PREVIEW: Manchester City v Southampton

Southampton couldn't have been given a tougher start to their first Premier League campaign in seven years.

The Premier League champions will want to get their season off to a hot start - and will see Southampton as the easiest of opening day fixtures.

Last season, City dismantled Swansea in their first Premier League game, and today could be no different.

WIth a lack of top quality signings arriving at St Mary's, Nigel Adkins is under pressure to show his squad are good enough to compete in the Premier League.

Jay Rodriguez has arrived for a whopping £7million from Burnley, but with Rickie Lambert and Billy Sharp already on the books, Rodriguez is unlikely to turn any heads this season.

Southampton's biggest struggle this season will be their defence. A good marker of how good their back line is will come today against City.

With the likes of Carlos Teves, Sergio Aguero, Mario Balotelli and David Silva on show - Kelvin Davis is likely to have a busy return to the top flight.

Saints should not read too much into a possible heavy defeat. It may take Adkins' side a few weeks to find their Premier League feet, and also face Manchester United and Arsenal within their first four games.

Jack Cork will miss the opening game with an ankle injury, while City will be without Gareth Barry and Micah Richards. There are doubts also over the fitness of Mario Balotelli, Jack Rodwell and Joe Hart.

Although such a daunting prospect, an opening day visit to Manchester could be the best time to play City. Despite beaming with confidence from last season's dramatic clinch of the Premier League title - City won't be their best, and with with Saints having nothing to lose - they could cause an upset.

Saints don't have a great track record on the opening day of the season. Last year's win against Leeds was the club's first win since 1999. Although Southampton won't expect a good start, the team will learn an incredible amount in their first 90 minutes of Premier League football.

Carling Cup Preview: Swindon - Southampton

Southampton are likely to make several changes as they travel to The County Ground for their tricky encounter with Swindon Town.

Although Saints are flying high in the Championship, they know the threat Swindon possess all too well. During Southampton's two seasons in League One, Swindon beat Saints three times, with Nigel Atkins' side only defeating The Robbins on one occasion. Swindon also embarrassingly dumped Saints out of last season's Johnstone's Paint Trophy with a 3-0 win.

It will be a good test for several players trying to break into the Saints starting line-up. Morgan Schneiderlin, Jonathan Forte and Lee Barnard have all struggled to cement their place in the Southampton team.

They may get a chance tonight, but Paolo Di Canio's team will feel they can cause another upset after turfing out rivals Bristol City in the previous round.

Southampton V Leeds Preview

Southampton V Leeds United

St Mary's Stadium

Saturday August 6, 17.20pm

Southampton start their Championship return with a tricky home game against Leeds. Celebrating the tenth anniversary of football at St Mary's, Saints have a good early test against one of the favourites for promotion.

Alex Chamberlain is still very much a Southampton player. However, the young winger suffered an ankle injury during a pre-season friendly with West Brom, and may not feature in the season opener.

Dean Hammond should return for Southampton in a very competitive and strong midfield which should see Jack Cork and Steve de Ridder make their debuts.

Leeds may various injury problems up front, most notably Luciano Becchio and Davide Soma. However, new singing Darren O'Dea should go into the starting line-up after his move from Celtic.

Both teams will fancy their chances, but Leeds will go into the game as favourites. Having missed out on the playoffs last season, the Yorkshire side will want a good start to the season.

Southampton usually make a slow start to their season, and Leeds' defeat on the opening day against Derby was the first time in 21 years, they had lost on the opening day.

Six-point Easter leaves promotion in Saints' hands

After eighty-four minutes of Southampton's top-of-the-table clash with Brighton it looked bleak for the Saints.

Ashley Barnes' goal in first-half stoppage time had given the league champions the lead, putting Southampton's automatic promotion challenge in jeopardy.

However, a late surge stunned Brighton and gave Nigel Atkin's team a vital three points. David Connolly tied the score before Jose Fonte grabbed the winner in injury time.

Southampton may look back on this result in the summer and pinpoint it as the turning point that could see the Saints playing in The Championship next season.

There was little time for the Saints to relax as they faced Hartlepool on Easter Monday. However, a professional performance from Southampton claimed another three points with a 2-0 win.

A penalty from Ricky Lambert and a late strike from Fonte saw off Hartlepool, but the Saints remain level on points with Huddersfield in the League One table.

Huddersfield, who haven't lost since Southampton thrashed them in December picked up six points of their own over the long weekend. Both teams are on 83 points, but Saints have a better goal difference and a game in hand.

Southampton's extra game takes place next Monday against strugglers, Plymouth Argyle. A win for the Pilgrims could take them out of the danger zone, so expect Plymouth to take the game seriously.

Both Huddersfield and Southampton must play Brentford before the end of the season, but the big game this Saturday sees Huddersfield host Brighton. If Huddersfield fail to win and Saints can take another six points this weekend, they could go into the final weekend knowing promotion is secured.

There is a lot of football left to play, and Saints need to be at their best to secure a place in The Championship. More importantly, Southampton need points no matter how they come.