Paul Merson contradicts himself as he shares bold Southampton score prediction against Everton

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It’s only the 10th match of the Premier League season but Southampton have already entered must-win territory as they take on Everton this weekend.

Southampton have endured a miserable start to the campaign, and although they only lost 1-0 against Manchester City last time out, they’ve now taken just one point from a possible 27.

It makes for grim reading as they sit rock bottom of the table and despite Saints booking their place in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals on Tuesday, there is little optimism that their fortunes will change in the league.

Russell Martin’s men host an Everton side who have turned a corner in recent weeks, with Sean Dyche’s side going on a five-match unbeaten run to drag themselves five points clear of the bottom three.

• READ MORE: Russell Martin now knows he pulled a transfer blinder at Southampton with ‘exceptional’ talent

Paul Merson shares Southampton vs Everton score prediction

The next two games could decide Martin’s future in the dugout as Southampton host the Toffees before travelling to Wolves, the side one point and one place above them in the table.

With each week that passes by without a win, the gap between them and escaping the relegation zone increases, and they’re currently five points adrift of safety.

Contrary to what the table reads, the players still love Martin and want him to remain as manager, although that could be detrimental to any hopes they have of surviving.

Ahead of the relegation six-pointer at St Marys, former Arsenal forward Paul Merson was critical of the Saints but praised Everton for their recent upturn in form.

However, despite not saying anything positive about Southampton in his preview for Sportskeeda, he’s surprisingly predicted the hosts to secure a massive 2-1 victory.

“Everton will know exactly how Southampton will want to play against them,” Merson wrote. “The Saints will take a million chances by trying to play out from the back and Sean Dyche will have a plan ready. Someone should tell Southampton that this kind of stuff only works on PlayStation!

“Everton are now five games unbeaten and are enjoying a bit of a good run. They will squeeze Southampton and it will only be a matter of time before Everton get the ball and score in my opinion. If Southampton and Ipswich don’t win this weekend, that’s 20 league games between them without a win. These teams are definitely in trouble.”

• READ MORE: What the Southampton dressing room currently thinks of Russell Martin as ‘massive’ verdict shared

Southampton vs Everton head-to-head record

This is the biggest game of Southampton’s season so far as a win would see the visitors pull 11 points clear of the Saints while a home victory would see that gap close to just five points.

In their fight for survival and with a tricky fixture list to come, 11 points could be potentially insurmountable, whereas the gap of five gives them a glimmer of hope heading into their trip to Molineux.

For Southampton, in particular, anything other than three points simply isn’t enough and luckily, their recent form against the Toffees makes for good reading.

The South Coasters have won three of their last four against the Merseysiders, including a recent penalty shootout win in September’s Carabao Cup tie.

Hopefully, Martin can conjure up some magic and secure a priceless three points this weekend, otherwise, it’s a long way back for him.