Southampton vs Swansea City - Premier League Preview and Odds

Published on: 10/08/2017

Southampton vs Swansea City - Premier League Preview and Odds

August 12, 2017 15:00pm - St. Marys Stadium

Premier League

Southampton will begin life under new boss Mauricio Pellegrino with a home fixture against last season`s relegation battlers Swansea City.

Despite a tough campaign last year, Southampton eventually secured an eight-place finish in the Premier League table but it was not enough to keep former boss Claude Puel in a job. To be fair to the Frenchman, he had to cope without the services of Sadio Mane and his side struggled for goals as a result. That is certainly an area where they will want to improve this term.

With no new attacking players drafted in during the transfer window, new boss Mauricio Pellegrino will be relying on Charlie Austin and Manolo Gabbiadini to supply the goals this season. Youngster Mario Lemina has been added to the midfield and will be expected to provide service for the experienced frontmen.

The Saints come into this game on the back of a pre-season campaign that included wins over Saint Etienne and Sevilla, draws against St. Gallen and Brentford and a 4-0 defeat to Augsburg.

Meanwhile, after narrowly avoiding relegation last term, Swansea will be hoping that they can keep clear of danger this time round and much will depend on how they get on in the transfer market. New arrival Roque Mesa will certainly add some strength to their midfield and Chelsea`s Tammy Abraham could also be a smart loan signing. However, Gylfi Sigurdsson (who weighed in with 13 assists last term) looks set to leave and finding a suitable replacement might not be easy.

Swansea lost their opening pre-season game against but have remained unbeaten since. They come into this game on the back of a 2-0 win at home to Italian club Sampdoria.

Recent form (all competitions)

Southampton: WLWDD

Swansea City: WWDWD

Betting odds and tips

Top scorer Fernando Llorente is out injured for Swansea so it could be a barren opener for the Welsh club. Their last five away matches of last season all paid out in the Under 2.5 Goals market last season as did four of Southampton`s last five home games.

You can back Under 2.5 Goals at 3/4 with Bet365.

By Neil Morris