Manchester City and Southampton are in vastly different situations. City are riding high at the top of the Premier League, while Southampton have failed to win and have just one point, which is obviously far from their expectation of returning to the Premier League.
Despite the disparity in the league standings between the two teams, one set of statistics made me think - the average possession between the two sides in the league this season is, in fact, not that far apart.
Manchester City lead the Premier League for the time being with an average of 65% of possession, while Southampton follow in third place with 56%. This just confirms manager Russell Martin's tactical philosophy and team style. In other words, the problem for Southampton lies in the details of handling, and the efficiency of ball control is far inferior to that of Manchester City. The Blue Moon were at a disadvantage in terms of goals, shots and chances created. Although Southampton are not at the bottom of the table in these areas, there are signs that they need to be more composed when they gain possession of the ball, or else the game could be easily won.
In last weekend's game between Southampton and Leicester City, we were firmly in control of possession for a while and led 2:0 at half time. However, as we all know, soccer matches are 90 minutes long and the first and second halves are independent. Eventually, they collapsed in the second half, conceding three goals in a row as their protection continued to deteriorate. It was the third time in the last four games that they missed out on three points while leading. They will have to adjust quickly as they have been dropped seven points by 16th-ranked Ivoryton.
Although Southampton have won against City in recent years, they haven't won on City's home turf since 2004 and have even conceded 33 goals in their last 11 matches. Combining the two teams' current form, I think City have the absolute edge and will win each game by 3 points.
