da bet vitoria： With the news that Southampton striker Danny Ings has been ruled out of Friday’s game, Newcastle’s chances of clinching a second successive victory in the Premier League has undoubtedly gone up.
da pixbet： The England international has been the Saints’ talisman for a few seasons now, finishing just behind Leicester’s Jamie Vardy in the Golden Boot race last season, and starting the current campaign on fire too, netting five goals in eight games across all competitions.
So the fact Ings won’t be a part of the Southampton side that takes on Newcastle on Friday night is a major boost for Steve Bruce. But whilst that has gone in their favour, they could go even further on their path to clinching a victory by stopping one of the striker’s in-form teammates: James Ward-Prowse.
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Rated at £18m by Transfermarkt, the midfielder has been a vital part of Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side this season, playing the full 90 minutes in each of their opening seven league games, wearing the armband for six of them.
His last two matches have been particularly impressive, netting in a 2-0 win over Everton a couple of weeks ago, before bagging a brace and providing an assist in Southampton’s thrilling 4-3 victory over Aston Villa last weekend.
The England international offers the kind of unique threat that you don’t see much of in the Premier League anymore, namely a dead-ball specialist who is currently right up there with the very best of them across Europe.
He struck two perfect free-kicks in that win over Villa, and his teammate, Jannik Vestergaard, couldn’t help but admire his talents after the game. The central defender said: “I think the second goal was even more impressive than the first he did. It was so close to the goal, to get it up and over the wall, there are not many football players that can do that. It was very impressive.”
And adding to that, his manager was equally keen on praising him. Hasenhuttl said: “It’s no coincidence he is our captain, he’s our role model for what we stand for – he’s an unbelievable fighter for the team. When he gets a chance around the box he is unbelievable. On free kicks he is amazing and he is getting better.”
On Friday, it goes without saying that Newcastle absolutely must avoid giving away cheap free-kicks in and around the box, and limiting the number of corners they allow can also go a long way to stopping the Saints.
Ings may not be there, but Ward-Prowse will be, and it’s up to the Magpies to stop him.