Southampton vs Manchester United

St Mary’s Stadium is the venue as Southampton and Manchester United go head-to-head in an exciting Premier League fixture.

Southampton squandered a slender 1-0 HT lead at Goodison Park on Matchday 1, eventually going down 3-1 to Everton to begin the new Premier League season with a whimper rather than a bang. The ‘Saints’ now face a genuine risk of opening the season with back-to-back defeats for the third year running. Such a scenario is very much within the realm of possibility, considering the hosts have failed to beat Man United in each of their last ten Premier League encounters at St Mary’s Stadium (D4, L6). Yet, Ralph Hasenhüttl’s side should not look beyond their most recent top-flight match against United to find motivation, as they succumbed to the Premier League joint-heaviest 9-0 loss back in February. Worryingly, though, Southampton head into proceedings having lost each of their last three league matches by a margin of 2+ goals.

On the other hand, Bruno Fernandes’ sublime hat-trick, accompanied by Paul Pogba’s poker of assists, catapulted Manchester United to an overwhelming 5-1 home win over fierce rivals Leeds United on the opening weekend. An astonishing triumph, coupled with the arrivals of Jadon Sancho and Raphael Varane, shows the ‘Red Devils’ mean business this term. Ahead of the kick-off, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men are unbeaten in their last 26 away Premier League games in a row (W17, D9). If they avoid defeat here, Man United will equal Arsenal’s all-time Premier League record of 27 consecutive road trips without losing. Even if they fall behind, the visitors should have enough character to bounce back, having notably won nine out of the ten away league matches when conceding first last season (W9, D1).