Southampton will round off their preparations for the new Premier League campaign with a clash against La Liga outfit Getafe on Saturday afternoon.
The Saints will enter the match off the back of a 1-1 draw with Lazio on Wednesday evening, while Getafe recorded a 1-0 victory over Saint-Etienne in their last pre-season contest.
Match preview
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Southampton played their sixth pre-season friendly on Wednesday evening against Lazio, with an ill-tempered affair finishing 1-1; Ben Brereton Diaz sent the Premier League side ahead in the early exchanges, before Valentin Castellanos levelled the scores in the 32nd minute.
The Saints have had a successful pre-season in terms of results, beating Eastleigh, Bordeaux, Montpellier and Millwall, but they suffered a 2-0 defeat to Oxford United at the end of July.
Russell Martin's side will conclude their preparations for the new campaign on Saturday afternoon, before opening their 2024-25 Premier League season away to Newcastle United on August 17.
Southampton secured a return to the top flight through last season's Championship playoffs, and the club have been incredibly active during this summer's transfer window, signing 12 players in total.
The Saints will be looking to cement a spot in the Premier League once again, and their first home match of the new campaign will take place against Nottingham Forest on August 24.
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Getafe, meanwhile, recorded their first pre-season victory on Wednesday, beating Saint-Etienne 1-0, with the result following three straight losses against Real Oviedo, Real Zaragoza and Atletico Madrid.
Jose Bordalas's side will round off their preparations for the new campaign against Southampton, before opening their 2024-25 La Liga season away to Athletic Bilbao on August 15.
The Deep Blue Ones finished 12th in La Liga last season, which proved to be their highest spot in Spain's top flight since claiming eighth in 2019-20.
Getafe have made six signings so far this summer, while there have also been six departures, so the squad has been freshened for the new campaign.
The capital outfit were only three points off the top half of the table in La Liga last season and will certainly be looking to push towards the top 10 during the 2024-25 campaign.
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Team News
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Southampton head coach Martin will make changes to the side that started against Lazio, with Taylor Harwood-Bellis and Flynn Downes among those expected to come into the XI.
Brereton Diaz scored on his first start against Lazio, and the forward should again be in the XI, while Carlos Alcaraz is also set to feature in the final third of the field.
Martin will again make changes throughout the contest, but he will want to build the fitness of the players that are expected to be in the starting side for the season opener against Newcastle.
Getafe could have Peter Federico, Carles Perez and Alex Sola as their front three on Saturday, while a familiar midfield should include both Carles Alena and Mauro Arambarri.
New signing Diego Rico should feature at left-back, with Juan Iglesias expected to play on the opposite side.
Borja Mayoral missed the end of last season with a serious knee injury, but the Spaniard is back to fitness and should be involved in the team's final friendly of the summer.
Southampton possible starting lineup:
McCarthy; Bree, Bednarek, Harwood-Bellis, Manning; Smallbone, Downes, Charles; Alcaraz, Brereton Diaz, Mara
Getafe possible starting lineup:
Soria; Iglesias, Alderete, Djene, Rico; Arambarri, Milla, Alena; Peter, C Perez, Sola
We say: Southampton 2-1 Getafe
This should be a competitive match, which is what both managers will be after at this stage of pre-season. It would not be a surprise to see a draw, but we have a feeling that Southampton will be able to navigate their way to a victory in their final friendly game of the summer.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Matt Law
