Arsenal kick off the new calendar year at Vitality Stadium

The clash between Bournemouth and Arsenal at Vitality Stadium will be the first competitive match of the new calendar year for both teams. Last season, Bournemouth managed to challenge Arsenal both at home and at Emirates Stadium, so the Mikel Arteta's is definitely not going to be an easy fight. A glance at the league table or the current form of both teams suggests otherwise, but we all know that it may not mean anything yet. Especially in the Premier League. I will of course get to all the essentials about the upcoming match in the blog. As far as the mutual record in the current league season is concerned, despite the fact that we are already facing the 20th round, Saturday's match between Bournemouth and Arsenal will be the first mutual encounter. However, that doesn't change the fact that the Gunners have something to give back to the Cherries for last year. Mikel Arteta is well known for being such a fond reminder to his charges during pre-match preparation. I think we have something to look forward to.

Form

At Vitality Stadium on Saturday night two teams with completely different form. Arsenal won the Premier League for the fourth time in a row last season after a poor run of results at the turn of November and December last year. Bournemouth, on the other hand, have been waiting a long time for a Premier League win. So now let's move on to the specific stats of both teams together.

Arsenal

Arsenal beat Aston Villa in a very important game at the Emirates Stadium in the last round, sending a clear message to his competitors (including Villans). I probably don't need to go into too much detail about why the Gunners' win against Aston Villa was so important. The clash between the first team and the third team, which were only three points apart despite the match, perfectly describes the seriousness of the match. Mikel Arteta's charges, after an embarrassing opening of the match, finally broke their opponent right at the start of the second act. And how else but from a corner kick. After that, the home side put three more goals into the Villans goal and the winner was decided. The only blemish on a great result was a goal conceded in stoppage time.

I wrote about this last time and the win against Aston Villa confirmed my words. Arsenal's form is trending upwards, which is just as well. The Gunners notched up their fourth consecutive win in the Premier League. If I take into account all competitive matches, it is even the sixth win in a row, with the cup win against Crystal Palace being won by Arsenal after penalty kicks. Now the north London footballers need to confirm their form and follow up the high victory in the last round at Vitality Stadium as well. I believe they will do so. So, to sum it all up, short and clear, Arsenal's current form is very decent.

Bournemouth

I've already managed to reveal that I'm Bournemouth are struggling for results. And that doesn't just apply to the Cherries' recent games. Andoni Iraola's charges are pulling an unflattering a ten-game winless streak, so it's no surprise that their table position is not the best either. Fortunately, Bournemouth entered the 2025/2026 season in good form, so they are still a relatively comfortable nine points away from the relegation places, but the current form of the Vitality Stadium team is definitely not good. On the contrary. Specifically Bournemouth in the table ranks up to 15th.

So what's up with the winless streak? As I wrote, the Cherries haven't won ten games in a row. The last time Bournemouth got three points was at the end of October when they beat Nottingham 2-0 at home. Since then its results have been very below average indeed. Five draws and five defeats equals five points out of a possible thirty. The only small plus is that four of those five points have come in Bournemouth's last five games, so if I look at the numbers from the other end, Bournemouth have only lost once in their last five games, 1-4 to Brentford. Anyway, it's more of a token positive because Bournemouth really aren't having the best of times.

Team and expected line-up

Last time round, I expected Mikel Arteta to make some changes to cover for his compatriot on the Aston Villa bench. However, that didn't happen. That's also why I believe we won't see any changes in the starting lineup this time either. Unless they are forced. One reason is Arsenal's solid performance last time, the other is the upcoming matches in both English cups, in which there will definitely be a rotation in the squad.

Expected line-up

What is Arsenal's starting line-up likely to look like in the first league game of the calendar year? I'd say Mikel Arteta will be sent on for the game at Vitality Stadium an identical starting eleven to the one against Aston Villa. Theoretically, one change could be made, which would be the replacement of the Declana Rice for Mikel Merino. The English midfielder missed the last game due to a swollen knee he suffered in the Brighton game. The Spanish manager commented on his health condition saying that his inclusion in the squad is in question. Personally, I believe Rice will be part of the squad that travels to Bournemouth, but I don't think he will start from the first minute.

