Southampton Preview
Last updated : 11 July 2005 By Firparkcorner
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Of course, as with all of these games, it is hard to know how worthwhile it will be. Southampton have superior players to ourselves but it remains to be seen whether they will play their best team or how hard they’ll be trying. But it is another match for us though and it is always good to play against opponents of differing levels in the season build up.
Southampton are not overly popular in Scotland at the minute after their treatment of ex-manager Paul Sturrock. It is probably safe to say more than a few people had a smirk on their face when they were relegated last season. They do have some familiar faces playing for them though – Anti Niemi, Neil McCann and Fabrice Fernandes have all played in the SPL and they rescued Scotland international Nigel Quashie from a tricky situation at Portsmouth. They also have the impressive Peter Crouch, Marion Pahars and a clutch of Scandinavian internationals.
So the calibre of our opponents is quite high, how will we cope against them? Recent visits from English league sides have given us promising results – draws with Norwich and Fulham and wins over Birmingham and Cardiff – but the performance is the main thing. A few players missed out on the Queens Park game with injury or illness and Terry Butcher will be anxious to give them game time.
The match will no doubt we played at a fairly relaxed pace but the weather is pleasant and it can be quite nice to sit in the sun at Fir Park without being desperately concerned about the result. Only a few weeks left to the season and we should get a boost from this game with a 2-1 win.