstring injury, although American international Geoff Cameron and Mame Biram Diouf, who has been away with the Senegal squad, are both yet to return from international duty.
The home side are set to be without Jay Rodriguez as Koeman admits that he could need surgery on a foot problem, which has hampered him in recent weeks following his return from a knee ligament injury.
Shane Long is fit though, having come though 40 minutes for the Republic of Ireland despite not featuring for the last six weeks for his club, while Wanyama is also available again, having served a suspension in the last game.
Southampton possible starting lineup:
Stekelenburg, Yoshida, Fonte, Van Dijk, Bertrand, Clasie, Davis, Mane, Tadic, Long, Pelle
Stoke City possible starting lineup:
Butland, Johnson, Shawcross, Wollscheid, Pieters, Whelan, Adam, Shaqiri, Krkic, Arnautovic, Walters
Head To Head
Stoke City ended a run of six matches without a win over Southampton when the sides last met, securing a 2-1 win in April at the Britannia Stadium, having been beaten 1-0 in the reverse fixture earlier in the campaign.
The Potters have not won at Southampton's ground since 1980 though, which is one of just two away victories over this weekend's opponents for Stoke.
In 41 previous meetings between the two sides, Southampton have won 20 times, while Stoke have 11 victories and 10 matches have finished level.
We say: Southampton 2-1 Stoke City
Both sides are in strong form coming into this match, but the visitors have struggled to pick up wins in their previous trips to Southampton, and the home side have dominated the head-to-head in reason years. With goals difficult to come by for Stoke so far this season, and Southampton starting to put in stronger performances at the back, it is hard to see the visitors getting more than an odd goal at St Mary's.
Sian Cowper
