Carabao Cup: Southampton vs Wolves

Southampton vs Wolves – Wednesday 23rd August 2017 – 19:45

Southampton are 2/5 with Shane Long, Charlie Austin and Manolo Gabbiadini at 4/1 to score first.

Southampton face Wolves at St.Mary's on Wednesday evening, in a tantalizing second round match in the Carabao Cup.

The Saints come into this match in good form, after their first win of the new Premier League season.

They beat West Ham 3-2 at St.Mary's, putting the disappointment of the opening week's draw behind them.

Manolo Gabbiadini opened the scoring for the Saints (11), with the Italian looking to enjoy a successful full season.

Marco Arnautovic was sent off for West Ham (33), after an elbow on Jack Stephens, with the Austrian yet to justify his transfer.

Dusan Tadic doubled the scoring for Southampton, after Steven Davis was hauled down by Jose Fonte (38).

Slaven Bilic will have been disappointed that Tadic was still on the pitch, after a reckless lunge on Javier Hernandez.

Javier Hernandez (45) scored a consolation goal just before the break, before returning to level the scoring in the 74th minute.

Charlie Austin won a thrilling contest with a late penalty (90+3), a controversial decision after Zabaleta nudged Maya Yoshida.

Unbeaten Start

Southampton's last gasp win means they are unbeaten, having registered four points from their opening two home games.

They beat West Ham and suffered a frustrating draw against Swansea, they have been lucky with the scheduling so far.

This match will be Southampton's third straight home fixture, with a confident Wolves side heading to St.Mary's.

It remains to be seen how much of a priority this cup will be to the Saints, although they progressed to the final last year.

Saints Favourites

Southampton come into this match as the favourites, with their unbeaten start and Premier League status informing the bookies.

This will be a tough assignment for Pellegrino's men, with Wolves enjoying a great start to their Championship campaign.

The Saints will be looking for their 15th victory in 36 matches against Wolves.

Great Start

Wolves come into this match in great form, despite losing narrowly to Championship leaders Cardiff at the weekend.

Both sides headed into this match unbeaten, with three wins from their opening three Championship matches.

Joe Ralls pounced to give Cardiff a deserved lead (54), with Neil Warnock's side enjoying an excellent campaign so far.

It didn't take Wolves long to respond, with Leo Bonatini ensuring that Wolves were level within thirteen minutes (67).

Nathaniel Mendez-Laing scored the winner thirteen minutes from time (77), his strike earning Cardiff all three points with a 2-1 win.

Good Start

It's been an excellent start for Wolves, they are third in the Sky Bet Championship after four matches.

Their only blemish this season has been the defeat against Cardiff, with Neil Warnock's side in excellent form.

Their record this season has been excellent, with four wins and one defeat in their opening five matches of the season

They secured their passage to this round at the expense of Yeovil, who they beat 1-0.

Wolves Underdogs

Wolves come into this match as underdogs, with Southampton's Premier League status decisive for the bookies.

The visitors will be looking to pull of a huge win at St.Mary's, with the Championship side looking to recover from the weekend's defeat.

Wolves will be looking to make it three wins in four matches against the Saints.

Wolves are 7/1 with Leo Bonatini at 7/1 to open the scoring.

Betting Tips

Tip 1 – Austin to score first @ 4/1

Tip 2 – Wolves to win 2-1 @ 22/1