Arsenal face Southampton in the FA Cup quarter-final

The international break is now a thing of the past, and club football is back on the scene. We'll have to wait a little longer for Premier League matches, but even so, we can look forward to seeing Arsenal in action again this weekend. The quarter-final matches of the English FA Cup are on the programme, and this time the team is included Mikel Arteta's. The match in the world's oldest club competition is just the beginning for the North London footballers. On Tuesday, a Champions League match at Sporting Lisbon will follow, and on Saturday, a home league match against Bournemouth. In other words, the match carousel is back. However, I wouldn't want to get ahead of myself, so let's take a look together at the match against Southampton and everything important that needs to be known before it begins.

Basic information

📅 Date and time	🏟️ Stadium	⚽️ Match	🏆 Competition
4. 4. 2026, 21:00 (CET)	St Mary's Stadium	Southampton v Arsenal	FA Cup (Quarter-finals)

Form

It's difficult to talk about current form after an international break.. Both teams last played a competitive match two weeks ago, which is a long time in football, so there's no point in discussing current form. From this perspective, Arsenal and Southampton are practically starting from scratch after the break. Of course, I won't deprive you of an overview of the last five competitive matches, so you can get an idea of how the teams performed before the international break. You'll find everything you need in the tables below.

Arsenal

📈 Current form🔴 🟢 🟢 🟡 🟢

⚽️ ResultsArsenal 0:2 Manchester City (EFL Cup), Arsenal 2:0 Leverkusen (CL), Arsenal 2:0 Everton (PL), Leverkusen 1:1 Arsenal (CL), Mansfield 1:2 Arsenal (FA Cup)

🏆 Premier League position: 1st (70 points)

Southampton

📈 Current form: 🟢 🟢 🟢 🟡 🟢

⚽️ ResultsSouthampton 2:0 Oxford United (CH), Southampton 1:0 Norwich (CH), Coventry 1:2 Southampton (CH), West Brom 1:1 Southampton (CH), Fulham 0:1 Southampton (FA Cup)

🏆 Championship position: 6th (63 points)

Team and expected line-up

Because A number of Arsenal players dealt with various health problems during the international break, which I will get to today, it will be very difficult to estimate the line-up in which Arsenal will face Southampton this time. Nevertheless, I will try.

Expected line-up

Despite a not-so-great performance in the EFL Cup final, he should again be between the three posts. Kepa Arrizabalaga. Mikel Arteta has made it clear that his compatriot, who is the second-choice goalkeeper in the team, also holds the position of „cup“ goalkeeper.

There will definitely Ben White and Myles Lewis-Skelly. The English youth international missed the last FA Cup fixture due to a suspension, so he should no longer be missing from the starting line-up this time. In my opinion, he will play in the centre of defence Cristhian Mosquera and Gabriel. This is a logical solution for the Spanish defender, whereas Gabriel would normally not play in such a match. However Piero Hincapié returned from the training camp with a minor injury, while Riccardo Calafiori played two demanding matches during the international break (the second even including extra time).

I expect the midfield to be quite improvised. In the defensive midfield position, it's most likely that Christian Nørgaard. At the very least, taking into account their health status Declana Rice and Martin Zubimendi the most reasonable choice. The team's captain, having recovered, could also finally return to the pitch. Martin Ødegaard, which should together with Kai Havertz to manage Arsenal's game. The Norwegian footballer needs to get up to match pace after a lengthy injury, and the cup tie against Southampton is the ideal opportunity.

How will the Spanish manager assemble the attacking trio? Considering the injury Noni Madueke (although according to Arteta himself it is not serious) and given the premature return Bukayo Saka From the training camp, I think he could start on the right wing Max Dowman. By a similar line of reasoning (in the absence of Leandro Trossard (at the representative training camp) there is more or less only one solution, which is Gabriel Martinelli. At the tip of the attack, a rested player should then be given a chance Gabriel Jesus.

Absences

Given that I haven't published a pre-match article for a while due to the international break, So let's also recall the current state of Arsenal's sick bay.. Despite the game, he is still long-term injured Mikel Merino, who is recovering after surgery for a broken foot. No new or more accurate information has emerged so far regarding when Mikel Merino will be available, so his return is likely to be at the turn of April and May. Before the EFL Cup final, news came of an injury Eberechi Eze, who is dealing with a calf muscle problem. His return to full training is expected at the end of April and speculation is already mounting as to whether he will be ready for the league match at the Etihad Stadium, which is scheduled for 19.04.2026 at 17:30 (CET). Let's hope the English midfielder makes it for this important battle. That's all from the officially confirmed injury list.

However, you've probably all noticed that A number of players did not travel to the representative gatherings for health reasons, and others returned from them early for the same reason. Specifically, omluvili William Saliba, Jurriën Timber, Gabriel, Martin Ødegaard, Leandro Trossard and logically also mentioned Eberechi Eze. During the international break In addition, Declan Rice, Bukayo Saka, Noni Madueke, Piero Hincapié and Martín Zubimendi have returned. To what extent the absences were preventative and how serious the injuries players had to deal with remains to be seen. I believe that the vast majority of these players will be available either for the match against Southampton or for the match against Sporting. The squad list for Saturday's match will tell us a lot, but we will have to wait until tomorrow for that.

Opponent

🏟️ StadiumSt Mary's Stadium, Southampton (capacity 32,384)

👔 ManagerTonda Eckert

🧤GoalkeepersAlex McCarthy, Daniel Peretz

🛡️ DefendersJames Bree, Taylor Harwood-Bellis, Elias Jelert, Ryan Manning, Joshua Quarshie, Mads Roerslev Rasmussen, Jack Stephens, Welington, Nathan Wood

🎯 MidfieldersFinn Azaz, Cameron Bragg, Flynn Downes, Tom Fellows, Caspar Jander, Kuryu Matsuki, Oriol Romeu, Barnaby Williams

⚽️ ForwardsCameron Archer, Samuel Edozie,

🚑 Injuries: Alex McCarthy, Mads Roerslev Rasmussen, Welington, Jay Robinson, Leo Scienza

⚠️ SuspensionsFlynn Downes, Kuryu Matsuki

Match

Although Southampton were picking up some excellent results before the international break and will be playing at home in their quarter-final tie against Arsenal, So the pace of the game should be dictated by visiting Arsenal. And this is regardless of what lineup the Spanish manager of the North London club eventually sends into the match. The quality and breadth of the team clearly favour Arsenal, and this should be evident on the pitch.

Does this mean we will see a one-sided match played out in much the same way? I don't think so.. Southampton have quality and, besides fighting for promotion to the English elite in the Championship, they have already shown this season that they can handle a Premier League opponent. In the previous round of the FA Cup, the Saints players overcame Fulham at Craven Cottage. In addition to all that, Mikel Arteta will certainly rest some of his key players, as Arsenal's priorities at the end of the season are certainly elsewhere than in the FA Cup. Howerver, as I've already written, Arsenal won't give up the match and should dominate in any lineup, but not all dominance is the same. Personally, I expect a relatively even game that will be decided by the superior quality of the Gunners. I predict Arsenal to win 3:1.

Next match

Arsenal's players face a really busy schedule after the international break. Mikel Arteta's charges will play their next competitive match on Tuesday 7th of April 2026 from 21:00 (CET), when the first awaits them Champions League quarter-final match against Sporting Lisbon at the Estádio José Alvalade in Lisbon.

See you next time, I'll look forward to it!

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