Southampton: Russell Martin's side to face Premier League Bournemouth in pre-season friendly

26th Jun 2023 | Source: BBC

Saints have three pre-season friendlies scheduled ahead of their return to the Championship after being relegated from the Premier League

Southampton will host Premier League side Bournemouth in a pre-season friendly at St Mary's Stadium.

They will face the Cherries on Tuesday 25 July (19:45 BST), 10 days before kicking-off their Championship campaign after being relegated from the Premier League in 2022-23.

It will be the first time Saints fans are able to watch new manager Russell Martin's side at St Mary's.

Southampton have also added Reading to their pre-season schedule.

They will visit the Royals - who have been relegated to League One - on Saturday 22 July (15:00 BST).

Saints' first pre-season game on the schedule is against fellow Sport Republic owned side Goztepe, who play in the second tier of Turkish football, on Saturday 15 July.

Tickets for the Reading friendly go on sale Wednesday 28 June, while seats for the Bournemouth fixture will be on sale to season ticket holders first from Tuesday 4 July.