THE Championship’s form team are set to take on Derby County this weekend, with a win cementing their playoff spot even before their game in hand.
The Saints come into this fixture on a 16 game unbeaten run, including wins against Championship leaders Coventry and Premier League leaders Arsenal.
A win against Derby this Saturday would make it six straight wins in all competitions for the home side and should they win the game in hand, would only be within three points of third placed Middlesborough.
The league’s form team also have a strong record against this weekend’s opponents, only losing one of their last 10 league matches against Derby. Their last win over the Saints was back in 2007 which finished 1-0.
This is also Derby’s first away game at St Mary’s since February 2012, which resulted in a 4-0 loss.
However, this Rams team will go into this match with confidence they can get a result after claiming a 1-1 draw at home in the reverse fixture earlier this season, with the away side in the hunt for playoffs in their own right. A win would put them right in the mix for a top six finish.
Derby have managed to win as many games away as they have at home, with nine wins.
Southampton go into this fixture with eight more goals than their opposition despite playing one less game and are on the hunt for five straight league wins, last dropping points away at the Hawthorns against West Brom in March.
Under Tonda Eckert, no team in the division has picked up more points than the 54 Southampton have accumulated and no team has scored more than their 55.
