03-10-2020, 15:55
![[Image: Soton.jpg]](https://i.ibb.co/dbVMXJ6/Soton.jpg)
Having just about recovered from the disappointment of last Saturday, we travel to the south coast tomorrow at midday for a crucial early match against Southampton. Whether we look on the Chelsea result as a point gained or two dropped, the fact is that we're off the mark but still (understandably) winless after a tough start. The Saints got their own first win of the season last week at Burnley, but we still have to regard them as a potential relegation rival and a real target for points this weekend.
The opposition's main threat indisputably comes from Danny Ings, scorer of all three of Southampton's goals so far this campaign, though he's supported by ex-Blues man Che Adams, still adjusting to Premier League life with four goals last year, and the now 33-year-old Shane Long who remains a super-sub. For Albion, Callum Robinson looked clinical against Chelsea, though defensively we remain without Kieran Gibbs who's now serving the last game of his suspension. Naturally there are no easy games at this level, but with the international break looming, we need to aim for a draw at minimum in this one.
Famous fans: For a one-club city of 250,000 people which can claim large swathes of Hampshire as a catchment area, they're surprisingly thin on the ground when you get past the ex-players. Crooner Craig David, Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak, naturalist Chris Packham and former glamour model Lucy Pinder are about as notable as it gets since Sir David Frost died, while attempts to pad out the numbers with ex-sprinter Iwan Thomas are a little undermined by the fact that he grew up a Spurs fan. You take whatever you get, I suppose.
"I would rather spend a holiday in Tuscany than in the Black Country, but if I were compelled to choose between living in West Bromwich or Florence, I should make straight for West Bromwich." - J.B. Priestley
