“Despite all of that” Mark Lawrenson predicts Arsenal vs Southampton

Mark Lawrenson admits Arsenal is going through a rough time as a club, but he backs them to beat Southampton today.

The Gunners were beaten 2-1 by Everton in their last league game and it was the third defeat Mikel Arteta’s men have suffered in four league matches.

Prior to the first of those three losses, Arsenal had been unbeaten in 10 competitive matches.

That seems a long time ago now and the game against the Saints gives them the chance to get back to winning ways.

Southampton has developed a reputation for being one of the hardest clubs to beat and should give Arsenal a proper match, but Lawro believes the Gunners will eventually win the game 2-1.

He predicts on the BBC: “I don’t like to say ‘same old Arsenal’ because it’s a phrase I’ve used a lot in recent seasons but, at the moment, it feels like we’ve seen this before from the Gunners.

“It must be very frustrating for their manager, Mikel Arteta. After making such a bad start to the season they had started to look like they knew what they were doing, but then all of a sudden you chuck in a couple of poor displays and they are almost back to square one.

“That tells me more about the team’s mindset than any lack of quality in certain areas. Have they got a couple of people who, when it gets a bit tough, do not quite fancy it? I feel that is the case with Arsenal a little bit.

“They play some lovely football – even when they lost 4-0 at Liverpool a couple of weeks ago – but as soon as something goes against them, they don’t seem to be able to deal with it.

“Despite all of that, Arsenal are at home on Saturday, where their record is a lot better, and I still think they will beat Southampton, who should have beaten Brighton easily last week but would probably take a draw here, if they can get one.

“Lawro’s prediction: 2-1”

Just Arsenal Opinion

The match against the Saints is a must-win, and it also gives the players the chance to give back to the fans.

We have been through so much trolling in the last few weeks and surely, we cannot lose three straight matches.

Mikel Arteta has done well when he faces smaller clubs in the league this season.

The team should be able to replicate their performance against the likes of Burnley and Norwich at least.