Niemi sweating on fitness
The Finnish shot-stopper has made himself a firm fan-favourite at St Mary's since joining from Hearts and has been instrumental in helping The Saints to reach the semi-final of the FA Cup - where they are favourites to succeed against Division One side Watford.
However, the 30-year-old injured a knee in the draw with West Ham last Saturday and has been receiving treatment all week in a desperate attempt to be fit for the showdown against The Hornets on Sunday afternoon.
If Strachan decides to opt for the Scandinavian star, the keeper will have to make it through the game with the aid of painkilling injections.
Niemi, though remained cautious about committing himself to the cause and said: "This is the biggest game of my life, so I have to be sensible.
"Of course, I'm desperate to play but if you go into a game and think that you're injured, if you then make a mistake you may never forgive yourself.
"We have plenty of league games left and then hopefully there's The FA Cup final to come - so If I do something stupid now I could miss God knows what.
If the South Coast side manage to overcome Watford, it will be their first FA Cup final appearance in 27 years and Niemi concluded: "It's obviously a huge game for all of us because if we win, it probably means we will get into Europe, no matter what happens in the final."
