And so, a strange season littered with a series of serious injuries to key players that required surgery, compounded by a litany of bizarre and punitive referee and VAR decisions, comes to an end with a final match against Southampton at St Mary’s. A place in next season’s Champions League has been secured by the hard fought victory over the Barcodes last Sunday at home and a hat-trick of second place finishes is almost certain unless we lose this game and the Abu Dhabi Creative Accountants FC can rattle in enough goals to make up their goal difference deficit. We absolutely don’t want to see either of those scenarios. We should beat this shower.
Southampton have had a truly terrible season – record breaking in the wrong way. Last season they gained the ‘prize’ of promotion to the top tier by finishing fourth in the Championship, ten points behind ‘champions’ Leicester and nine behind second-placed Ipswich, and by beating third-placed Leeds United 1-0 in the play-off final. Frankly it is hardly surprising that they have struggled in nearly every game. We should beat this shower.
The Saints have dispensed with two managers during the season. First to walk the plank was Russell Martin who had taken them up but refused to change his playing ‘principles’ despite one thrashing after another. He was sacked in December after a 5-0 home defeat by the Marshdwellers – surely no-one could survive such an embarrassment! Next for the chop was Ivan Jurić who reminded me of Harry Worth, both in appearance and interview style (ask your dad!) and the fecklessness of his team, who lasted just over 3 months. He too was sacked after another defeat by the Marshdwellers (just too embarrassing!) – this time 1-3 at the Toilet Bowl. That result confirmed Southampton’s relegation on 6 April, after 31 games, thus breaking Derby County’s 2007-8 and Huddersfield Town’s 2018-19 joint record for the earliest relegation in Premier League history. We should beat this shower.
Jurić has been replaced by Simon Rusk who had been first team coach for under 6 weeks. Despite his relative inexperience, Rusk delivered the Saints’ high water mark of the season with a 1-1 draw against West Ham which helped them reach 11 points to avoid breaking Derby County’s 2007-8 record for the lowest points tally in Premier League history. Over his two spells as interim coach (2 matches between Martin and Jurić and 6 matches after Jurić so far), Rusk’s record is played 8, won 0, drawn 3, lost 5. On 10 May, Rusk delivered another high for Southampton with a 0-0 draw against Abu Dhabi Creative Accountants FC that surprised everyone, not least Pep the Perp. We don’t want the Saints to have another highpoint this season. We should beat this shower.
After 37 games, Southampton sit bottom of the Premier League on 12 points with just 2 wins (1-0 at home over Everton in November and 2-1 away to Ipswich in February – not company we want to keep), and 6 draws. They have scored 25 goals and conceded 84 yielding averages of 0.68 goals scored per game and 2.27 goals conceded per game. We should beat this shower.
I have no idea how Rusk will set up his team to face the Arsenal. Nor can I be arsed to find out. I’m confident that Mikel Arteta has studied them and come up with a plan. Their most familiar player is of course, Aaron Ramsdale. He’s a good goalkeeper and I liked the man but David Raya is clearly an upgrade and I hope we stick 5 past him and that Aaron ultimately gets a move to a decent club that will not be relegated. Southampton have a few other players whose names I recognise: Bednarek, Harwood-Bellis, Walker-Peters (all three are doubts), Sugawara and Stephens are hard-working but ‘just OK’ defenders but I’ve never heard of Welington, Wood and Bree; Dibling is their young creative hope in midfield but shows his youthful flaws as well as ample attacking energy; he will likely feature alongside three of Fernandes, Aribo, Kalmadeen, Downes, Ugochukwu or even Lallana (who is doubling up as interim assistant manager); up front they will have one of Sulemana, Archer or Onuachu. The latter is their top scorer in the Premier League with 4 goals followed by Aribo with 3 goals. Dibling and three others have 2 league goals. Expect them to play a low block and attempts to break out at speed in the hope of equalling or bettering their result against Abu Dhabi. We should beat this shower.
In the home fixture which ended 3-1 to the good guys, the visitors surprisingly scored first through Archer after 55 minutes but goals by Havertz on 58 minutes, Martinelli on 68 minutes and Saka on 88 minutes secured all three points and a better reflection of a match in which we had 29 shots at goal (but only 6 on target – reflecting the season as a whole?) vs 8 (2 on target), 19 corners (vs 1) and 59% possession. We should beat this shower.
