Southampton are facing a crisis ahead of tonight’s Premier League clash with Arsenal after it emerged Ryan Bertrand and Kyle Walker-Peters are set to miss out.
According to the Saints website, Bertrand will miss the game having accumulated five yellow cards, meanwhile, the £13.5m-rated former Tottenham Hotspur defender picked up a muscle injury in training and is unlikely to feature.
Ralph Hasenhuttl’s men defeated Arsenal in the FA Cup tie last weekend thanks to an own goal from Gabriel Magalhaes as they progressed to the fifth-round to face Wolves.
Was Arteta right to make seven changes for the FA Cup tie?
Yes
No
The news couldn’t have done more to validate Mikel Arteta’s decision to make seven changes on Saturday as the Gunners went crashing out of the cup competition.
Walker-Peters’ injury has come down to an accumulation of games throughout December and January. The 23-year-old started and finished nine of his side’s 10 games since last month.
Imagine the meltdown throughout the fanbase had Kieran Tierney been the one to play and pick up an injury. The Scotsman has proven to be a key asset to the north London giants’ team in recent outings at both ends of the pitch. We’ve already seen what having the former Celtic player out can do to Arsenal in the drab draw with Crystal Palace.
Ainsley Maitland-Niles was tasked with filling the void at left-back and the less said about his disastrous performance, the better. The Englishman lost possession 13 times as he struggled to make the same impact in the final third as Tierney.
Injury to any key player would’ve been disastrous for the Gunners, hence why making so many changes was the right call from the former Manchester City coach.
In other news, Glenn Hoddle has sent a challenge to this Arsenal ace.