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Southampton central midfield trio James Ward-Prowse, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Oriol Romeu will likely continue their partnership when the club faces Manchester United at Old Trafford on Saturday, and they may well have received a potential boost following an interesting Ole Gunnar Solskjaer comment.
What’s the word, then?
Well, the south coast outfit will be determined to stay out of the Premier League relegation zone now having moved above the safety line with their 2-0 win against Fulham at St Mary’s on Wednesday night, but that is easier said than done given they face the Red Devils and then Tottenham Hotspur next.
Normally, Ralph Hasenhuttl’s men would be coming up against the likes of Nemanja Matic and Ander Herrera in the United midfield, but it could be a very different story at the weekend with both of those set to miss out through injury.
Fred and Scott McTominay started the 3-1 success against Crystal Palace in midweek, with 17-year-old James Garner making his first-team debut late on from the substitutes’ bench, and Solskjaer has hinted he will be involved again at the weekend.
Speaking to manutd.com, the interim manager said: “We’ve been waiting for that chance [to introduce him to the first team]. Of course, now with Nemanja [Matic] and Ander [Herrera] injured, there’ll be more chances for Jimmy.
“We might even see him on Saturday against Southampton again.”
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Good news?
It certainly would be, especially if the teenager starts.
While he clearly has plenty of potential given he has made his bow at such a young age, there is no doubt that Ward-Prowse, Hojbjerg and Romeu would prefer to come up against an inexperienced player who may be nervous about potentially making his first senior appearance at Old Trafford, than say Herrera, Matic or Fred.
Southampton face a tough task to take anything back home with them from ‘The Theatre of Dreams’, but coming up against Garner would certainly give their midfield hope that they can win important battles in that area to hopefully pick up a much-needed point.