Southampton will be looking to maintain their Championship automatic promotion hopes on Saturday afternoon.
The Saints are set host Sunderland at St Mary’s, in a game they will likely need to win to remain in touch with the top two.
Russell Martin‘s side saw their midweek clash with Preston North End postponed due to a fire near to St Mary’s.
As a result, they now find themselves eight points adrift of the automatic promotion places.
Because of that, David Prutton now believes this is simply a must win game for Southampton, in their pursuit of a return to the Premier League.
Saints backed to beat Sunderland
Having not played in midweek, Southampton are looking to build on their dramatic 4-3 win at Birmingham City from last weekend.
Sunderland meanwhile, have stagnated somewhat. The decision to replace Tony Mowbray with Michael Beale as manager did work out, with the latter recently being sacked after just two months in charge.
They have also lost the three games they have since his departure, with Mike Dodds in interim charge until the end of the season.
Now, Prutton believes Southampton will inflict another defeat on the Black Cats on Saturday afternoon.
Writing about the game in his regular predictions column for Sky Sports, the former Saints midfielder said:
“Southampton didn’t have a game in midweek and that has left them adrift of the top three right now. They cannot really afford a single slip-up between now and the end of the season, because the pace among the leading pack is just ridiculous.
“Sunderland are drifting badly. Five defeats on the bounce and they are lucky they’ve still got a real cushion over the sides near the bottom or things could get worrying. You never know what could happen, but I can’t see them getting anything at St Mary’s on current form.”
As a result, Prutton has predicted a 3-1 win for Southampton in this game.
A must win match for Southampton
There can be no denying this is a crucial match for the Saints in the context of their season.
With the gap to the top three going, it is vital they build on the momentum they gained from last weekend’s win.
If they do not do that, they risk being cut adrift from the race for a top two spot.
It would also raise further questions about the mentality of this team, if they continue to stutter at such a crucial stage of the campaign.
When you look at the form that Sunderland are in, this also feels like a big opportunity for Southampton.
Not only are the Black Cats out of form, but the Saints surely need this more given how the table is currently set.
That too, should give Martin’s side the motivation they need to go out and get the win here.
It will therefore, feel like a surprise and disappointment if Southampton do not take all three points from this one.