Southampton managed to secure their second Premier League win of the season with a 1-0 victory over Watford last weekend, putting them in a good place to take on their next opponents Aston Villa.
Having lost their four previous league games in a row, Villa now sit 15th in the table with 10 points, one place and one point behind the Saints, who welcome Dean Smith’s side to St Mary’s tonight.
On the chalkboard
In terms of who Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl could pick in his starting XI, one player who we think should definitely be in the running for a place is Kyle Walker-Peters, who is currently earning a weekly wage of just over £23k-per-week according to Spotrac.
Last season saw the defender play in 30 of Southampton’s 38 Premier League games in the right-back position. However, he has played in six of their opening 10 league games of the current campaign as a left-back in order to make way for Valentino Livramento, who has played in every league game for the Saints at right-back.
In his previous game for the Saints, the 1-0 win over Watford at Vicarage Road, Walker-Peters played at left-back once again, blocking one shot and making four clearances, with one coming off Southampton’s goal line, and winning five duels. He showed how much of a defensive asset he is for the team and why he could be crucial tonight against a Villa team who will undoubtedly be looking to secure a much-needed win by attacking the Saints as much as possible.
In addition to his defensive capabilities, the 24-year-old completed 36 out of his 40 passes against Watford, including one accurate cross, one long ball and two key passes, creating one big chance for his side and completing two successful dribbles. This shows that he is a very capable attacking threat on the left flank, which would potentially frighten Villa’s defensive players considering how they conceded four goals in their previous league match against West Ham United last weekend.
This performance earned the full-back, who is currently valued at £16.2m by Transfermarkt, an overall match rating of 8/10, making him the highest-rated player on the day according to SofaScore. He has also been called a “very strong” left-back by Hasenhuttl, duly highlighting why we feel he should keep his place in the team against Villa tonight.
In other news: Bye-bye Forster: Ralph could save Southampton millions with “confident” 20 y/o beast
