Inside Info: views from a Leicester fan

It's safe to say Southampton are one of the Premier League's form teams right now. Saying that, this week's opposing manager will be looking to get one over a former club that did him dirty - under different chairmanship, obviously.

Nigel Pearson did a great job at Southampton, helping the Hampshire club survive relegation against all odds back in 2008. Ironically, Saints' successful avoidance of relegation consigned Leicester to relegation down to League One that year.

This week we speak to FourFourTwo Magazine writer and die-hard Leicester fan Joe Brewin ahead of his team's trip to the South Coast. We discuss his disbelief of Esteban Cambiasso sporting a Leicester shirt, the positive impact of his club's foreign ownership, and how awesome that game against Manchester United was.

St. Mary's Musings: How do you feel your season has gone so far?

Joe Brewin: After five games you're thinking this Premier League lark is cakewalk. Taking points off Arsenal and Everton? Beating Stoke and United? Pah. Then you play some so-called lesser sides, play badly and suffer the consequences. Repeat the latter for our last five games and you have our current run that's now made us slip into the bottom three. Pearson is still trying to find the right formula against sides we'll have a bit more of the ball against, but I'm not too worried just yet.

SMM: What were your season expectations before it started and have they changed since?

JB: I expected a dogfight, but for us to just about stay up. I still believe in that. One thing we do have is an excellent team unit, not a bunch of individuals, and it's that you need to get out of the Championship. Our early-season displays should still offer some encouragement.

SMM: How well do you think Leicester bought over the summer? Who has impressed? It looks like Ulloa's goals have dried up considerably.

JB: Reasonably well - we didn't need an influx of new boys really - but Pearson failed to bring in a quality centre-back and we've paid the price in recent games. Liam Moore is an excellent prospect but inexperienced, while Marcin Wasilewski can't always be relied upon to keep a cool head.

I still can't believe Esteban Cambiasso plays football for us, though. He's been in and out with injury so far, but is still a class act and will be particularly big against a free-roaming Tadic. Massive coup for us. Will Ulloa score this weekend? Er, no. Given our recent run I can't see us netting at St Mary's.

SMM: As a Leicester fan, can you sum up THAT United game? I think that match pleased a lot of people across England.

JB: Bonkers, ridiculous, and the best Leicester game I've ever seen. Thankfully I had the pleasure of being there, which made it all the sweeter.

SMM: Us Saints fans loved Nigel Pearson during his short spell in charge. How do you and other Leicester fans view him and the job he's done at Leicester?

JB: There's mild disgruntlement about the current run but Leicester fans trust Pearson implicitly. He's the only good manager we've had in 10 years, achieved unprecedented success and always signed the perfect players for the job. Our owners have backed him all the way (even when it looked like he was on the verge of leaving two or three seasons ago). I wouldn't have anyone else in charge.

SMM: I think both Saints and Leicester are proof that ownership from abroad can be a positive thing, despite the usual 'evil foreign owner' rhetoric. What do you think of the Thai leadership at Leicester?

JB: I have no problems with them whatsoever. Their run at the start was patchy - hiring Sven was bold if ultimately wrong; we massively overspent and left Pearson with a huge rebuilding job. But put it this way - since they've found the right man I've never been scared about him getting the sack for a bad run.

SMM: What did you think of Saints' summer exodus? Are you surprised at how they're faring in the league so far?

JB: It's hard not to be. I expected a mid-table finish (certainly not relegation) but I think it's testament to Ronald Koeman and his ability to rebuild a team that you're doing so well. The exodus was deeply unhelpful of course, but the money was just too good to turn down.

SMM: If you could buy any one Saints player, who would it be and why?

JB: At least you kept Morgan Schneiderlin, arguably the most important of those men who did leave or could have left. I'd love him in my team; combative, comfortable on the ball and even weighing in with goals this season.

SMM: If you could sell any player from Leicester's starting XI, who would it be and why?

JB: We don't really have a proper starting XI at the moment, which isn't great, though there isn't really anyone I'd actively look to get rid of right now. Paul Konchesky (though he's been alright this year) is still our only left-back, and Andy King just isn't quite good enough to be a top-flight regular.

SMM: Finally, what is your prediction for the game?

JB: Eek. At least 2-0 Saints.

SMM: Cheers, Joe!