Southampton play host to West Ham United in the Premier League on Saturday evening with the opportunity to move above the visitors in the standings.
After the club's disappointing run of form, Hammers boss Manuel Pellegrini may lose his job with defeat at St Mary's, a result which could potentially leave the club in the relegation zone.
Match preview
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While last weekend's defeat to Newcastle United has left Southampton in the bottom three, Ralph Hasenhuttl will have remained optimistic that his side can get themselves out of trouble if they continue to produce a similar level of performance.
Despite being on the end of a second-half comeback from the Magpies, there were positives which could be taken from the game at St James' Park, including another goal for Danny Ings.
However, the striker has now scored exactly half of Southampton's 18 strikes in the top flight this season, suggesting that his teammates need to do more in the final third to aid the in-form 27-year-old.
Nevertheless, the Saints have now gone 11 games without keeping a clean sheet in the Premier League, a streak which cannot be prolonged in the long term if the club are to move away from the relegation zone.
While Hasenhuttl has seemingly bought himself some time in the Southampton dugout, the same cannot be said of Pellegrini, who is aware that he will likely be sacked if West Ham fall short on the South Coast.
The Chilean would have felt that his team had turned a corner when recording a 1-0 win at Chelsea on November 30, but the success at Stamford Bridge is West Ham's only victory in 10 attempts.
A change of fortunes at the weekend could take the East Londoners as high as 12th position, although Pellegrini would realistically remain under pressure until a return to the top 10 is achieved.
With a 12-day break to follow Saturday's match, the club's hierarchy will inevitably view the break in action as the opportunity to fully assess the state of the club and whether Pellegrini is still seen as the man to take this squad forward.
Having been allocated major funds to turn West Ham into a top-six club, dropping further into a relegation fight will almost certainly lead to a change being made ahead of the next transfer window.
Southampton Premier League form: LLDWWL
West Ham United Premier League form: LLLWLL
Team News
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While Pellegrini is likely to make a number of voluntary changes, two could be enforced with Michail Antonio pulling up with a muscle injury during the final minutes of Monday's game with Arsenal.
Aaron Cresswell is also set to miss out having been withdrawn during the second half, and the two setbacks could lead to starts for Sebastian Haller and Arthur Masuaku.
Issa Diop is in line to return to the centre of defence at the expense of either Angelo Ogbonna or Fabian Balbuena, while Pablo Zabaleta could be recalled in place of Ryan Fredericks.
As far as Southampton are concerned, Hasenhuttl is unlikely to tinker with his starting lineup, although a change will be required on the bench with Sofiane Boufal struggling with a toe injury.
Fellow midfielder Stuart Armstrong will also sit out the match courtesy of a calf problem.
Southampton possible starting lineup:
McCarthy; Soares, Stephens, Bednarek, Bertrand; Djenepo, Ward-Prowse, Hojberg, Redmond; Long, Ings
West Ham United possible starting lineup:
Martin; Zabaleta, Ogbonna, Diop, Masuaku; Noble, Rice, Fornals; Snodgrass, Anderson, Haller
We say: Southampton 1-2 West Ham United
With their backs against the wall, West Ham produced a performance at Chelsea last month, and they face similar circumstances heading into the weekend. While we expect a closely-fought contest, the Hammers could rally to gain all three points.
Darren Plant
