Charlie Austin could play some part in the trip to the London Stdium on Saturday with Mark Hughes confirming that he is back with the squad.
Saints fans will be pleased to hear that Charlie Austin could be returning to the Saints squad for the vital game against West Ham United, that is good news in that despite not having played since mid December Austin is still the clubs leading scorer and is the one man who really knows how to put the ball in the net in the Saints squad.
Mark Hughes commented ahead of his first game in charge in the Premier League for Saints.
"We're hopeful, he [Charlie] is very keen to be involved," the boss asserted. "We've got to be mindful that he's been out for some time, it was a significant injury.
"The medical staff have been reviewing Charlie's injury, so we get a better understanding of what he needs to come back in to the team and how we manage him.
"He's done exceptionally well to get back so quickly, and he's a goalscorer. Clearly one of the issues has been a lack of goals, and when Charlie had a run in the side his record was there for all to see.
"He's instinctive and tests keepers so if we can welcome him back for this key period, clearly that is going to help us."
Hughes is spot on, the return of Austin is a big boost, whilst our rivals down in the relegation scrap have played all their cards in that in the main they have changed their manager earlier in the season and signed players in the transfer window, in the main they have been playing with full squads, the return of Austin from a long term injury is almost like a new signing and he is the one man that can ut the ball in the net with regularity.
But Austin is unlikely to start the game, the clue is in the words from Mark Hughes, they want to make sure he is available for the whole of the rest of the season and he won't be rushed, however he is likely to be on the bench on Saturday and that will be a big boost, if we need goals late on he is the one man at the club you would back to get them.