Journalist Tom Barclay thinks Southampton will look to Tino Livramento to get some joy against Aston Villa's Matt Targett when the two teams face each other tonight.
Livramento has been one of the finds of the Premier League season so far since arriving at St Mary's in August, and he may fancy his chances of causing Targett some problems, who was previously on Southampton's books until 2019.
What's the latest news at Southampton and Aston Villa?
The two sides have had vastly contrasting fortunes in recent weeks. Southampton are currently on a three-match unbeaten streak in the league, which includes two wins.
Livramento got his first goal for the Saints during this run when he found the net against Burnley last month.
Meanwhile, Villa lost all four of their top-flight matches in October, and need to bounce back quickly. Last month. they conceded 12 goals, and the pressure is cranking up on Targett and his teammates.
Targett has started each of Villa's last eight league fixtures, but he could face a tough task in keeping Livramento quiet on the South Coast.
What has Barclay said about Livramento and Targett?
Barclay has been very impressed by Livramento over the last couple of months, especially with the youngster being just 18 years of age.
He feels Southampton will want the right-back to test Targett from the outset later today.
Speaking about Livramento, he told GIVEMESPORT: “He’s such a threat going forward, and he’s played a big part in their clean sheets as well. So, with that raw pace and power, as well as his technical ability obviously, that should be a side of the pitch that Southampton will look to exploit.”
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Will this be a key match-up?
It could well be.
Targett is arguably more comfortable when defending rather than moving into the final third, but Livramento could give him plenty to think about.
The teenager has shown that he is not afraid to get forward and put crosses into the box, so Targett will have to be aware of this and figure out a way to combat Livramento's threat.
If he manages to do this, Villa could have a decent chance of ending their losing run, but if he comes off second best, it could lead to the Villans suffering a fifth straight defeat.
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