My Arsenal Blog

In all honesty, Arsenal’s 2-1 win at Huddersfield on Saturday was not all that convincing. If the Terriers would have had slightly more quality they really could have got something from the game. It was the story of Huddersfield’s season, as they toiled but lacked a cutting edge in attack to really trouble the Arsenal defence. On another day, Arsenal could have suffered another disappointing away day.

All that mattered was three points

In the end, all that mattered was that the Gunners ending a six-game winless run on their travels that dated back to November. Arsenal have put in some truly lacklustre displays on their travels of late, so to record a victory in Yorkshire has at least stopped the rot when it comes to poor away results.  .......Read more here.....

I am afraid to say my fears from my article prior to the Southampton-Arsenal game came to pass. I stated that I believed that the Saints could enjoy a new boss bounce, which happened.

I also wrote about the Gunners having to field a makeshift central defensive partnership. In truth, both of these issues were not hard to spot, but I thought that the Gunners newfound toughness might have got them through. Unfortunately, it did not and the team from north London suffered a 3-2 defeat at St Marys.  .......Read more here.....

Arsenal face a trip to struggling Southampton later today and it is a game on paper that the Gunners should comfortably win. The home sides form and confidence are currently very poor, but there are some issues that suggest this could be a banana skin of a match.

The new boss bounce

One of those issues is the prospect of the Saints prospects improving because of the appointment of new boss Ralph Hasenhuttl. The Austrian has had just one game in charge of the team from the south coast, a 1-0 defeat at Cardiff.  .......Read more here.....

On Sunday afternoon, Arsenal visit Southampton’s St Mary’s in the Premier League, as the Gunners look to maintain their long unbeaten run.

Southampton have struggled for wins this season and the Saints are currently 19^th place in the table. The Saints have failed to win in 12 Premier League outings. However, new boss Ralph Hasenhuttl is highly-rated and is expected to improve the home sides fortunes. Sunday’s game will be the Austrian’s first home match in charge of his new team.  .......Read more here.....

Arsenal manager Unai Emery spoke to the press after the Europa League win against Qarabag on Thursday, with the accent being on the Southampton trip on Sunday.

On the Eurpoean break helping the team recover between games

The players have a habit of playing a lot of matches per week, month, year, and they are ready to play on Sunday, on Wednesday against Tottenham at the Emirates in the Carabao Cup, on Saturday against Burnley, then Brighton, then Liverpool. The team needs every player, and rest and recovery between matches.  .......Read more here.....

Unai Emery’s starting line-up for Thursday night’s 1-0 win over Qarabag in the Europa League for the most part unremarkable. With the Gunners already qualified for the knockout stages of the group, there was little sense in Emery risking injuries to any of his star players.

However, there was one interesting inclusion in the starting line-up in the shape of French forward Alexandre Lacazette. The forward scored the only goal of the game before being substituted.  .......Read more here.....

Arsenal may have extended their unbeaten run to 21 games in all competitions against Huddersfield on Saturday, but there was also a downside to the win, as both Sokratis and Shkodran Mustafi picked up suspensions.

Add the pair to Rob Holding sidelined through injury and the Gunners are left with very few central defensive options.

Who are the Gunners central defensive options?

The return to the squad and fitness of French centre-back Laurent Koscielny could not have come a better time. Gunners boss Unai Emery has allowed the veteran defender time to recover from a long-term injury.  .......Read more here.....

Arsenal defender Calum Chambers has signed a new contract with the north London club. The move comes after new Gunners boss Unai Emery reportedly told the former Southampton star he is in his plans for next season.

Chambers has struggled to nail down a starting position in North London since moving to the Gunners in 2014 from Southampton.

Not lived up to his supposed potential yet

The reason that Chambers has not yet nailed down a regular starting position is that he has not yet lived up to his supposed potential. Chambers arrived at Arsenal as one of the most promising young defenders in the country.  .......Read more here.....

It’s time for another trip down memory lane, and while this game only happened twelve months ago, it’ll feel like it’s a million miles away for Arsenal fans. This time last year, the Gunners defeated Southampton 2-0 to ensure that their faint hopes of qualifying for the UEFA Champions League were kept alive. Unlike this year, where there’s just one game remaining, Arsenal still had three games remaining to try and make up some ground on Manchester City due to the fact that last season didn’t have a World Cup right around the corner in the summer.  .......Read more here.....

Arsenal fans out there will be happy to know that justice has been served, as BBC Sport reports that midfielder Mohamed Elneny’s red card has been overturned following an appeal.

In what is probably one of the quickest returns from an appeal in Premier League history, the Premier League confirmed that the Egyptian’s dismissal was “wrong” for what was judged to be violent conduct. The 25-year-old was sent to a not so early shower in injury time, with the incident stemming from a confrontation with Southampton defender Cedric.  .......Read more here.....