‘Damaging’: Chris Sutton predicts result of Southampton v Leeds clash today

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Southampton and Leeds United lock horns on Saturday in their second Premier League fixture of the season.

The Saints and the Whites finished in 15th and 17th place respectively in last season’s table.

However, Southampton and Leeds have begun their respective campaigns in contrasting manner.

Ralph Hasenhuttl’s charges fell to a humbling 4-1 defeat away at Tottenham Hotspur.

Meanwhile, Jesse Marsch’s side came from behind to beat Wolverhampton Wanderers 2-1 at Elland Road.

“I’m not entirely sure how”

BBC Sport pundit Chris Sutton has tipped Leeds for relegation, so his match prediction is somewhat conflicted.

He joked that the Whites “will probably win this week too”, though he tipped Southampton to win 2-1.

“Leeds got off to a good start by beating Wolves and they are one of my tips for relegation, which means they will probably win this week too,” Sutton wrote on the BBC website.

“Southampton got spanked by Tottenham last weekend after taking the lead.

“Saints have gone to a back three after using it in pre-season. And although going to Spurs was a very difficult start to the season for them, it is hard to tell how damaging that defeat will be.

“Because I’ve got Leeds going down, they can’t keep on winning. I saw the stat on MOTD2 that, if a team takes eight points from their first five games, they have a 96% chance of staying in the Premier League.

“So, I am going to go with Southampton to bounce back here – although I’m not entirely sure how they will do it.”

Overall, Leeds have the better historical record against Southampton (Sportskeeda).

The Whites have won 47 out of the 96 matches played between the two teams, as opposed to the Saints’ 28 victories.

However, Southampton have won four of their last matches against Leeds across the first, second and third tier.