Do two strong defences neutralise each other?

Although Southampton FC have not lost any of their last six competitive matches and reached the last 16 of the League Cup during the week, Ralph Hasenhüttl’s side have yet to win a single Premier League match Four of the Saints’ five league games have ended in draws. Now, however, Wolves come to St. Mary’s Stadium having lost four of their first five league matches

When the 15th in the table welcomes the current 16th, both teams are primarily concerned with avoiding a complete false start. In this regard, balanced odds are available ahead of the encounter between Southampton and Wolverhampton.

Meanwhile, the fact that Wolves have conceded just five goals is striking, making them the seventh-best defensive side in the Premier League. But because they have only scored two goals (a negative record), the Wanderers have only won once. This contrasts with the similarly few goals scored by the Saints, whose goal difference after five games is 4:6.

Accordingly, there is a lot of value in betting on a low-scoring match with under 2.5 goals for Southampton against Wolverhampton.

England Southampton – Statistics & current form

Southampton FC finished 15th in the final table at the end of a complicated 2020/21 season. The Saints are now entering their tenth successive year in the Premier League, but they have completely dispensed with a shake-up.

Coach Ralph Hasenhüttl – who has a contract until the summer of 2024 anyway – was allowed to continue, while in the transfer market only the departures of key players such as Danny Ings, Jannik Vestergaard and Ryan Bertrand were replaced as accurately as possible and in the correct positions.

Last four draws in a row in the Premier League

All the more surprising are the teething problems that the traditional club from the port city on England’s south coast is currently struggling with. After five league games, Southampton have only lost one match, but are still waiting for their first three points after four draws in a row.

The only halfway decent result so far has come in the League Cup, where an 8-0 win at Newport County was followed by a penalty shootout victory at second division Sheffield United last week. Here too, however, the score was “only” a draw after 90 minutes.

The attack must improve significantly

Accordingly, the Saints bring a series of six consecutive games without defeat to the one side. On the other hand, they cannot be really satisfied because of the many dropped points. In terms of the table, the four points are only enough for 15th place.

It is therefore all the more important that the defensive order continues to be right, while the offensive must improve. Ings’ successor Adam Armstrong, who came from Blackburn for the equivalent of 18 million, has already scored one goal and provided one assist. Ultimately, however, four goals from five league games is too few, which is why the odds are in Southampton’s favour against Wolverhampton for low-scoring games.

Predicted Southampton line-up:
McCarthy – Walker-Peters – Bednarek – Stephens – Livramento – Redmond – Ward-Prowse – Romeu – Elyounoussi – Adams – Armstrong

Last matches played by Southampton:

England Wolverhampton – Statistics & current form

While Wolverhampton Wanderers are three-time English champions, they were still playing in the third-tier League One just seven years ago. In the summer of 2014, however, they returned to the Challenge League, from which they also emerged four years later.

Wolves are now back in the top flight for the fourth year running and have since made a splash in the Europa League, reaching the quarter-finals in 2019/20.

During the week with cup exit against ex-coach

This summer, however, saw the end of an era in the West Midlands when long-time successful coach Nuno Espírito Santo left for Tottenham. His successor, Portuguese compatriot Bruno Lage, was left with a generally interesting squad, but has not yet been able to match his predecessor’s success in any way.

All the more bitter for everyone involved on Wednesday evening, when Wolves had to play Tottenham, of all teams, at home in the League Cup, but in the end lost out on penalties despite a spirited performance – after 90 minutes the score was 2-2.

First two goals from five league games so far

Factually, this continued the Wanderers’ recent slump, having already lost four league games in total and even suffering a 2-0 home defeat to underdogs Brentford in their last home game despite playing half an hour on the hour on top. Main reason for the misery: The West Mitlands outfit have scored just two goals in five league games.

Wolves also have one of the better defences in the Premier League. However, with the worst offence in the league it is also difficult to win games. Accordingly, a lot of value comes from betting on less than 2.5 goals for Southampton against Wolverhampton

Predicted line-up of Wolverhampton:
Sá – Saiss – Coady – Kilman – Marcal – Semedo – Moutinho – Neves – Traoré – Trincao – Jiménez

Last matches played by Wolverhampton:

Southampton – Wolverhampton Direct Comparison / H2H Record

Head to head: 28 – 18 – 24

There have been a total of 70 meetings between the two teams so far and the Saints lead the head-to-head comparison with 28 wins. However, the men from the south coast of England have only won one of their last ten Premier League encounters against Wolves (four draws, five defeats).

England Southampton – Wolverhampton England tip

With Southampton against Wolverhampton, our prediction is shaped by the defensive focus of both teams with a simultaneous weakness in finishing. The Saints even held Manchester City to a 0-0 draw last time out and again stood well at the back, but only scored four goals in five league games going forward. The Wolves, on the other hand, have only scored two goals and, despite conceding only five goals, have already lost four games in the league.

The likelihood of two very stable defences neutralising each other in this match is correspondingly high, which is why the greatest value can be found in betting on a low-scoring match.