Saints have been a bogey team, but this Arsenal is different.

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.

 

 

 

 

44 thoughts on “Saints have been a bogey team, but this Arsenal is different.

  1. Aussie Geoff says:

    Afternoon Rico and all.
    The difference in tonight game, could come down to the new players as Ramsdale knows were our regular players like to shoot from.

  2. Grumblestiltskin says:

    Good Afternoon Lady and gentlemen

    I dont think its 4 at the back with Partey at RB.

    I think its 3-4-2-1 which translates to 3-4-3 or 3-3-4 when attacking. Saliba, Gabriel and Calafiori will play in a 3 men defence.

    Whatever it is or translates to I dont like this formation. Its taking Southampton too much for granted

  3. Grumblestiltskin says:

    Another permutation is 3-5-2 as well. Saka plays wingback on the right with Calafiori on the left.

    I just hope it doesnt backfire

  4. kelsey says:

    Me neither Rico.Palace were woeful ,not one decent shot ,Allison possibly out for three months with hamstring injury.Don’t get our line up at all .

  5. Joaquim Moreira says:

    22 David Raya
    5 Thomas
    33 R. Calafiori
    2 Saliba
    6 Gabriel
    20 Jorginho (c)
    29 Havertz
    41 Rice
    9 Jesus
    7 Saka
    30 R. Sterling

    32 Neto
    11 Martinelli
    15 Kiwior
    18 Tomiyasu
    19 Trossard
    23 Mikel Merino
    37 N. Butler-Oyedeji
    49 M. Lewis-Skelly
    53 E. Nwaneri

  6. Cicero says:

    Good afternoon all, Finally got a decent WiFi connection

    Three four three, with Saka and Sterling carrying Jesus.

    Just back from a lovely day on the beach, tan coming along nicely.

  7. k says:

    Must be changes surely .Jesus and Sterling doing nothing .I still think we need a proper striker .Too much reliance on Saka again .Just not flowing well as a unit .

  8. Grumblestiltskin says:

    I am still trying to figure out why do we have to play Partey at RB to tuck into midfield??? Trying to figure out why we are playing 4-4-2 when Southampton are defending desperately and crowding in front of their goal and we are not keeping them stretched. Still trying to figure out why they have a shot on target and a blocked shot out of just two shots but we have just one shot on target and 7 blocked shots from a total of 14 shots.

    Both the personell and tactics have to be changed. Partey needs a rest…he should be left in the dressing room.

  9. Aussie Geoff says:

    I can see Rice getting a yellow card for time wasting from corner kick in’s, I would leave sterling on but and replace Partey.

  10. Grumblestiltskin says:

    We are 2-1 now.

    I am sure there were a lot of bets placed on Southampton scoring first.

    We should be walloping them 10-0 not just scoring 2

    I HATE it when we concede

  11. Aussie Geoff says:

    I am glad they scored first, it seemed to wake us up,
    Calafiori getting better every match, one of our best today

  12. rico says:

    If Arteta didn’t rotate and we picked up injuries, I’m sure many of us would be grumbling. He’s snookered either way.

    We won in the end having totally controlled the game so all is good imo.

  13. Aussie Geoff says:

    I reckon the ref had a good game,
    I still feel we need a striker, great to see the fans welcome Ramsdale back

  14. kelsey says:

    At least we agree about Jesus .He has been a really bad buy,not scored in 21 consecutive games and only 4 PL goals last season.For me Trossard starts before him every time . Partey has done surprisingly well.
    Not sure what’s wrong with Timber,not even on the bench .
    We might offload Jesus to the Saudis in January but we need another attacker .Saka is just unreal .

  15. rico says:

    I don’t think Jesus was a bad signing but he’s just run out form. He still has a job to do though, depending on the opposition.

  16. AndrewH1313 says:

    Evening rico, all, just home. Surprise late call from my son, did I want a couple of spare tickets he had managed to get? Course we did, off as soon as we could to Coronet bar, Holloway Rd to also meet daughter and partner, real family affair, albeit in different sections of the ground.

    Really enjoyed the last 11 minutes, once cushion established! 5 rows from front so atmospheric, especially watching Arteta close by, but not best overall view, prefer being higher.

    Takeaways, Havertz is terrific in everything he does especially how he took the important goal, Jesus it’s just not working at the moment. Three subs, planned but actually after equaliser, gave much more energy with Martinelli and Trossard looking so confident. Some good interceptions from Merino.

    Thankfully we equalised so soon after their goal. Would have been a very nervy game otherwise. Loved the stadium singing ‘Englands Number one’ at final whistle, nice touch.

  17. rico says:

    Evening Andrew, sounds like you had a great day out.

    I read that about Aaron Ramsdale, really nice touch. Not every ex player is welcomed back but I’m glad Ramsdale was. He was part of this new Arsenal.

  18. allezkev says:

    The next time we get a penalty (don’t laugh it might happen this year) and if Jesus is on the field, maybe Saka should let him take it, as they did with Havertz, just to get him going again.

    It’s frustrating watching Jesus because you never feel that anything positive is going to come from anything he does with the ball – except by accident.

    But it’s also quite sad because he’s only, what 27, in his prime and he looked so great when we first signed him – where has that player gone?

    To see him labouring to try and make a difference doesn’t make for great viewing and I still can’t help feeling that there’s still a decent player in there.

    The last 12 months have been really hard for him, as a Brazilian it’s the highest honour to represent your country and in that time he’s gone from his country’s centre forward to completely out of the squad. He hasn’t scored a goal for Arsenal since, what was it, January I think? Followed by another debilitating injury, he has to be one of the unluckiest players we’ve signed since Abou Diaby.

  19. allezkev says:

    When I look at Stirling I see a lot of similarities with him and Jesus, an England player 12 months ago, a big move to Chelsea in his back pocket and now he’s out of the England squad, surplus to Chelsea and vying with Ethan Nwaneri for a run-out from the bench.

    There is zero chance of Arsenal making an offer for him next July/August, mainly because of his wages, leaving Chelsea having to loan him out again next summer whilst subsidising his salary.

    Playing both of them against Bolton and probably Preston later this month is one thing, but I wouldn’t start the two of them again in the PL, maybe play one of them but the two just affects our level too much.

  20. rico says:

    If we’re 3-0 with five minutes go Kev, yes. Re the penalty that is..

    I’m kind of mixed re Sterling and Jesus, especially Sterling because I think Southampton made things very difficult for us. In some ways one could say Arteta was smart because he used his starting eleven to tire Southampton before bring on his subs. Maybe I’m just a glass half full kind of girl…

Leave your comment.

Discover more from Highbury House

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading