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Southampton were the team on the front foot against Watford on Saturday, a side that has been a test for even the biggest clubs in the Premier League, and Mark Hughes must keep the faith from the approach he used against the Hornets.
The Chalkboard
4-4-2 and 4-3-2-1 had been recent favourites of Mark Hughes as he looked to mix things up at St Mary’s Stadium after a poor opening run of games left his job in question and the Saints on the edge of the bottom three.
A spanking by Manchester City will hopefully now bring an end to 4-3-2-1 at Southampton, and injuries to Shane Long and Danny Ings will also play a part in that system’s axing.
Instead, the 55-year-old must go with a 4-2-3-1 when the Premier League returns on November 24 away to Fulham, the system that saw Southampton narrowly miss taking all three points at home to Watford.
Gabbiadini on the wing
With a four-man attack, consisting of Ings, Manolo Gabbiadini, Stuart Armstrong and Nathan Redmond, the Saints attempted 14 shots on Ben Foster’s goal and could have scored more than their solitary effort had the linesman not raised his flag.
The three points going to the south coast club would have been a fair return for Hughes and his men, but instead they must take solace in how they performed against a side who narrowly lost out to Manchester United and Arsenal.
All of Southampton’s attackers, and those that came on to replace them, contributed key passes or a testing effort at some stage. Gabbiadini also proved he has something to offer his manager from the wing after six matches in a striker role failed to result in a goal for the Italian forward.
The return of Ward-Prowse
Two starts and three brief substitute outings are all James Ward-Prowse has to his name so far this season. One of those starts being against Manchester City certainly does not do his record any justice, either.
Yet still, the 24-year-old has continued to average a near-career high average of key passes and dribbles per game, per WhoScored data, and off the bench against Watford this was the case again too, as the English midfielder completed each of his passes and set Gabbiadini up for a late strike.
