Southampton make the trip to South Wales to face Swansea City on Saturday looking for the win that would take them into second place in the Championship standings.

While Russell Martin's current side are targeting automatic promotion, his former club require maximum points to rejoin the race for the playoffs.

Match preview

Much of the talk ahead of this contest with be about the return of Martin, yet Swansea and Luke Williams will want to focus on just the third game of his tenure.

After being installed as head coach shortly before the FA Cup win over Morecambe, Williams watched his new side twice let slip a lead at Birmingham City last weekend.

A 2-2 draw at St Andrew's in his first-ever Championship game as a manager is hardly a disaster, yet some momentum has been lost given the manner of how the point was earned.

In the long run, though, Swansea have lost just one of their most recent six fixtures in all competitions, with that being a 5-0 hammering at the hands of Saturday's opponents.

Only two losses have come in nine Championship outings, too, but Swansea now sit seven points adrift of sixth spot and increasingly desperate of a winning streak.

Whether that is realistically possible against a team who are on a 20-game undefeated streak remains to be seen, yet Swansea will no doubt be motivated to get one over their former boss.

Martin has proven that moving to Southampton was the perfect fit for his style of management and there has been a relentlessness that suggests that an immediate return to the Premier League is more likely than it once was.

That said, while nine successive wins have been posted at St Mary's in all competitions, the Saints have prevailed in just one of their last five fixtures on their travels.

Furthermore, only 16 goals have been scored in 13 away league games during 2023-24, but Martin and his players will be confident that they can carry the belief generated from 4-0 wins over Walsall and Sheffield Wednesday into this encounter.

Team News

Barring any injury issues, Williams may choose to start with the Swansea XI that begun the game against Birmingham.

However, Jerry Yates could come in for youngster Sam Parker, while Joe Allen is an option if Williams wants to add an extra combative player in midfield.

Liam Walsh will again miss out with a calf issue, and Harrison Ashby is being assessed ahead of making a return at right-back.

Martin could stick with the Saints starting lineup from the 4-0 win over Sheffield Wednesday.

Players were able to be rested during the closing 15 minutes, including Che Adams who may remain in the team despite speculation regarding his future.

Samuel Edozie is not expected to return from injury until next week at the earliest, while Joe Aribo is away with Nigeria at the Africa Cup of Nations.

Swansea City possible starting lineup:
Rushworth; Darling, Wood, Humphreys, Tymon; Fulton, Grimes; Parker, Paterson, Cullen; Lowe

Southampton possible starting lineup:
Bazunu; Walker-Peters, Harwood-Bellis, Bednarek, Manning; Smallbone, Downes, S. Armstrong; A. Armstrong, Adams, Fraser

We say: Swansea City 1-2 Southampton

With a new head coach at the helm, Swansea will relish the chance to put on a show against the division's form side. However, we feel that Southampton will continue on their merry way, extending their prolonged unbeaten run with a hard-earned victory.

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