I am sure that Mikel Arteta wants to finish this season with a victory and an assured second-place finish above Abu Dhabi Creative Accountants FC. We have now added Saliba and Timber to our walking wounded and the latter has had a surgical procedure to his ankle (apparently a problem he has been coping with for several weeks). Apart from last week’s return by Kai Havertz none of our longterm wounded can be expected to be available. I think we will see another vignette from the bench for Kai rather than a starting position. I hope that Calafiori, another recent returnee, is capable of 90 minutes. Merino returns from suspension and may get the centre forward position over Trossard or alternatively he may be held in reserve to reinforce the midfield or central defence later in the game, given that we have few experienced options in the latter department. I expect we will see farewell run outs in an Arsenal shirt from KT3, Jorginho and Zinchenko late in the game – thanks, goodbye and good luck, fellas. Thus I anticipate we will see a starting XI similar to the following:
Raya
White Kiwior Calafiori MLS
Ødegaard Partey Rice
Saka Merino Martinelli
Although St Mary’s has, for reasons I do not understand, rarely been a happy hunting ground for us, we should be confident that we can secure a hat trick of second places in this game. As many sensible people have observed, given the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune that have been flung in their path throughout this season, second place in the Premier League and reaching the semi-final of the Champions League are remarkable achievements for this manager and squad. I expect us to keep a clean sheet and win 5-0.
Let’s finish this difficult season on a high!
Enjoy the game, Holics near and far.
We should beat this shower!
COYG
Cheers Baff.
It has indeed been a trying season. I’m looking forward to seeing the back of it. As you may have mentioned, we should win this game. Let’s hope by a hatful, so we can end on a high.
Before that however, the women’s team are in the CL final at 5pm UK time this afternoon. It’s free to watch on TV in lots of countries, and also available for free on YouTube, so anyone who wants to tune in should be able to do so.
I’m really looking forward to it, even if we are underdogs. The women have already gone one better than the men this year in reaching the final. Let’s hope they can finish the job.
UTA!
Very good summary of events Bath and I agree we shoukd beat this shower, I’d sa6 about 4-0. My friend always goes to this as his son lives in Southampton and h3 is muc( more excited about this than any other Gooner I know.
I would trade a win for the ladies in the Champions League final but hope we can do both .
Finally may I propose an enormous vote of thanks to Ned for his terrific work on the Predictathon . My performance has been execrable but it has been a real fun competition and he has administered it superbly and with a minimum of fuss. Thankyou Ned
Thanks Bath,
Nice preview although “should” is a word that usually makes me nervous so I hope you don’t mind if I overlook it. Just win it.
I went to an evening away game at Southampton probably 50 years ago and I don’t even remember the result. I do remember that it pissed with rain, the train journey was shit and everything else about the “adventure” was shit as well.
I simply hope that the Arse prevail for (another) second place finish.
On another note, does anyone know when we hear that Abu Dhabi will be relegated for their many indiscretions?
UTA.
A fine job, Bath – love the roll call of Southampton players – Whoooooo ?
Yes we should beat them …. I hope as many of our exhausted players as possible get a rest for all or a significant part of this game. I’d really like to see some of the youngsters who have consistently featured on our bench get a chance to show their skills.
Hopefully a winning end to a uniquely hard season.
Thanks Bath, an entertaining preview to round off the season.
Happy to move onto next year but I hope we see Zin again before
he heads off for pastures new.
A fitting preview, Bath, to bring down the curtain on a season that Trev describes well as uniquely hard.
It is remarkable that we have won on only four of our last 14 visits, and we have never scored five goals in a league game at their gaff (the 5-0 in 2017 was in the FA Cup), so your score prediction would fill a notable gap in the record.
TTG@2: Thank you for your generous words. It is a pleasure to do the Predictathon, which goes into the final round of games with any of Dr F. Jnr, Postsicker, bt8 and GSD able to grab glory in the final dash to the line. I would be remiss not to thank Bath and Scruz for their tireless production support across the season, and indeed you, for being the bagman. Our overarching goal is to raise a few bob for Bob Wilson’s Willow Foundation. So thanks, too, to every GHF Predictathon player for channelling their inner Mystic Meg into that higher goal.
