Following Manchester United and Hull City's clash last night, the first legs of the semi-finals of the EFL Cup comes to a close this evening, with Southampton entertaining Liverpool at St. Mary's.

There's an unusual connection between the two clubs, simply due to the sheer number of stars who have left Saints for Anfield in recent transfer windows - the latest being Sadio Mane, who moved for upwards of £30million last summer.

The Senegalese winger will be absent tonight with AFCON set to kick-off this weekend. So how will that affect the Reds' chances of claiming an away victory - and how will that boost Southampton's hopes of reaching the final at Wembley?

In an effort to answer those questions, amongst many others, FootballFanCast have our all-in-one preview pack, which will tell you absolutely everything you need to know about both sides before tonight's 7.45pm kick-off.

So, without further ado...

Favourites, form and prior encounters

SKYBET odds

 Saints win 23/10 - Reds win 23/20

Draw - 12/5

The bookies seem to be backing anything but a Saints win this evening and looking at the prior encounters, that's not so surprising - despite Claude Puel's side boasting home advantage. As you can see below, courtesy of Whoscored, Southampton have tasted victory just once from their last six meetings against the Reds, with two being draws and the remaining three  Liverpool wins.

Likewise, neither side enter this fixture in great form, but Liverpool edge out tonight's opponents once again. Whilst Liverpool have disappointingly drawn their last two, a 2-2 with Sunderland in the Premier League and a shock scoreless stalemate with fourth-tier side Plymouth in the FA Cup, Southampton drew with Norwich last weekend following three consecutive defeats in the top flight - which saw them ship nine goals.

If there is one positive for Southampton, however, it's that they were undefeated against Liverpool in 2016, beating them under Ronald Koeman in March and drawing in November.

SkyBet odds.

Injuries, Suspensions and absences

According to our mates at PhysioRoom, six players could be sidelined through injury for tonight's game. However, Charlie Austin, Matt Targett and Jeremy Pied are all long-term (potentially season-long) absences, and Alex McCarthy probably wouldn't be starting over No.1 Fraser Forster anyway. Club-record signing Sofiane Boufal and Euro 2016 winner Cedric Soares are the bigger losses, although the latter could win a race against fitness to return tonight. Perhaps most troublingly, the club have already confirmed Jose Fonte's exclusion from the match-day squad after handing in a transfer request.

Liverpool's injury list, meanwhile, may look lengthy but isn't quite so crippling in real terms. James Milner and Philippe Coutinho could both take part tonight according to Klopp, whilst Marko Grujic, Adam Bogdan and Danny Ings have never been first-team regulars at Anfield anyway. As we've already alluded to, however, Sadio Mane could be the biggest loss, with Liverpool's Premier League top scorer currently on international duty with Senegal.

Likely Starting XIs

http://lineupbuilder.com/350x500/?p=11&a=1&t=&c=dc0000&1=GK_Forster__388_174&2=DL_Bertrand__315_64&3=DCL_Van%20Dijk__327_138&4=DCR_Yoshida__327_211&5=DR_Martina__317_284&6=DM_Clasie__254_120&7=DM_Romeu__252_225&8=AL_Redmond__154_56&9=MC_Davis__201_172&10=AR_Tadic__152_291&11=FCA_Rodriguez__80_174&c2=ffffff&c3=ffffff&output=embed

Bearing in mind Southampton don't have too much to play for in the Premier League this season, we're expecting the strongest line-up possible from Puel. The only real exceptions are at right-back, where cult hero Cuco Martina could come in for the potentially injured Cedric Soares, and in midfield. Puel has a wealth of engine room options to choose from but we're giving Jordy Clasie the nod, having proved the difference in the quarter-final against Arsenal last month with a goal and assist. The other notable omission, of course, is Jose Fonte.

http://lineupbuilder.com/350x500/?p=11&a=40303&t=&c=88ed03&1=GK_Karius__388_174&2=DLL_Milner__293_56&3=DCL_Klavan__327_138&4=DCR_Lovren__327_211&5=DRR_Clyne__293_292&6=DMC_Can__258_174&7=MCRR_Wijnaldum__218_226&8=MCAL_Lallana__186_138&9=WL_Firmino__116_64&10=WR_Origi__116_284&11=FCA_Sturridge__80_174&c2=050005&c3=ffffff&output=embed

Jurgen Klopp, on the other hand, will likely be prepared to mix it up a bit, saving the majority of the aforementioned 'slight doubts' for the North West derby on Sunday. Milner, however, returns at left-back simply due to the inadequacy of Alberto Moreno, and Ragnar Klavan continues at centre-half amid Joel Matip's absence through injury. With captain Henderson sidelined, Emre Can is the natural replacement to anchor midfield, whilst no Mane or Coutinho (at least, in the starting XI) forces Klopp to select a somewhat less creative and intricate front three.

The Key Battle

They say full-back is one of the most important positions on the pitch these days and that's certainly the case with Liverpool's system, which encourages the defensive flankers to push up and provide width in attack. That mantra has seen James Milner thoroughly excel since moving to No.3 at the start of the season - as the above statistics show, he's still contributed to seven goals and laid on plenty of chances for his team-mates.

On the surface, Dusan Tadic's stats aren't quite so impressive, suggesting the England international will be in for a relatively comfortable 90 minutes. But the Serbian playmaker's had to make do with somewhat limited game-time this season and his natural talent certainly isn't in doubt, notching up seven goals and twelve assists in the Premier League last term.

Indeed, in terms of creativity going forward, this key battle could well decide the match.

Word from the managers

Britain Football Soccer - Southampton v Liverpool - Premier League - St Mary's Stadium - 19/11/16 Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp and Southampton manager Claude Puel with Dejan Lovren and Philippe Coutinho after the game Action Images via Reuters / Matthew Childs Livepic EDITORIAL USE ONLY. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or "live" services. Online in-match use limited to 45 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club/league/p

Klopp on two legs and a potential final against Manchester United...

"You don’t have a lot of advantages in two-legged fixtures. But if you asked before you’d say play first away, then decide at home. We have to go to Southampton, it’s the first leg, they’re pretty ambitious in this tournament. It’s a proper final at Wembley.

"I know everyone is thinking Liverpool v Manchester (Utd) would be a nice final but there is still a tie to play. Hopefully not Hull vs. Southampton!"

Puel on not including Fonte in his match-day squad...

"José won’t participate for this game. We will see for the next game. It is important to keep stability. We do not know the future of José, it is a difficult situation in the market. I respect José, it is not an easy situation for the staff or players. It is difficult.

"We will see [about including him in the future], I do not comment on the possibility [of him moving]. I think it is important to respect the other players. It is an opportunity also for José to view different opportunities and it is important to respect this."