Rotation is expected for Southampton’s FA Cup tie at Swansea but who are the youngsters that could feature?

Southampton are set to play their first game of 2022 this weekend as they travel to Championship outfit Swansea City in the Third Round of the FA Cup.

The game will also be the club’s first under the ownership of Sport Athletic, which acquired Jisheng Gao’s 80% stake in the South Coast outfit on Tuesday.

The Saints were expected to kick the year off last Sunday with a Premier League home game against Newcastle United, but the fixture was postponed with the Magpies battling a mixture of COVID-19 cases and injuries.

Instead, they will end an 11-day wait for a game when they visit Russell Martin’s Swansea City side, looking to put together another run in the FA Cup.

Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side made it to the semi-final of the competition last season, losing 1-0 to eventual winners Leicester City at Wembley.

Southampton and Swansea are no strangers to each other as they faced each other as recently as July, with the Saints emerging 3-1 victors in a friendly.

Hassenhuttl will surely be keen to have another go at putting together a cup run, but it is expected that there will be some changes, with three youngsters in particular potentially in line for debuts.

Who exactly will be given the chance to make an impression on Hasenhuttl heading into the second half of the season?

Dynel Simeu

Arguably the most well-known regular for the B-team amongst the Southampton fanbase, Simeu joined his hometown club from Chelsea in the summer.

The 19-year-old centre-back has impressed for Southampton-B this season, making 15 appearances in Premier League 2 and scoring two goals with the Saints sat ninth in the table.

The Englishman was also an unused substitute in the Premier League games against West Ham and Tottenham Hotspur and could be in line for his first-team debut.

Thierry Small

Also a summer signing whose arrival was well documented by the club, Small has also been impressing for the B-team.

Initially signed to be involved with the first team, the 17-year-old left-back arrived on the South Coast with catching up to do regarding his fitness after leaving Everton last season.

Now with nine appearances and three goals scored for the B-team, this appears to be Small’s opportunity in the first team.

However, being a left-back may hinder the Englishman’s opportunities in the Premier League with both Kyle Walker-Peters and Romain Perraud impressing thus far.

The 17-year-old has played in the FA Cup before, making his Everton debut last season against Sheffield Wednesday with a five-minute cameo but is in line to start for the Saints in South Wales.

Kazeem Olaigbe

A name that has not often been thrown into the discussion of breakthrough stars this season is Kazeem Olaigbe, who has arguably been the B-team’s best performer this campaign.

Having turned 19 last week, the Belgium under-19 international has scored 10 goals and contributed three assists in 17 appearances for Southampton-B this term and could prove a useful asset for Hasenhuttl if the Austrian faces an injury crisis amongst his forward options at some point during the rest of the season.

The forward’s form was a major catalyst to David Horseman’s side’s upturn in results and has been a regular after impressing for the under-18s last season.

Knowing Ralph Hasenhuttl, there will be a handful of first-team regulars in the starting lineup on Saturday, most likely the engine that is James Ward-Prowse, but it will certainly prove a decent opportunity for any youngsters or fringe players to make a statement against a Swansea side that hasn’t played in almost a month.

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