Southampton and Aston Villa will both be hoping to secure a place in the quarter-finals of the League Cup when they meet in the fourth round of the competition at St Mary's.

The home side will be looking to match last year's run to the last eight, while the visitors have already beaten last season's Capital One Cup performance.

Southampton

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Ronald Koeman's side come into this fixture after coming from behind to secure a 1-1 draw with Liverpool at Anfield in the Premier League at the weekend, leaving the side eighth in the table.

Southampton finished that match without Sadio Mane, who scored the equaliser, after he picked up a second yellow card in injury time, which means that he will be suspended for the visit of Villa.

The Saints are unbeaten in their last five matches in all competitions, with their only defeat in their last seven outings coming against Manchester United last month.

Having been involved in the Europa League at the start of the season, Southampton only entered the League Cup in round three, cruising to a 6-0 victory over Championship side MK Dons last time out.

At this stage last year, Koeman's side claimed a 3-2 win over Premier League rivals Stoke City, before being knocked out by League One outfit Sheffield United in the quarter-finals.

Without Mane, Southampton will surely be looking to Graziano Pelle to lead the attack, but the striker has struggled for goals in the last couple of weeks, scoring just once in his last four matches for his club, although he was on target for Italy during the recent international break.

Recent form: LWWWLW
Recent form (all competitions): LWWWDD

Aston Villa

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It has been a difficult couple of days for Aston Villa, with manager Tim Sherwood and his coaching staff relieved of their duties after just eight months at the helm.

Kevin MacDonald, who previously had a spell as caretaker manager when Martin O'Neill resigned in 2010, has been placed in interim charge for this match, with Remi Garde, David Moyes and Dwight Yorke all being linked with the manager's job on a permanent basis.

Sherwood's sacking comes after the team threw away a second-half lead in their 2-1 defeat to Swansea City, which subsequently dropped them to the bottom of the Premier League table.

Turning their attention to the League Cup will be a welcome break from the woes of Premier League for the visitors though, as Villa's only two wins in their last 11 outings have come in this competition. The Midlands side almost fell at the first hurdle, needing extra time to get past League Two side Notts County in round two, but a morale-boosting 1-0 win over local rivals Birmingham City saw them through to this stage.

Villa struggled in this competition last year, losing in the second round to Leyton Orient in their only appearance. In fact, this is their best performance in three years, having been well beaten in the third round by Tottenham Hotspur in the previous year.

Goals have been something of a struggle for Villa, with Jordan Ayew's goal against Swansea at the weekend their first in three fixtures. Villa have only scored more than one goal three times in the league so far, but have failed to win any of those fixtures.

Recent form: WWLLWW
Recent form (all competitions): LWLLLL

Team News

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Sadio Mane has to serve a one-match suspension following his red card against Liverpool, so Koeman will be forced to make a change in midfield.

With Shane Long and Jay Rodriguez both missing time with injuries in recent weeks, the manager could turn to Gaston Ramirez, who made his first appearance in the league this season on Sunday. He also came on for Mane in the second half of the win over MK Dons in the last round.

Kevin MacDonald has a fully fit squad to chose from for his first match in charge, but he could look to make changes to a side that struggled late on against Swansea at the weekend.

Jack Grealish could be rested, having only recently returned from injury, while Jordan Amavi could come back in, having been left on the bench at the weekend.

Southampton possible starting lineup:
Stekelenburg, Soares, Fonte, Van Dijk, Bertrand, Clasie, Ward-Prowse, Davis, Ramirez, Tadic, Pelle

Aston Villa possible starting lineup:
Guzan, Hutton, Richards, Lescott, Amavi, Bacuna, Gueye, Ayew, Gil, Traore, Gestede

Head To Head

Villa will be hoping to avoid a repeat of their last visit to St Mary's, having lost 6-1 when they last faced Southampton in May, during which Mane scored the fastest hat-trick in Premier League history.

The visitors have beaten Southampton just once in their last six meetings with the Saints, while the two teams have never faced each other in a cup competition before.

In 60 meetings in the league, Southampton have won 21 fixtures, while Aston Villa have 22 previous wins against this week's opponents and 17 games have ended level.

We say: Southampton 3-0 Aston Villa

Aston Villa have been struggling to score goals in recent weeks, while letting in plenty down the other end, so the home side will be looking for another comfortable win, just a few months after thrashing Villa 6-1. Although Koeman is missing a few players, Pelle will be keen to end his recent drought, while it also gives fringe players like Ramirez a chance to catch the manager's eye.

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