Russell Martin is expected to hand opportunities to a number of Southampton players that have so far been on the periphery in the Carabao Cup tie against Cardiff City on Wednesday.
Southampton have started their Premier League return with two 1-0 defeats at the hands of Newcastle United and Nottingham Forest.
Whilst for some the Carabao Cup may be viewed as an unwelcome distraction, Russell Martin will see the game away at Cardiff City as an opportunity to earn a confidence-building win as well as take a look at a number of his players.
So far, Martin has named the same starting XI in both games this season, with Yukinari Sugawara and Ben Brereton Diaz the only two players who weren’t at the club last season to break into the side.
However, with a cup game just three days before Brentford in the league, here are three players who could break into the Premier League team with a good performance against Cardiff.
Lesley Ugochukwu should get Southampton debut against Cardiff City
The first of the three players is Lesley Ugochukwu who joined on loan for the season from Chelsea on the eve of the season-opener against Newcastle.
A defensive midfielder, Ugochukwu has been signed to operate either alongside Flynn Downes or to provide competition for him and should come in for the 25-year-old against Cardiff.
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It will be exciting for Southampton fans to get their first glimpse of the 20-year-old Chelsea saw fit to spend £23.5 million to sign a year ago, with his towering presence and athleticism meaning he has all the tools to be a top player.
A strong showing against Cardiff could see Martin rethink the set-up of his midfield in order to accommodate both Ugochukwu and Downes in the same team.
Cameron Archer expected to be handed first Southampton start
Cameron Archer was signed on the same day as Ugochukwu and was thrown straight into the squad for the Newcastle defeat in which he came off the bench to make his Saints debut.
He followed that up with another appearance off the bench against Nottingham Forest and will look to get his first start for his new club against Cardiff.
Archer will have been disappointed last season as he struggled to prove himself in the Premier League for relegated Sheffield United but a goal in midweek could see him replace Adam Armstrong in the side against Brentford.
It is not unreasonable to suggest that Ben Brereton Diaz, Archer and Armstrong could all play in the same team if Martin opts to revert to last season’s 4-3-3 after struggling to create in a 3-5-2 so far this campaign.
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Mateus Fernandes could resolve Southampton lack of spark with Cardiff display
After a long and unsuccessful pursuit of Celtic attacking midfielder Matt O’Riley – who has now signed for Brighton – Southampton gave Sporting £15 million to sign Mateus Fernandes.
The 20-year-old comes highly-rated but with little experience having had his first taste of regular senior football on loan at Estoril last season.
- READ MORE: Who is Mateus Fernandes? The ‘complete’ £16m gem set to become Southampton’s 11th summer signing
He played a deeper role for Estoril but is likely to be viewed as a more advanced midfielder by Martin who will hope Fernandes can show he is capable of providing moments of magic that could make the difference in the Premier League against Cardiff.
Given Cardiff are a Championship side they should provide Fernandes and his team-mates a stern test and Martin will know a lot more about his new signings in particular by 10pm on Wednesday night.