Can in-form Jack Stephens keep out top-scoring West Ham in toughest Southampton test yet?
West Ham United will be aiming to leapfrog Swansea City to the top of the Championship table when they play Southampton on Saturday.
Nuno Espirito Santo's side have been the clear entertainers so far, with 30 goals already put away with ease, across just 11 league outings.
On their own patch, they have found the back of the net a crazy 15 times from only five home outings. Safe to say, it will be a tough challenge for Tonda Eckert's side to collect all three points.
But, the Saints have put their away day jinx behind them, as they won 1-0 away at Norwich City earlier in the month, to clinch their first away win this season in the second tier.
Jack Stephens will also be the formidable captain in the heart of the Saints defence on Saturday, looking to keep the free-flowing Hammers at bay, with the veteran defender enjoying a remarkable purple patch of form at the moment.
Stephens is one of the first names on the teamsheet
Towards the start of the season, the general feeling when it came to Stephens would have been one of irritation.
Indeed, he was extremely error-prone on the opening day of the season against Watford, leading to the Hornets racing into a two-goal lead early into the match.
They would win the match 2-1, as many Saints fans called for Stephens to be dropped from the starting XI for good.
Now, however, he's firmly one of the first names on Eckert's teamsheet, after some time in and out of the starting XI, with Stephens picking up three clean sheets on the bounce in October.
He's had to dig deep to protect Daniel Peretz, as well, with the Saints down to ten men for the entire second half in the South Coast Derby.
This man disadvantage didn't dampen Stephens' spirits, however, as he valiantly battled away to steer Eckert and Co. to a gritty 1-0 win.
He did the same on the road in Norfolk, and he did what was required of him during the 0-0 draw against Bolton, too, to ensure Steven Schumacher's men didn't grab a late winner from nowhere.
He has suddenly gone from an accident waiting to happen in the backline, to being a dependable rock.
While this turnaround will be heartening, it would be an almighty shame if this change of narrative came crashing down, as Southampton are on the receiving end of a pasting at the London Stadium.
This will be his toughest test yet
Stephens will know he's in for a mammoth test keeping West Ham contained, as Nuno's promotion favourites have so many exciting and tricky attackers.
Jarrod Bowen is a joke to have at Championship level, and he boasts a stunning 11 goal contributions from 11 second tier games this season.
To make matters even more alarming, the red-hot Hammers captain has scored across his last three meetings against the South Coast titans, too.
There are also the likes of Manor Solomon and Joel Piroe to thwart, alongside Konstantinos Mavropanos popping up with five goals from the back.
Yet, Southampton have their own eye-catching attackers to hand, such as Finn Azaz, who rivals Bowen in the goals and assists department with nine goal contributions.
If Stephens does struggle with the occasion at hand, the best gameplan could be just to outscore the hosts, with a 3-2 win back in 2021 for the Saints sticking out as a matchup between the two sides that overflowed with entertainment.
But, the 32-year-old will be back himself to be able to pull off another unbelievable shutout, as he does have two 0-0 draws in his back pocket when facing West Ham, casting an eye at previous meetings.
The last time he lined up at the London Stadium, as he donned the armband, Southampton drew 1-1 under the interim reign of Simon Rusk.
That's a result that would be taken right now, with Stephens winning a combined nine tackles and duels during that spirited performance.
More of the same wouldn't go amiss on Saturday, as two Championship heavyweights butt heads.
