The FA Cup Fourth Round this season isn’t clogged up with mouth-watering fixtures. The prospect of Sutton United vs. Leeds United – our Fixture in Focus here at FootballFanCast – is an exciting one with a massive banana skin laid out in front of the Whites, and alongside that Southampton hosting Arsenal is the pick of the bunch.

The Saints and the Gunners have already met in EFL Cup action this term, with the south coast side overcoming their London foes at the Emirates Stadium, so Arsene Wenger will have revenge on his mind - which will add to his desire to do well given that two FA Cup wins in the last three years have been a big bargaining chip in him keeping his role at the club.

The 5:30pm kick-off on Saturday, then, is all teed up to be a cracker, but who are the bookies backing? How will injuries affect team selections? Where will the game be lost and won?

We answer those questions, and more, in our all-in-one preview...

Odds, form and prior encounters

Southampton win: 12/5 – Arsenal win: 11/10

Draw: 5/2

Despite the Saints having home advantage, the bookies are talking up Arsenal for this one, and it’s easy to see why. Although there’s not the gulf in quality between the two teams there once was, the Gunners have had a week off while the men from Hampshire have undergone a gruelling EFL semi-final second leg – which they won – at Liverpool, and that should, in theory, expand the gap between the two. In terms of league position, the two sides are quite a distance apart (Arsenal third and Southampton eleventh), with a staggering 20 points between them, while the visitors have picked up more points on their travels (21) than the hosts have at home (18) so far this term.

Head-to-head

03/11/2014 – Arsenal 1-0 Southampton (Premier League)

01/01/2015 – Southampton 2-0 Arsenal (Premier League)

26/11/2015 – Southampton 4-0 Arsenal (Premier League)

02/02/2016 – Arsenal 0-0 Southampton (Premier League)

10/09/2016 – Arsenal 2-1 Southampton (Premier League)

20/11/2016 Arsenal 0-2 Southampton 2 (EFL Cup)

Interestingly, of the two sides, Southampton win the battle of the last six games. Indeed, the Saints have beaten their London rivals three times, while losing twice (the other, obviously, a draw). Their goals tally stands at nine vs. three – comprehensive, that. Looking at this season, though, it’s been close, with Arsenal winning the teams’ league meeting 2-1 at the Emirates Stadium, whereas Southampton triumphed on the same pitch in the EFL Cup in late November.

SkyBet odds.

Injuries and suspensions

In terms of injuries, the two teams are poles apart, with Southampton blighted and Arsenal in relatively good health. The biggest miss for the home side will be defender Virgil van Dijk, who sat out of the EFL Cup win over Liverpool on Wednesday. Although young Jack Stephens stepped in ably, the Dutchman is a cut above your average defender in English football and marshals the backline at St Mary’s effectively, so not having him, as well as departed Portugal international Jose Fonte, is a blow. Elsewhere, Jay Rodriguez and James Ward-Prowse are doubts after the midweek game, while big summer signing Sofiane Boufal remains sidelined with a knee problem, as does Charlie Austin with a shoulder complaint.

Arsenal will be without the suspended Granit Xhaka, while another central midfield option, Mohamed Elneny, is away at the Africa Cup of Nations. As such, Wenger’s options in the middle are somewhat depleted, which is not helped by Santi Cazorla’s continued absence. Theo Walcott is, according to Wenger, in line to play some part, though, which is a boost given his scoring form this season.

The XIs the managers should pick

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With Puel’s men having, as we mentioned, taken on Liverpool in midweek, changes are expected, but the Frenchman cannot afford to go full on in terms of resting players. The 4-4-2 used often earlier in the season may be cast aside in favour of a 4-3-3 which will allow the Saints boss to rest certain players and get replacements in, but the likes of Steven Davis, Oriol Romeu, Nathan Redmond, Maya Yoshida and Jack Stephens will probably be asked to go again after starting at Anfield, as well as Fraser Forster in goal. Fresh legs in both full-back positions might tempt Puel, while youngster Josh Sims looked good when thrown on vs. Liverpool.

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Starting from the very back, ‘cup goalie’ David Ospina will likely come in, while a strong backline could be supplemented by Rob Holding, who needs game time. In the middle of the park there’s not much room for manoeuvre given injuries and suspensions, so Francis Coquelin and Aaron Ramsey should partner up in the middle, while Lucas Perez and Alex Iwobi seem well suited to playing the wide roles. In terms of sheer quality, Wenger may not want to risk too much against the Saints, but having Mesut Ozil and Olivier Giroud as the focal points of the team will surely appeal.

Key battle - Stephens vs. Giroud

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This game could be won and lost by Southampton's ability to keep the Gunners out. The Saints have scored a meagre 22 Premier League goals – just two more than relegation-threatened Sunderland and Hull – so Puel won’t be travelling to Arsenal expecting his side to out-gun (no pun intended) the Gunners.

Stephens put in a heroic showing vs. Liverpool on Wednesday, and he’ll surely have to go again against Giroud, who has been in excellent form over the winter period. The big Frenchman is good in the air and offers intelligent movement – he’ll be a step up from the out-of-sorts Daniel Sturridge the 22-year-old encountered on Merseyside.