Relegation-threatened West Ham United will be looking to climb out of the Premier League's bottom three when they host mid-table Southampton on Saturday afternoon.
The Hammers have gone eight games without a win but they put on a spirited display at Liverpool on Monday night and will look to produce a similar performance.
Meanwhile, their opponents snapped a three-game losing run with a 2-0 win at home to Aston Villa and currently sit 12th in the table.
They will hope a second consecutive victory gets them up into the top half as they are only three points off Burnley in tenth.
Where to Watch
| When is Kick Off? | Saturday 29 February |
What Time is Kick Off? |
15:00 (GMT) |
| Where Is it Played? | London Stadium |
| TV Channel/Live Stream? | Sky Sports Premier League (repeat broadcast) or Match of the Day on BBC One (highlights) |
| Referee? | Anthony Taylor |
Team News
West Ham have several injuries, mainly affecting their midfield depth. New signing Tomáš Souček picked up a hip knock in Monday's defeat and will be out for three weeks. The Czech international joins fellow midfielders Jack Wilshere (hip) and Andriy Yarmolenko (thigh) on the injury list, while defender Ryan Fredericks (shoulder) is also ruled out.
Meanwhile the Saints have a mostly-fit squad to choose from. Winger Nathan Redmond remains the sole long-term casualty with a muscle problem, while on-loan full-back Kyle Walker-Peters (calf) is a doubt.
Predicted Lineups
| West Ham | Fabianski; Zabaleta, Diop, Ogbonna, Cresswell; Rice; Snodgrass, Fornals, Noble, Antonio; Haller |
| Southampton | McCarthy; Valery, Stephens, Bednarek, Bertrand; Ward-Prowse, Højbjerg; Armstrong, Djenepo; Long, Ings |
Head-to-Head Record
West Ham picked up the three points earlier in the season, with a Sébastien Haller goal separating the two teams when they met in December in the reverse fixture.
Having encountered each other 35 times in the league, the Hammers have won the majority of the games with 17 victories to the Saints' tally of 11. The hosts have a strong home record when playing Southampton, having won twelve which includes three of the last four games played in east London.
Recent Form
As mentioned earlier, the home side have not won in the last eight games and are on a dreadful run. A 3-3 home draw with Brighton was followed by a straightforward 2-0 defeat at Manchester City. They then travelled to Anfield and despite putting up a fight, eventually lost 3-2 on Monday evening.
Southampton, meanwhile, have suffered defeats throughout February, including a 3-2 loss to Tottenham in the replay of their FA Cup fourth round tie. Losing 2-1 at home to Burnley followed before a 2-0 win against Villa which ended their losing streak, and they will look to build up momentum at this stage of the season.
Here's how both sides have fared in their last five matches.
| West Ham | Southampton |
| Liverpool 3-2 West Ham (24/2) | Southampton 2-0 Aston Villa (22/2) |
| Manchester City 2-0 West Ham (19/2) | Southampton 1-2 Burnley (15/2) |
| West Ham 3-3 Brighton (1/2) | Tottenham 3-2 Southampton (5/2) |
| West Ham 0-2 Liverpool (29/1) | Liverpool 4-0 Southampton (1/2) |
| West Ham 0-1 West Brom (25/1) | Southampton 1-1 Tottenham (25/1) |
Prediction
West Ham are in a slump at the moment and desperately need a win at home to pull themselves out of the relegation zone against a buoyed Saints side.
Yet the Hammers have a great record at home to their opponents and their performance on Monday evening suggests that they are willing to fight for a crucial three points on Saturday.
In what could be a close, tight game, West Ham will probably have the edge to take the three points and notch up a crucial win.
Prediction: West Ham 2-1 Southampton
Source : 90min