When Southampton lost Danny Ings to a knee injury earlier this month, manager Ralph Hasenhuttl was intent on downplaying the potential long-term absence of a striker who scored 22 of their 51 Premier League goals last term.
“We are more than Danny Ings,” stressed Hasenhuttl, after he watched the England international score his fifth goal of this current season before sustaining a knee injury in the 4-3 win at Aston Villa.
“It’s a big loss but it’s important now for other players to give us alternatives. Nobody has to play like Danny Ings, every player should play his best possible game.”
It turns out the Saints will not miss Ings for long, a lay-off of four to six weeks following surgery means he should be back before Christmas, but still there were fears Southampton’s strong start to the season could derail without the 28-year-old up front.
Two matches down and Southampton have so far stayed on track, now on a seven-game unbeaten run having initially lost their opening two league matches. Their first match without Ings was a comfortable 2-0 win over Newcastle which saw them temporarily move top of the table, while a hard-fought 1-1 draw at Wolves on Monday leaves them fifth heading into this weekend.
Manchester United pose as Southampton’s next challenge, with the Saints welcoming a side to St Mary’s on Sunday afternoon that have won their last three matches, most recently avenging their defeat in Turkey when beating Istanbul Basaksehir 4-1 at Old Trafford on Wednesday.
Adams & Walcott
For United to keep that run going, they must thwart two forwards who have stepped up in Ings’ absence. Che Adams scored in the win over Newcastle, while Theo Walcott has also taken centre stage, apt not only because he netted at Wolves but because he has shifted inside from the flank.
Walcott picked out Adams for his brilliant first-time effort against Newcastle, and it was roles reversed at Molineux as Adams instinctively found his attacking partner at the back post, both signs the pair are building an understanding, and one that is all the more beneficial as Walcott will likely remain in the starting XI upon Ings’ return.
With Walcott playing centrally, for now, it is Moussa Djenepo who has been handed starts in Southampton’s last two league games. The 22-year-old Mali winger was praised for his work ethic against Newcastle, making a match-high seven tackles in a performance which saw him keep his place for the Wolves match. It seems likely he’ll start once more against Manchester United, particularly as Nathan Redmond remains a doubt through injury.
Beyond this forced shift in personnel, Hasenhuttl has stuck with his 4-2-2-2 approach while making very few changes elsewhere. Six players have started all nine Premier League games – Alex McCarthy, Jan Bednarek, Kyle Walker-Peters, Oriol Romeu, James Ward-Prowse and Adams – while Ryan Bertrand has been absent for just one, Jannik Vestergaard and Stuart Armstrong both missing two.
Such consistency has so far been to Southampton’s gain, and without European football there is no reason to believe Hassenhuttl will start making changes for the sake of it.
Ward-Prowse & Romeu
Perhaps most crucial of all for Southampton is the fact the engine that is their two central midfielders has not stopped whirring. Ward-Prowse has played every minute so far in the Premier League this season, while Romeu – stepping into the whole left by Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg – is not far behind, having been replaced only twice in their nine matches to date.
Ward-Prowse and Romeu are among the top 20 players in the Premier League for passes and touches so far this season. Offensively Ward-Prowse has contributed three goals and one assist, while defensively only Everton’s Allan has made more tackles (35) than Romeu (33).
This ever-improving midfield partnership is currently Southampton’s foundation, set in stone and unlikely to change, bar injuries, which given their lack of options would be far more detrimental than losing Ings has so far proven to be.
And in this 2020-21 mission to prevent injuries and protect players, coming up Southampton have an extra 24 hours between matches compared to the majority of teams around them.
Seven matches remaining in 2020 makes for a game every four days, while those in Europe face closer to one every three, a factor which could prove decisive during the festive schedule and also come the New Year when they host champions Liverpool – scheduled, for now, on 2 January.
This sole focus on the league gifts Southampton a blinkered approach, one that should leave them in a strong position heading towards the latter stages of the competition, and – somewhat ironically – therefore in contention for a European place next season.
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from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/3m8nNN7
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