How long can surprise EPL package Saints stay on top?

Richard Lenton is an experienced journalist and broadcaster. He won Best Sports Presenter at the 2013 Asian TV Awards, and, despite being in his late 30s, still believes that he can make it as a professional footballer. www.richardlenton.co.uk Twitter: @richardlenton

Match Selection: Manchester City to win at Southampton in an Over 2.5 goals game

Making sense of the statistics to come up with a Premier League dead cert

At what stage of the season do we admit that Southampton are genuine top four material? Let’s not forget that we’re almost a third of the way into the campaign and the Saints, who some pundits were tipping for a relegation scrap, are still right up there on the coat-tails of unbeaten Chelsea.

Their opponents this weekend are champions Manchester City, who have been defensively suspect all season as a tally of just four clean sheets in 20 games suggests. And when you factor in that those clean sheets were against a then struggling Newcastle at the start of the season; Championship side Sheffield Wednesday in the Capital One Cup; injury-hit Manchester United and an Aston Villa side who can’t buy a goal, then it’s difficult to back City to keep the second placed team at bay for 90 minutes.

Southampton have won 11 of their last 13 games during a splendid run of form under Ronald Koeman, who has created a vibrant attacking side from the wreckage left over from the plethora of summer departures.

The goals have dried up a little since that 8-0 thumping of Sunderland just over a month ago, but they should still possess enough quality in attacking areas to breach the City backline.

The goal that the Saints conceded against Aston Villa on Monday night came after a run of four straight clean sheets, so, on paper at least, Koeman’s men are well equipped to keep City at bay.

However, one thing that has been conveniently forgotten is the fact that Koeman’s charges have enjoyed a comparatively straightforward run of fixtures thus far. In the two matches that Southampton have played against last season’s top six – Liverpool and Tottenham – the south coast side have finished up on the losing side. And if City can score three against the mighty Bayern Munich…

Both teams should find the net at some point, but I’m leaning towards City to nick a win in what should be an entertaining affair.

Selection dilemmas

Helping you choose the right players for your Yahoo! Fantasy Premier League team

With both teams likely to score in the clash at St Mary’s, it’s well worth taking a look at Southampton’s attacking players.

Italian striker Graziano Pelle still looks great value. A price of £7.29m on Yahoo Fantasy Football looks a little low when you consider that he’s already broken the three-figure mark for points accrued.

A spell of ten goals in 11 games made him hot property, but a run of four without scoring has kept him off the radar of fantasy league managers in the past couple of weeks. With six days rest behind him – in stark contrast to the City players who were battling Bayern Munich in midweek – this could be the perfect opportunity for the Italian international to step up to the plate again.

A midfielder to keep an eye on is Sadio Mane, who has bagged two goals in five starts since a big money move from Austrian club Salzburg.

The 21-year-old Senegal star is valued at £8.35m on Yahoo Fantasy Football, which looks a snip. Only 1.02% of managers have him in their squad, which is surprising when you consider that he’s already notched up 68 points.

What I learnt last weekend…

BOJAN KRKIC CAN BE AN EPL STAR

Stoke may have lost last week, but the former Barcelona star Bojan Krkic once again lit up the Britannia with an inventive display. The Spanish international created Stoke’s only goal for Jon Walters during a fabulous performance that came hot on the heels of his efforts against Spurs, which included an amazing individual strike. Bojan lost his way after a bright start to his Barcelona career, but a season at Stoke could be the stepping stone he needs before chancing his arm once more at a big club.

LIVERPOOL BOUGHT TOO MANY PLAYERS

Liverpool’s success last season was down to manager Brendan Rodgers developing a settled, attack-minded team. He very rarely chopped and changed his XI, and if he did it tended to be a subtle switch – a Joe Allen for a Philippe Coutinho for example. Yes, Luis Suarez was always going to be a big miss, and of course Rodgers needed to bring in two or three fresh faces ahead of a Champions League campaign, but the Northern Irishman should surely have concentrated once more on working out and sticking to his best XI rather than becoming obsessed with rotation. Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea are top of the table, and more often than not he sticks with the same team.

I’D LOVE ARSENE WENGER TO REVIVE ARSENAL, BUT…

I can’t help but think that he should have bowed out on a high after winning the FA Cup in May. After nearly two decades at the helm, it might just be the right time for The Professor and his beloved Arsenal to go their separate ways. His summer signings were excellent; Alexis Sanchez, Danny Welbeck and Calum Chambers in particular have all proved their worth. However, Wenger’s team desperately needs a character; the type of player who will grab a game by the scruff of the neck and inspire those around him. The Frenchman’s failure to land such a player has cost him any chance of a first league title in over a decade.