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Norwich are back at the bottom of the table but I watched the Canaries when they lost at Liverpool last weekend and I was impressed.

Dean Smith’s side showed lots of spirit and carried the fight to Liverpool, which doesn’t always happen. I see lots of teams go to Anfield and lie down and wait to be beaten.

This is another tough trip for Norwich, though, because Southampton have only lost once at St Mary’s all season and are on a good little run at the moment too.

MATCH FACTS

Head-to-head

• Southampton have won the four most recent competitive meetings at St Mary’s, while their only defeat in eight Premier League home games against Norwich came in January 1994 (W5, D2).
• Norwich won the reverse fixture 2-1 in November in their first match under Dean Smith. They last did the league double over Saints in the 2007-08 Championship campaign.

Southampton

• Southampton have lost just once in 11 games, including two FA Cup ties (W6, D4).
• Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side are on a nine-match unbeaten league run at St Mary’s, with their only home defeat this season coming against Wolves in September.
• They last had a longer unbeaten home streak in the top flight between October 2004 and March 2005, spanning 12 games.
• Southampton’s tally of 32 points is their highest after 25 Premier League fixtures since 2015-16, when they finished sixth.
• Saints earned a first Premier League clean sheet in 14 attempts when beating Everton 2-0 last weekend.

Norwich City

• Norwich have lost eight of their 11 league matches since the beginning of December.
• Their overall tally is 16 defeats; only three teams have lost as many of their first 25 fixtures of a Premier League season and avoided relegation: Southampton in 1993-94, Leicester in 2014-15 and Crystal Palace in 2016-17.
• The Canaries have scored six goals fewer than any other side in the division this season, while only Leeds have a worse defensive record.
• Their total of 70 shots on target – at an average of 2.8 per game – is the lowest of any Premier League side.

Southampton host Norwich City in the Premier League this evening, with Romain Perraud back in contention as Saints look to continue their impressive recent form in the top flight