This match is between two of the three teams with the best defensive records in the Premier League so we could be in for quite a cagey affair.
Southampton have recovered from the slump they suffered a few weeks ago and have now won three out of their last five games, losing just once. The Saints are going somewhat under the radar at the moment and currently sit seventh in the league, although, with six points between them and 6th place Manchester United, that looks like the highest they will finish this season.
Much like Tottenham, Claude Puel’s men are very solid at the back with just 16 goals conceded in 17 games, however, their attack is worse than Spurs’ having found the back of the net just 17 times – the fifth worse in the league. Having said that, in their last match against south coast rivals AFC Bournemouth, The Saints showed they can be clinical as they netted three times to win 3-1 after going 1-0 down. Unfortunately they now face Tottenham who will not be quite as open as The Cherries were and scoring will likely be a much more difficult task.
The Saints certainly pride themselves on their home form and have only lost two matches at St. Mary’s Stadium in the entire of 2016 – both against Chelsea – whilst they have also managed to keep three clean sheets in their last three home matches.
Spurs have managed to recover from a rather inconsistent run to win their last two matches on the trot, albeit against relegation-threatened sides. Tottenham’s aim is undoubtedly the top-four, but right now it looks like the four teams sitting above them will push them down into fifth.
Much like Southampton, Tottenham have an excellent defensive record with just 12 goals conceded in 17 matches – only one more than top of the table Chelsea. They can of course rely on that to remain unbeaten but perhaps still lack that bite up front to go and punish teams – especially the more resilient ones. However, they have scored ten goals in their last four matches so that will be a confidence boost to the strikers going into this match against a solid Southampton side.
Again like Southampton, Spurs are much better at home than they are away with no win in any competition on their travels since September whilst they have also lost their last two in all competitions away from White Hart Lane.
With these two teams being so good defensively I think we will see a low-scoring affair and so, with this in mind, I ‘Under 2.5 Goals’, at 4/5, makes most appeal.
I am not convinced that Southampton will be able to take all three points against Tottenham, despite Spurs’ poor away form, but it’s also fairly hard to fancy the visitors with any conviction and they may lack the firepower to penetrate a solid Saints back-line – particularly at St. Mary’s. At odds of 47/20, the draw looks well worth supporting.
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