Southampton boss Ralph Hasenhuttl has hinted he make look to make changes ahead of their clash against Brighton & Hove Albion at St. Mary’s.
Having gone three matches without making a change to the starting line-up, a third game out of our in an 11-day period may be too much for some.
The Saints have performed consistently well to pick up five points from their last three games against Manchester City, Everton and then Manchester United, but after revealing his players ran a collective 120km at Old Trafford the Saints boss admitted he may be forced to give some players a rest.
Hasenhuttl told southamptonfc.com: “There is no injury news – no new ones, but a few tired players which is the bigger issue.
“It is a very short time to recover – we had a very intense game, running much more than the opponent (Man United) – especially when the opponent (Brighton) has two days more to recover for this game now.
“We will still have a very strong squad on the pitch and a squad convinced that they can take something against Brighton. This is what we want to do.
“We have some good lads waiting for their chance, training hard in the last weeks. In the next two games it is quite likely we have some opportunities for these players.”
Opportunity for the rest of the squad
One of the players likely to be given a chance is Michael Obafemi, who hopes the Saints can extend their excellent run of results against the Seagulls.
His last-minute equaliser at Old Trafford made it four games without defeat and it will be their first home game since the great win over Man City.
“Obviously our home form hasn’t been the best but we’re trying to rectify that,” he told the press this week.
“As you saw against City at our ground, we defended amazingly. Che (Adams) got his first goal, which was amazing for him so, as you can see, the team is looking good.
“We want to win as many games as possible, to get as many points in the last three games and finish as high as we can.”