TWO strikers unlucky to miss out on a senior international England call come face to face at St Mary's this afternoon.

James Beattie lines up for Saints while Jermain Defoe is expected to be in the Hammers starting line-up after impressing Sven Goran Eriksson in his last outing against Sunderland a fortnight ago.

Eriksson wanted Defoe to link up with his senior squad for the Euro 2004 qualifiers against Liechtenstein and Turkey, but instead joined the England Under-21 squad instead after a plea from boss David Platt.

"When I joined up with the Under-21 squad David Platt said 'It is my fault that you didn't go with the full squad because you were supposed to go with Sven.'

"He was at the game against Sunderland and he said: 'He wants you,' but I said to him: 'I want you for our game.'

"He said to Sven that there is no point going with the seniors to sit on the bench or sit in the stand when I could play for him, so I could understand that - David is someone with experience who I look up to and it is nice to be wanted by him."

Defoe, who has scored ten goals for West Ham this season in league and cup including one in his last outing in the 2-0 win over fellow strugglers Sunderland, described today's St Mary's game as 'massive'.

"We need to win and I think we can do with the players we have got.

"It is going to be tough because Southampton are playing well and obviously James Beattie is on fire.

"But the way we have been playing the last few weeks we can get a result, even though it won't be easy at their place."

Defoe spent a hugely successful loan period with Bournemouth two seasons ago when he scored 18 goals in 27 Division Two starts, including netting in his first ten appearances for the Cherries.

The 20-year-old said Beattie's international omission was 'strange', adding: "I thought he would have been in the squad, even though in the game against Australia he was only on for 45 minutes.

"It is difficult to play for only that length of time, especially when it is your first cap, and I thought he would have got another chance with the goals that he has scored.

"He deserves it anyway, and it is strange he hasn't got another opportunity."

Lee Bowyer, meanwhile, returns to the West Ham squad today after completing a two-match ban.

The only injury doubt is midfielder Michael Carrick, who picked up a stomach strain

playing for England Under-21s last week. He faces a late fitness test.

Hammers keeper David James, meanwhile, will be bidding to extend his run of clean sheets to six - he has kept three in a row for his club and two for England.