Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl on avoiding relegation

The Bluebirds’ 2-1 win on Saturday at St Mary’s plunged Hasenhuttl’s side back into the relegation zone with 12 games to go.

But the Austrian reckons the league table will tell a different story come May.

He said: “We were five points behind them [when I took over], now we are one point behind them.

“Let’s see who is in front at the end of the season.”

Saints are currently battling against Cardiff, Burnley and Newcastle, Brighton and Crystal Palace to avoid dropping down to the Championship.

The Daily Echo has predicted the results of the final 12 games from the teams involved in the dogfight.

SAINTS [24PTS]

Three of their next four games are against Arsenal, Manchester United and Tottenham, so you can’t expect Hasenhuttl’s side to pick up many points from those fixtures.

Apart from Liverpool, Saints’ run of home matches towards the end of the season includes winnable games against Bournemouth and Huddersfield.

How we see their final 12 games going:

Arsenal (a) L
Fulham (h) W
Man U (a) L
Tottenham (h) L
Watford (a) D
Brighton (a) D
Liverpool (h) L
Wolves (h) D
Newcastle (a) W
Bournemouth (h) D
West Ham (a) L
Huddersfield (h) W

CARDIFF [25PTS]

Cardiff manager Neil Warnock celebrates after their win against Saints

Neil Warnock’s Cardiff side continue to defy the odds and pick up results.

But if the battle for survival comes down to the final day of the season, then that could be their undoing.

An away trip to Manchester United is a fixture most sides wouldn’t want to bet their Premier League status on.

How we see their final 12 games going:

Watford (h) D
Everton (h) D
Wolves (a) L
West Ham (h) D
Brighton (a) L
Chelsea(h) L
Man City (a) L
Burnley (a) L
Liverpool (h) L
Fulham (a) W
Crystal Palace (h) L
Man Utd (a) L

NEWCASTLE [25PTS]

Newcastle broke their transfer record to sign Miguel Almiron for £20m

Newcastle’s hopes of staying up are pinned on Rafa Benitez’s shoulders.

The experienced manager has an exceptional CV and will more than likely keep the Magpies in the division.

Newcastle also broke their transfer record in January, signing Miguel Almiron for £20m, to bolster their chances of survival.

How we see their final 12 games going:

Huddersfield (h) W
Burnley (h) D
West Ham (a) W
Everton (h) D
Bournemouth (a) L
Arsenal (a) L
Crystal Palace (h) D
Leicester (a) L
Saints (h) L
Brighton (a) D
Liverpool (h) L
Fulham (a) D

BURNLEY [27PTS]

Burnley seemed to be in freefall at the beginning of the season due to their involvement in the Europa League.

However, Sean Dyche managed to turn things around at Turf Moor and is currently in the process of guiding them away from trouble.

Apart from Liverpool and Chelsea away, most of their games against the big sides are at home which will be key grinding out results.

How we see their final 12 games going:

Tottenham (h) L
Newcastle (a) D
Crystal Palace (h) W
Liverpool (a) L
Leicester D
Wolves (h) D
Bournemouth (a) L
Cardiff (h) W
Chelsea (a) L
Man City (h) L 
Everton (a) D
Arsenal (h) D

BRIGHTON [27PTS]

If there's one team that has capitulated over recent weeks, then it’s Brighton.

Having started the season so well, the Seagulls have tailed off and are in real danger. However, there are enough winnable games for them at the Amex, which should see them survive.

How we see their final 12 games going:

Chelsea (a) L
Leicester (a) L
Huddersfield (h) W
Crystal Palace (a) L
Cardiff (h) W
Saints (h) D
Tottenham (a) L
Bournemouth (h) D
Newcastle (h) D
Wolves (a) L
Arsenal (a) L
Man City (h) L

CRYSTAL PALACE [27PTS]

The talk about Palace for most of the season is that they’ll have too much quality to go down.

Despite this, they are still in the mix for relegation, but there are teams below them who don’t have the quality they have in their squad.

How we see their final 12 games going:

Leicester (a) D
Man Utd (h) L
Burnley (a) W
Brighton (h) W 
Tottenham (a) L
Huddersfield (h) W
Newcastle (a) D
Manchester City (h) L
Arsenal (a) L
Everton (h) W
Cardiff (a) L
Bournemouth (h) W

This is how the table will look at the end of the season if our results are right: