Southampton boss Russell Martin risks egg on his face after pre-game Liverpool remark
Russell Martin welcomed the end of a third international break in as many months as he gears up for his Southampton side to host Liverpool in the Premier League.Top plays bottom on Sunday, when Arne Slot's high-flying Reds take on 20th-placed Saints, and Martin is looking forward to the return of club football and the chance for his side to get into a rhythm, with no further international breaks scheduled until March.“I love the intensity of the festive period and the schedule. It’s a brilliant month to look forward to” Martin said. “Thank goodness the international breaks are done and we can build up some momentum.”Whether Martin is feeling as positive after facing Europe's most in-form team remains to be seen, but for now he is excited about the prospect of pitting his wits against Slot.“You can talk about the level of difficulty in opposition we face but this is what we have worked so hard for," Martin added. "I am excited to play the best team in the country at the moment.”Southampton may only have picked up four points from a possible 33 so far this season, but Slot will not be taking Martin's side lightly come Sunday."I would say [they’re] much more than a capable team," Slot said during his pre-match press conference on Friday. "I’ve seen them already playing against City and Arsenal and against Wolves. Those are the three games I’ve seen already and with two more days coming up I will probably see one or two more."They’ve shown that they are very, very capable of playing teams like us. I think it was against [Manchester] United where they had a penalty first, so they’ve been in my opinion a bit unlucky. The playing style has been excellent and they’ve been in almost every game. They could’ve had a result in almost every game they’ve played."I know everybody is looking at [Liverpool's upcoming games against] Madrid and City as difficult, but in my opinion Southampton is going to be a difficult one as well."
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