Manager Russell Martin unlikely to play a striker-less formation against Arsenal

One of the big talking points from the Bournemouth defeat was manager Russell Martin's tactical setup in the first half. Martin made a surprising decision to start a striker-less formation in the away fixture with Tyler Dibling and Mateus Fernandes playing as two playmakers ahead of a midfield consisting of four players. While the first team forwards haven't had some good performances in front of goal, this formation change led to Southampton struggling to advance inside the final third. 

In the second half, Martin brought on Ross Stewart, Ben Brereton Diaz as well as Cameron Archer, however, Bournemouth had taken a huge lead already and the Saints faced their fifth league defeat. Before facing Arsenal in an important Premier League fixture, Martin suggested that those changes were made considering Bournemouth's playing style, saying,

Manager Russell Martin unlikely to play a striker-less formation against Arsenal

"It's about assessing the opposition. We played it a fair bit last season at times. We just didn't spend long enough in their final third.

We have some exceptionally talented players but maybe there's that bit of tension in the last action right now so we need to find a way to free them up."

- Russell Martin

Martin also suggested that the team needs to improve their finishing inside the final third due to the fact that the Saints have scored the fewest goals in the Premier League. Further, Martin's thoughts signify that Southampton are unlikely to play with the striker-less formation against Arsenal, which is a good decision considering that Arsenal are one of the best defensive sides in the league. Therefore, playing without a centre forward will lead to Mikel Arteta's side taking advantage of the minimal defensive work needed and focusing only on creating goal scoring opportunities throughout the match. 

Further, Southampton should improve their set-pieces and try to score an early goal in the match. Last time when the two sides met, Southampton scored two quick goals in the first half that led Arsenal to chase the match, which resulted in a 3-3 draw. Moreover, the Saints need to learn from their defensive mistakes against Bournemouth and aim to take a clean-sheet against Arsenal, as a draw against a top Premier League team would boost their momentum for the remainder of the season.