Second-placed Arsenal visit struggling and out-of-form Southampton on Boxing Day in a late game at St. Mary’s Stadium and the Gunners will look to keep their run of form going ahead of the New Year. Meanwhile, the hosts are on a run of four losses, and will expect to get at least a point from this game.
Arsene Wenger will be confident of getting the three points following their home win against Manchester City on Monday. They sit two points behind leaders Leicester City going into the Boxing Day fixtures while Southampton will look to get a positive result on the table with 21 games still left to play in the season. Having lost 0-2 to Tottenham Hotspur last weekend, the home side will look to beat the other North London side come Saturday night.
Arsenal have only lost once in their last 11 Premier League games against Southampton, but that was in their last meeting at the start of 2015.
Kickoff and Live Telecast
Channel: Star Sports 2, Star Sports HD2
Live Stream: starsports.com
Date and Time: Saturday, 26 December 2015 – 19:45 GMT (Sunday, 27 December 2015 – 1:15 AM IST)
Venue: St. Mary’s Stadium, Southampton
Team News
Southampton have been boosted with the return of Fraser Forster to training, but the 27-year-old goalkeeper will not be fit to face Arsenal. The Saints will also have Maarten Stekelenburg fit after a toe injury but Ronald Koeman is yet to decide whether to restore the Dutchman to the starting lineup or stick with his deputy Paulo Gazzaniga.
Jay Rodriguez is also on the sidelines for the home team, but both Shane Long and James Ward-Prowse are pushing for starts. Should Long be given a spot in the XI, Steven Davis may well be the one that drops out.
Arsenal have seven senior players sidelined, including Alexis Sanchez, Danny Welbeck and Santi Cazorla. The same starting XI that faced Mancheter City will be expected to play the Saints. Alexis Sanchez was expected to be back, but the Chilean’s return is now mid-January after a setback. Mesut Ozil will hope to continue his run of assists while Theo Walcott will maintain his place in the XI following his screamer against City.
Probable Lineups
Southampton (4-2-3-1): Stekelenburg; Cedric, Fonte, Van Dijk, Bertrand; Clasie, Wanyama; Long, Tadic, Mane; Pelle.
Arsenal (4-2-3-1): Cech; Bellerin, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Monreal; Ramsey, Flamini; Campbell, Ozil, Walcott; Giroud.
Form
Southampton have endured a miserable season in the Premier League for their liking. Ronald Koeman’s men are just six points off the relegation zone and sit in 12th spot in the table. Having lost four of their last five league games, the Saints are struggling. Last week’s 0-2 home defeat to Tottenham was far from impressive.
The goals have also dried up in recent weeks, with Koeman's team only finding the back of the net twice in their last five fixtures. A win against Arsenal will lift up the whole team ahead of the away trip to West Ham United.
Last 5 games: L-L-D-L-L (Last match: Southampton 0-2 Tottenham Hotspur)
Arsenal are in a buoyant mood after securing their second place in the league table with a victory over Manchester City. The Gunners are unbeaten in their last six games in all competitions. Arsenal had previously endured a bad November where injuries to key men saw them collect only two points from three games but they won the last four games in all competitions, and have a 100% record in December, having beaten Olympiakos, Sunderland, Aston Villa and Manchester City.
A man-of-the-match display from Mesut Ozil in midfield provides plenty of optimism for Wenger and fans. He may be at his best picking out his teammates in crucial positions in the opposition box, but the German will need to repeat his performances if Arsenal are to get anything out of this game.
Wenger will be eyeing to get to New Year’s eve at the top of the league table, assuming Liverpool will beat or hold Leicester City to a draw. The Gunners have been resolute at the back, shipping just 14 goals and keeping seven clean sheets in the 17 games, making them the best defence in the league.
Last 5 games: D-W-W-W-W (Last match: Arsenal 2-1 Manchester City)
Key Stats
- Southampton have lost five of their last six league games.
- Arsenal have won a league-high 78 points in the year 2015.
- The Gunners have scored in 11 successive league matches.
- Arsenal have also won 38 Premier League points away from home in 2015 – the best in the league.
- Arsenal have only ever lost once on Boxing Day in the Premier League era. Southampton have lost just one of their last seven Premier League games on Boxing Day, winning three and drawing three.
Key Battles
Graziano Pelle vs Laurent Koscielny
Pelle will lead the Saints’ forward line against an Arsenal side who will have the duo of Laurent Koscielny and Per Mertesacker at the back. Koscielny had a brilliant game against Manchester City where he gave nothing away to Sergio Aguero.
But Pelle’s presence up front, along with the ability to hold up the ball and bringing other quick players into play will be really crucial for the home side as Arsenal will look to attack right from the first whistle to the last.
Olivier Giroud vs Jose Fonte
With six goals in his last four games, Giroud is currently in great form. The Frenchman had scored just before the break in Arsenal’s 2-1 win against Manchester City. With Giroud high on confidence, Southampton defenders will find it hard to control the striker.
Southampton defender Jose Fonte will be assigned the job to stop Giroud. The Portuguese defender will be hoping to avoid giving any space to Giroud, whose link-up play, along with his finishing has been outstanding recently. It will be a game that will be well matched between the two sides. But Giroud’s presence can turn the tie in the Gunners’ favour if the Saints defence slips up.
Prediction
Arsenal’s victory over Manchester City has given them more confidence and Saturday evening will prove to be a good test. Historically, Southampton have performed well against the Gunners and Ronald Koeman will be hoping his side can turn things around.
Predicted score: Southampton 1-2 Arsenal
Betting odds (bet365)
Southampton – 11/4
Draw – 5/2
Arsenal – 11/10
