Mikel Arteta ruled out William Saliba and Jurrien Timber from participating against Southampton due to injuries.
There are two days still to go before Arsenal visit St. Mary's, but alarm bells have started ringing up at Southampton. Without a doubt, that's out of fear of conceding a handful of goals and capping off the Premier League campaign in the most nightmarish manner possible.
And in stressful situations like these, Paul Merson's comments do nothing good but add fuel to those scary pre-match feelings. After all, the St. Mary's faithful have suffered far more than any other Premier League fan base and will definitely want a relaxed evening for once.
Honestly, that's up to Simon Rusk and the team to meet expectations but Mikel Arteta isn't leaving any stone unturned here.
Arsenal's defence set for huge rotations against Southampton
According to Arsenal's official website, Arteta has straightaway dismissed the chances of William Saliba and Jurrien Timber from participating at St. Mary's.
Having a few players less to deal with is always a welcome boost, and that headstart can't be any more better if they belong to a Big Six lineup.
Now, talking about William Saliba, his absence could just have tilted this game slightly in Southampton's favour. Why? Remember, the Saints valiant effort at Emirates last year where they caught Arsenal off-guard with a 1-0 lead.
That was when the Gunners had their Saliba and Gabriel duo on the pitch, but currently, the former's Premier League campaign has come to a close as the latter's had already.
Add to the fact that Timber is also set to join his teammates, and Southampton may have a good shot at scoring some goals. The Saints have never scored twice with Rusk at the helm, but they may push a makeshift Arsenal side to their scoring limit here.
Will there be a score-fest in store for Southampton fans? Let's wait and watch.