Morning all.

Arsenal welcome Southampton to The Emirates this afternoon with Aaron Ramsdale on board and I’m sure he’ll receive a very warm welcome. Our old keeper was one of 25 new signings for Southampton back in the summer. 25 players moved on too so it’s no wonder they’re still trying to make things work on the pitch.

Arsenal’s Adrian Clarke has written about Southampton’s style of play and, despite sitting second from bottom in the Premier League table, why Arsenal should not take them lightly:

Martin began this campaign lining his side up in last season’s 3-5-2, but has since moved to a 4-2-3-1, the formation I’d expect to see. They are usually industrious and well-organised out of possession, and are very good at breaking up play. The Saints want to pass out short from the goalkeeper and move the ball fluidly through the lines. Comfort in possession is their core strength, with only Manchester City boasting a better pass accuracy after six matches, and when they get it right, Southampton can slice through anyone.

But by playing out from the back, they take risks in dangerous areas and the Saints have regularly gifted goals when their distribution has gone awry. If our pressing game is sharp, this is an area Mikel Arteta will feel he can succeed. The other standout issue is a lack of goals. Adam Armstrong, Ben Brereton-Diaz, Ross Stewart and Cameron Archer are proven scorers in the second tier, but have found it much harder to impact games at Premier League level. However, 18-year-old right winger Tyler Dibling [above] has drawn comparisons with Jack Grealish and Emile Smith Rowe for his outstanding balance and footwork, and his form means he must be considered a danger man.

The one thing I think we can all be sure of is that Mikel Arteta takes no opposition lightly. Top or bottom of the league, he’ll only ever field a starting eleven who he truly believes can win the game. Saying that though, looking through our squad, there are no real weaknesses. Not every player is at the same level, which will usually be the case within a squad but all are, or have been, international players. Younger players aside of course.

Some good news came from Mikel Arteta yesterday during his press conference. Talking about Jurrien Timber and Ben White he said:

We had to modify training for a lot of players. We’ve done the same today because of the load that they had, so it’s a decision to make this afternoon, whether to involve them, yes or no. They are close, and Tomiyasu as well is quite close to being involved, so good news.

Oleksandr Zinchenko could return after the international break if everything goes well he added but it doesn’t seem like Martin Odegaard is close to making his return although “he’s working so hard and is feeling good and is pushing it”.

Last season, a few bad results at The Emirates cost us dearly, something I’m sure Mikel Arteta knows only too well.

This is the kind of fixture that Arsenal need to be winning. It’s all very well going to The Etihad, Villa Park and Totts and getting positive results but winning our home games, certainly against clubs who are struggling, is essential if we’re to still be in the race for the Premier League title come May.

Southampton have been a bit of a bogey team for Arsenal in recent years and we’ve not beaten them for a while. The last time the two sides met at The Emirates, Arsenal scrapped hard for a 3-3 draw after being 3-1 down. Funny enough, it was an Aaron Ramsdale error which gifted Southampton the lead with less than a minute on the clock.

But, I think this Arsenal team is very different to those who’ve struggled before. The mentality and will to win is very present as is the determination not to concede. April 2023 was a very different Arsenal to the October 2024 version. Hopefully that will be quite evident this afternoon.

Catch up in the comments.