Former Southampton striker Dean Hammond has backed the Saints to edge out Manchester United in a close EFL Cup final on Sunday.

The game will be Southampton’s first appearance in a major cup final since suffering a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Arsenal in the FA Cup final in 2003 at the Millennium Stadium and the Saints are ready to make the most of it.




Manchester United are being backed to beat the Saints at Wembley on Sunday and lift the EFL Cup, but Hammond believes anything can happen in a one off game on any given day.

The former Saints striker believes that Southampton have enough good young players in the squad to provide a fight this Sunday and he feels that in a close encounter, the south coast have the ability to shade it against Jose Mourinho’s men.
 


Hammon told the club’s official website: "Obviously, it's a one-off game in the final, anything can happen, playing Manchester United, which is one of the biggest teams in the world, but I think the manager's doing a really good job there.  

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“They've got young boys coming through, so it will be a great experience for them.

"They'll have a game plan on the day. I'm confident if they can perform like they did against Liverpool then they've got a really good chance.

“It will be a close game I think, it won't be an open game, it won't be a 4-3 or a 3-3.

"It will be a tight game, but I think Southampton will edge it.”

Southamton have not won a major domestic cup competition since winning the FA Cup in 1976 and on the other hand Manchester United won the FA Cup last season.