Southampton v Arsenal: what are the odds for FA Cup fourth round clash?
SunSport brings you all the key betting and match information ahead of the Gunners' trip to St Mary's.
SOUTHAMPTON will be looking to round-off a fantastic seven days with a win as they host Arsenal at St Mary's in the fourth round of the FA Cup.
This week has already seen the Saints safely through to their first League Cup final since 1979 after a 2-0 aggregate victory over Liverpool. Their last cup final, coincidentally, was the FA Cup Final of 2003 where they played the Gunners and lost out to a solitary goal scored by Robert Pires.
The current crop of Southampton players will enter this tie with a degree of confidence, however. Claude Puel's side knocked Arsenal out of the EFL Cup back in November en route to Wembley and have won three of the last five games between the clubs (1 draw).
Puel even worked under Arsene Wenger as a player during the latter's managerial stint at Monaco in the 1980s and 90s. They won the 1988 Ligue 1 title together along with the French Cup in 1991.
This will be the third time this season that the two Frenchmen's sides have faced off against each other this season with their teams recording a win apiece.
Sun Sport has all the most important info ahead of the match:
What are the latest odds?
Sun Bets currently have Arsenal prices as the favourites at 11/10. Meanwhile, the likelihood of a replay being forced is priced the same as a victory for the hosts at 5/2.
Match Facts (via Opta):
- Southampton could become the first team to knock Arsenal out of both domestic cups in the same season since Manchester United in 1982/83.
- Arsenal have progressed from 16 of their 20 FA Cup Fourth Round ties under Arsene Wenger, losing only to Leeds (1996/97), Leicester (1999/2000), Bolton (2005/06) and Stoke (2009/10).
- Southampton have kept clean sheets in four of their last five games against Arsenal in all competitions.
- The Gunners have won their last five away FA Cup matches in a row – they have never won six consecutively in the competition’s history.
- This is the first FA Cup meeting between Arsenal and Southampton since the 2003 final, which the Gunners won 1-0 courtesy of a Robert Pires goal.
- Southampton have never beaten Arsenal in an FA Cup tie (Semi-final in 1926/27, Sixth Round in 1978/79 and the final in 2002/03).
- After losing back-to-back games against Everton and Man City, the Gunners have since gone six games unbeaten in all competitions (W5 D1)
What time is kick-off?
The match kicks off at St Mary's at 5.30pm on Saturday 28 January.
Will it be on TV?
Yes, it will be on BT Sport 2, 2HD and 4K UHD.
Any team news?
1972 winners Southampton will have to make-do with the same central-defensive partnership that helped them to victory over Liverpool. Virgil van Dijk's is awaiting confirmation from a second specialist to reveal the extent of the knee injury he suffered against Leicester on Sunday.
This means that Jack Stephens and Maya Yoshida look likely to start together once more for this clash. Also absent will be Sofiane Boufal who was injured earlier this month and is unlikely to return until next week.
Meanwhile, Arsenal will be without long-term absentees Per Mertesacker, Santi Cazorla and Matheiu Debuchy as they look to progress to the fifth round.