Arsenal vs Southampton Ideal Starting XI: Alex Iwobi Back

Arsenal will be taking on Southampton on Wednesday in the EFL Cup, so let’s be the manager and put out the ideal starting XI to face the Saints.

The games are picking up hard and fast as Arsenal will turn their attentions to Southampton in the midweek clash in the EFL Cup. While the Saints figure to be taking this competition more seriously than the Gunners, you can still expect to see some experience mixed in with the youth that Wenger puts out.

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In terms of injuries, the only major update is that Lucas Perez is back and healthy. Hector Bellerin and Santi Cazorla are still out and Danny Welbeck is still too far off to even talk about (so why did I?).

The Saints have shown a tremendous ability to clean sheet teams at home. This shouldn’t be that shocking though, as Jose Fonte and Virgil van Dijk are class center backs who Wenger himself wanted at his club.

The match is at the Emirates, which helps Arsenal, but still, underestimating this defense is a losing endeavor. We obviously want to see a team that is capable of fighting competitively and continuing our quest at the first possible tournament trophy.

With that in mind, let’s start in keeper, where we can expect to see one of our many young faces.

Emiliano Martinez

He has flown so far under the radar for most of his Arsenal career, but you have to believe that Wenger has a lotof faith in him because he sticks around and he just signed a brand new contract with them. Both of which beg for notice.

Not only that, but after his loan at Wolves, we have every reason to believe that he is the real deal. Therefore it’s always exciting to see such a promising young man out there on the pitch.

Let’s get on to the fullbacks