Premier League: Leicester vs Southampton preview

Southampton are playing the first of five finals on Thursday when they travel to face Leicester City at the King Power Stadium as the Saints are in desperate need of points in order to avoid relegation. The Foxes won the reverse fixture 4-1 in December and they have not lost at home against Southampton since 2007, when both sides were playing in the Championship. Overall, Southampton have won just one of the last six direct matches against Leicester. Leicester don't have anything left to play for until the end of the current season, they are sitting safely in eighth place but they are too far away from seventh-placed Burnley to nurture any hopes of qualifying for the Europa League. However, they do have their spot in the top half of the league table to defend. They have lost their last two league matches and have not won a Premier League match at home since January. Southampton seemed capable of pulling off an upset last time out as they had a two-goal lead over Chelsea but they eventually succumbed to a 3-2 defeat and their situation worsened. The Saints are currently five points behind 17th-placed Swansea, so they need to win at least two of their remaining five Premier League matches to have any kind of hope of survival in the top flight. Jake Stephens is suspended for the away side, while Steven Davis is the only injury concern for manager Mark Hughes. Probable line-ups: Leicester: Hammer - Simpson, Morgan, Maguire, Chilwell - Mahrez, A. Silva, Ndidi, Albrighton - Okazaki - Vardy Southampton: McCarthy - Bednarek, Yoshida, Hoedt - Soares, Hojbjerg, Romeu, Bertrand - Ward-Prowse, Tadic - Long My prediction: Southampton to win 2-1. Here are the odds for the match at Bet365: Leicester win - 2.25 Draw - 3.29 Southampton win - 3.20