Bournemouth vs Southampton LIVE: Team news, line-ups and more ahead of FA Cup quarter-final today
Bournemouth host south coast neighbours Southampton in the FA Cup quarter-final today. It is as good a time as any for the Championship side to play Ralph Hasenhuttl’s outfit as the Saints have lost 10 of their last 12 Premier League matches. They were defeated 2-1 at home by relegation-threatened Brighton last time out, with Leandro Trossard securing the three points after Che Adams cancelled out Lewis Dunk’s opener.
The Saints will be without Danni Ings, Oriol Romeu and Theo Walcott for the clash, while Takumi Minamino – who has impressed since moving to St. Mary’s on loan – is cup-tied. Southampton have reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup once in the last 17 years, and Hasenhuttl believes the clash with Bournemouth is an opportunity to turn around their season.
Meanwhile, the Cherries lie just two points outside the playoff places in the Championship following their relegation from the top flight last season. This is only the second time in Bournemouth’s history that they have been this far in the FA Cup – losing to Manchester United in the quarter-finals back in 1957. Jonathan Woodgate was named the club’s new manager a month ago, and he will be desperate to earn a trip to Wembley with a win over the struggling Saints. Follow all the action below.
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AGAINST THE ODDS
Southampton have reached the FA Cup semi-final in just one of the last 17 seasons, doing so in 2017/18 before being eliminated by eventual winners Chelsea.
Bournemouth have progressed from just four of their 29 FA Cup ties against top-flight opponents, though they did beat Premier League side Burnley in the last round.
HEAD-TO-HEAD
Bournemouth won their only previous FA Cup tie against Southampton, 3-1 in a first-round replay in 1953/54.
But, Southampton are unbeaten in their last four away games against Bournemouth in all competitions, with two wins and two draws, since a 2-0 Premier League loss in March 2016.
HISTORY MAKERS?
Today’s game is only the second ever time that Bournemouth have made it to the quarter-final stage of an FA Cup with the previous attempt coming in 1957 when they eventually lost to Manchester United. Victory will put them into the semi-finals for the fisrt time in their history.
‘WE’RE CONFIDENT WE CAN CAUSE AN UPSET’
Bournemouth boss, Jonathon Woodgate, replaced Jason Tindall as head coach last month as the Cherries slipped down the Championship table. Despite their indifferent form Woodgate is confident his side can challenge Southampton today, saying:
I’ve always been confident no matter what the situation is. We’re definitelythe underdogs in the game because Southampton are a Premier League team, but we go in thinking that we can win the game.
“If it has to go to extra time, if it has to go to penalties, we’re confident that we can cause an upset, even though Southampton are a really good team.”
HASENHUTTL TARGETING SEMIS
Southampton boss, Ralph Hasenhuttl, says today’s FA Cup quarter-final is a chance for the Saints ‘to turn things around’ after they have lost 10 of their last 12 Premier League games. He said:
This is a game where we have a chance to come in the semi-final of the most traditional competition in English football. I need the players to know what it is about and [to show] they are hungry to go for something big.
“Hopefully the changes we made we can see at the weekend to be a more successful team. We are very clear and very direct in our analysis to the players. I have a feeling that they took it and showed a reaction during the week.”
RECENT RESULTS
Bournemouth have played nine matches since they defeated Burnley in the fifth round of the FA Cup and they’ve been in indifferent form. Four wins, three defeats and two draws have put them just outside the playoff places in the Championship but they come into the game today on the back of a confident 3-0 victory over Swansea.
Southampton, meanwhile, have been struggling. They’ve played seven Premier League games since beating Wolves in the last round of the cup and have only won once. A 2-0 away victory against Sheffield United at the beginning of March. They last played on Sunday and lost 1-2 at home to Brighton.
TEAM NEWS – CHANGES
Bournemouth make two changes from the starting XI that defeated Swansea 3-0 in the Championship on Tuesday. Jefferson Lerma and Junior Stanislas both drop out with Rodrigo Riquelme and Ben Pearson taking their places.
There are also two changes for Ralph Hasenhuttl’s Southampton. Takumi Minamino and Nathan Tella are replaced with Nathan Redmond and Moussa Djenepo.
TEAM NEWS – BOURNEMOUTH VS SOUTHAMPTON
Team news coming up…
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