The Dugout Discussion – Man City vs Southampton

The three-day Gameweek begins in earnest at the Etihad where Manchester City will look to close the gap on leaders Liverpool.

Manuel Pellegrini’s side hardly face a gimme: opponents Southampton have arguably been one of the most attractive and accomplished sides this season and arrive off the back of a 4-0 thrashing of Newcastle at St Mary’s. Mauricio Pochettino will be confident that his trio of World Cup hopefuls – Adam Lallana, Jay Rodriguez and Rickie Lambert – can all cause issues to the City defence, while Pellegrini will take comfort from the fact that his rearguard have conceded just once in six league outings.

This encounter leads almost seamlessly into five three o’clock kick-offs, before Chelsea are the latest side to attempt to close ground at the top when they take on Stoke at the Bridge.

You can look to our Twitter feed for all the news from the team sheets, while our Dugout Discussion room is now open to cater for your real-time chit-chat requirements.