MARTIN KEOWN TALKS TACTICS: No excuses. Gary O’Neil will have to be brave to stop Wolves’ dismal run in the Premier League

If you’re looking for the most driven Premier League game this weekend, look no further than Molineux.

This is the very definition of a “must win” for Wolves and for Southampton. Here we have two teams whose combined 20 games throughout the season have produced just one win.

And last weekend saw a 1-0 win for Southampton over Everton that saw Russell Martin’s side change their approach. Previously, they played it safe and switched from one side to the other without punching through.

As good as that stat looked in terms of possession rating, it did little to catapult them up the table, which is what’s really important. It felt like a major event when a pass was played forward through the lines. If you want to give yourself a chance of staying in the league, you have to play determined, possession-oriented football, be brave and take risks to make it worthwhile. Last weekend, Southampton finally showed expression in their attacking play.

This included them making a clever move to open up their opponents, allowing Adam Armstrong to score the winning goal. Despite Southampton having the worst possession record in the league, they increased their intensity for the game against Everton and managed more recoveries than in any other game all season.

Southampton climbed past Wolves after their first win of the season in the Premier League

Despite the slow start, Russell Martin remains true to his possession-based system

It’s an incredibly young team playing under Martin and lacks overall experience at this elite level, but I like what I’ve seen from Tyler Dibling.

At just 18, he is a very confident midfielder, a Jack Grealish type with low socks and lots of energy and an academy graduate who believes he belongs at this level. He has made it into England’s under-21 squad, while 22-year-old Taylor Harwood-Bellis received his own confidence boost by being called up to Lee Carsley’s senior squad after just 10 Premier League appearances.

There needs to be more confidence across the board and Southampton need to build on the momentum they created last weekend by continuing to play football without fear.

That’s what’s needed today if Wolves hope it’s their turn to capitalize on their home advantage and bring the visitors back down to earth. Of the seven defeats they have suffered under Gary O’Neil this season, six have come against Arsenal, Chelsea, Newcastle, Aston Villa, Liverpool and Manchester City.

Games you might have expected to lose. But with just one win in their last 20 league games, O’Neil knows the season must start today. These Wolves players need to stand up for their manager. If O’Neil fails to score three important points here, it will be incredibly difficult for him to stand in front of a press conference again and explain for the umpteenth time why he didn’t get what he wanted.