As the roster is slowly emptying out, it is starting to happen that some players won't fit into the lineup. In the last round against Aston Villa, he was left in the stands Ethan Nwaneri. If Declan Rice does indeed travel with the team to Vitality Stadium, someone else besides Nwaneri will drop out of the squad. My personal guess is that the young Englishman will be joined by an experienced Christian Nørgaard.

Absences

I'll add a quick update on the wounded. Mikel Arteta confirmed at the pre-match press conference that neither of the two defenders will be involved in the match Cristhian Mosquera and Riccardo Calafiori. According to the latest reports, the youngster is still out of the game Max Dowman. And with the exception of Declan Rice, who I wrote about a few lines above, that should be it. Let's hope so. All other players should be available.

About the opponent

Today I'll start a bit unconventionally, because in the Bournemouth squad we find one name that has been appearing in the English media every day in the last few days. Antoine Semenyo. The Ghanaian footballer is one of the best offensive players in the Premier League this season (he has 9 goals and 3 assists so far), so it is no wonder that he is attracting interest from leading clubs. All indications are that the fight for the footballer with a buyout clause to the tune of £65 million, was won by Manchester City, who should complete his transfer in the next few days. However, Andoni Iraola has let it be known that the transfer is not complete and that Semenyo will start against Arsenal. Only time will tell if this is a good decision.

As for Bournemouth, it has never been a team full of stars, although under the Spanish manager there are some very interesting players in the Cherries squad. Dean Huijsen or Ilya Zabarnyi are certainly worth mentioning. But that's history, albeit relatively recent. Now they are one of the biggest pillars of the team Djordje Petrovic, Marcos Senesi, Marcus Tavernier and the aforementioned Antoine Semenyo, who's about to change his jersey. Other players worth mentioning are Justin Kluivert or Evanilson, but also young men Alex Scott and Eli Junior Kroupi. As for the absentees in Bournemouth's squad before the match with Arsenal, Tyler Adams, Veljko Milosavljevic, Ryan Christie, Ben Doak and probably Lewis Cook are expected to miss the match due to health reasons.

Although Bournemouth, with all due respect, have never been one of the top teams in the English top flight and have been on the border of the Premier League and the Championship, they have moved up a level with the arrival of Andoni Iraola (in 2023). The proof is last year's club record for points scored in a single Premier League season (56). The Spanish manager's handwriting has had a positive effect on the Cherries' play. That's also why Bournemouth's current run of poor results is quite surprising to me.

Match

The Vitality Stadium, a stadium that is currently the smallest Premier League stadium in terms of capacity, should, on paper, see a definite game. The form, the mental state, the quality and breadth of the squad, the experience. Not only these, but other factors play into Arsenal's hands. But we all know very well that football is not played on paper. As I mentioned today, Bournemouth also have quality despite an unflattering run of games without a win. The north London footballers will have to give a 100% performance on the south coast of England.

The course of the match and the picture of the game should correspond to the circumstances I just wrote about. Arsenal should outplay their opponents. I don't want to write that it will be a one-goal game, but I think that the superiority of Mikel Arteta's charges will be significant. Again, the game will be all about whether Arsenal can convert their chances. In the game against Aston Villa, the Emirates Stadium players were finally effective in the end after a long time, so hopefully they will continue the trend. I firmly believe that Arsenal will manage their opening game of the new calendar year and will go for three points with ease. I predict Arsenal to win 2:0.

Next match

Arsenal's next game will be on Thursday 8 January 2026 at 21:00 (CET). The Gunners will host the Premier League at Emirates Stadium in a home round robin Liverpool. On the weekend (Sunday 11 January 2026 at 15:00 CET), Mikel Arteta's charges will enter the FA Cup with a match at Portsmouth in the second division, which will conclude their English week.

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

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