Bournemouth vs Southampton: Match Preview, Classic Encounter, Recent Form, Key Battle and More

Southampton will make the short journey along the South Coast to Bournemouth on Sunday with both sides are hoping to bounce back from midweek defeats. 

The Saints came within seconds of becoming only the second side to take points off Manchester City this season on Wednesday but had their hearts broken by Raheem Sterling. Bournemouth were beaten 2-1 by Burnley.

With no league fixture against Portsmouth for either this is a game both sets of supporters want to win and here is all you need to know. 

Classic Encounter

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Back in March 2011, Bournemouth vs Southampton was a key game in the League One promotion race. 

It was the first meeting between the two at Dean Court since 1960 and Bournemouth started well with a goal from Lauri Dalla Valle on six minutes. Lee Barnard levelled for the Saints and second half goals from Dean Hammond and Rickie Lambert sealed the win. 

Southampton moved ahead of Bournemouth into 4th in the table and would go up to the Championship automatically while the Cherries would suffer play-off heartbreak against Huddersfield. 

Recent Form

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After a slow start, Bournemouth had picked up form before Wednesday night's reverse at home to Burnley. Eddie Howe's side had won three of their previous games in the Premier League with away wins against Stoke and Newcastle plus a 4-0 drubbing of Huddersfield at the Vitality. The Burnley defeat was Bournemouth's 4th at home this season already, they only lost six at home in the whole of last season.

Southampton are also involved in the tight mid table battle but picked up a hugely important 4-1 win over Everton last weekend. That was before their impressive showing at the Etihad on Wednesday night. Away form has been an issue for Mauricio Pellegrino with their sole away win coming against bottom side Crystal Palace. The Saints haven't scored twice away from home since a 4-2 loss against Chelsea in April. 

Key Battle

Callum Wilson v Virgil Van Dijk

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The Southampton defence came out of Wednesday night's trip to the Etihad with a huge amount of credit having frustrated the free scoring leaders for large parts of the match. Saints captain Virgil van Dijk will be hoping to produce a similar performance against Bournemouth's main striker Callum Wilson who scored a superb hat trick against Huddersfield a fortnight ago. 

Prediction 

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This feels a key game for both sides with tricky fixture on the horizon for both. Southampton face Arsenal at home next weekend while Bournemouth have away trips to a resurgent Crystal Palace and Manchester United upcoming. Southampton appear to have turned a corner with performances in recent weeks and could be too strong at the Vitality for the second successive season.

Prediction: Bournemouth 1-2 Southampton