Southampton's season has taken a turn for the better, ever since their frustrating Europa League exit courtesy of FC Midtjylland before the season really got going. The Saints endured a topsy-turvy start to the Premier League campaign, only picking up five points from a possible eighteen in their first six fixtures, before going on a six-match unbeaten run in the league, stretching back to mid-September.
Their next five games are against Stoke City (home), Manchester City (away), Liverpool (Capital One Cup, home), Aston Villa (home), Crystal Palace (away) - all of which are tricky fixtures to play before the hectic Christmas schedule gets into full flow.
A solid, strong Stoke side
Their home encounter with Stoke is a fixture that Southampton should, realistically be winning. Despite their home form being inconsistent, you'd naturally expect they'd have far too much quality for the Potters - who find themselves in 12th place after their morale-boosting win over Chelsea.
Southampton's defence looks stronger game-by-game, and the emergence of Virgil van Dijk is the contributing factor as to why the Saints are not leaking as many goals as they used to. Ryan Bertrand's return (knee) has also seen an improvement in the club's defensive shape, especially when they are under pressure from their opponents.
In an attacking sense, So'ton never struggle to create chances. Sadio Mané, Dusan Tadic and Steven Davis are all in good form at the moment, and could combine well to create goals galore at St. Mary's. The main positive for Stoke though, is the return of club captain Ryan Shawcross. Despite somehow not getting a look in the national side, he is an integral part of the club's set-up and will be eager to record another victory after a narrow win over José Mourinho's men.
Then, the League leaders await
This game is by far the trickiest for Southampton, against the league leaders - who have yet to really reach the levels that they did two seasons ago, their last Premier League triumph. By the time Ronald Koeman's men make the long trip to Manchester, City are expected to have both David Silva and Sergio Agüero back fit - so it will not be an easy game by any means.
To prove their quality as an ever-improving side, eager to cement themselves amongst the European positions this term, it's a fixture where they'll be hoping to get some sort of positive result.
A Cup distraction, or another win on the cards?
When the draw for the upcoming cup round was made, this was definitely the stand-out tie, as two Premier League sides of quality, are poised to go head-to-head. Liverpool are automatically at a disadvantage heading into the tie, as they have a Europa League fixture the week before - sandwiched with a tough trip against Swansea afterwards, so you'd expect them to ring the changes with a mix of both experience and youth players getting an opportunity to shine in a relatively significant game.
It'll be an emotional return to St. Mary's for Nathaniel Clyne, who was a superb servant for the club. Will he find out that the grass is greener on the other side?
Remi Garde's side next
Although they fought valiantly for a goalless draw against Manchester City, Remi Garde still has plenty to do in order to convince everyone - supporters included - that they'll survive the trap of relegation this term. Southampton will reflect on their narrow 2-1 victory in the previous round of the cup, especially as it could, and probably should, have been a much more convincing scoreline. They dominated the game throughout from start-to-finish, and it wouldn't be a surprise to expect more of the same again soon.
Lastly, off to Selhurst Park
Palace are always a difficult side to face, no matter when you play them. This will be another tough test for Koeman's side, especially considering the fact that Alan Pardew's men have continued to improve following their strong displays towards the end of the 2014/15 campaign.
They've already beaten Chelsea and Liverpool (both away from home), as well as a credible draw against Manchester United too. Both of these two sides have followed a similar journey having been promoted from the Championship, but have asserted themselves as competitive sides in the League.
It'll be an intriguing watch from a neutral perspective, and you should expect a few goals too.
Overall, it's certainly a tough run of games to come for Southampton. But, they are certainly capable of winning the majority of, if not all of them. Can they remain consistent, is the biggest question of them all.