Nicely summed up, Bath.
I’d enjoy a Palace win at Anfield and a Saints drubbing in the shower at St Mary’s to round of this season nicely and see the back of it forever.
And yes, Ned’s efforts on the Predication very greatly appreciated. It must be wonderful to have a squad of Monks beavering feverishly in the background to keep the wheels of Castle Ned turning so efficiently and effectively. Very envious.
Cheers Baff. All of what GSD said at one.
With the final on L’Équipe TV channel, free to air here, bring it on!
Hopefully just after a Bordeaux win in the rugby but it is very tight.
I second (or third, now) the vote of thanks to Ned.
Bordeaux win. *ticks first box*
Come on Arsenal!
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE WINNERS!
Arsenal Ladies.
Now known as Arsenal Women, of course.
I’m so, so proud. That was a monumental effort. Payback for 2006. Get in!
And they’ve done it! *ticks second box*
Fantastic win for the women. Renee Slegers must be Arsenal manager of the year now 🙂
btM@8: Monastic feudalism is vastly underrated these days…
Well done to the Arsenal Women, great result, beat two of the
top teams in the world.
North London For Ever
Arsenal Women…. wow…. Champions!
Amazing women team we have. Good time and proud to be a gooner.
Thank you Arsenal!
COYG
So, so proud of the women’s team. So gutsy, so resilient, so strong.
Well done the Arsenal Women. For me, always ladies.
Aberdeen win the Scottish Cup on penalties against all else conquering Celtic who were going for the domestic treble in Scotland.
Ticks third box!
Indeed Bath. I know a few Dons fan in Paris (well one was actually in Aberdeen today) who have been crying today.
Now there’s a third team in Red and White playing a Cup final today, but given they are involved in a two-legged relegation play-off sandwiching this match, I don’t give them much of a change against the might of QSG. That’s an even bigger mistmatch than the other finals (bar the German Cup final happening tonight too, perhaps), especially in the circumstances.
Jonathan Liew on our Champions League win.
https://www.theguardian.com/football/2025/may/24/womens-champions-league-triumph-will-redefine-how-arsenal-see-themselves
Thanks c100, great piece from Liew, a happy gooner today. He’s right of course, forever winners now.
We are going to look at the impact of women’s football at Arsenal during the summer but today was a very special day. I noted David Dein in the crowd , the man who first encouraged the club to take women’s football seriously and Josh Kroenke standing head and shoulders ( literally) above the other dignitaries at the prize giving .KSE have given great support to our women’s team.
It was a remarkable performance. I’d expected a comprehensive defeat based on what they did to Chelsea but Renée had it all planned.
She’s a great asset to the club and I hope she stays. What I’m really saying is ‘ Don’t walk away Renée’!
A proud day for the club. I remember 2097. We were playing at home and news was relayed to us but it was very low key.
This was a big occasion and we got there. We won it ahead of Chelsea and got a sort of revenge on Barca for the men’s trophy .
Arsenal Ladies- Champions of Europe !
Does TTG remember 2097 as if it were tomorrow?
Thanks Bath for a relaxed tone preview to close this season of trials & tribulations. Looking forward to us ending the season with a thumping win to compensate for some disappointing performances at St Mary’s these past few years.
Events in Lisbon naturally are now dominating the Arsenal media sphere after the phenomenal performance by the Arsenal Women winning the European Cup – what a way to close this season. Renee Slegers manager of the year without a doubt – the way she has turned around a failing team into champions, just brilliant.
I join with others in thanking Ned & TTG for all their great work in setting up and running the Predictathon competition ( I think Scruz also assists with this ). I see TTG is in his very own Back to the Future.
Well said, Bath. We should indeed beat this shower and finish this season on a high, so let us do exactly that, nothing more or less.
2097 was a very good year . I celebrated my 146 th birthday! Oops – a 9 snuck in there . I do remember ninety years before it. Our first Champions League . Something Chelsea have never won
Blogs has written a great post this morning. In part, it highlights the efforts of Tim Stillman, his support for the Arsenal women over many years and the fantastic content he and a small team produce for Arseblog News.
As a bloke who occasionally writes match reports or thought pieces for a much smaller Arsenal blog, I am in awe of the level of commitment that goes into the women’s coverage over there, especially as they essentially had to build up their own audience amidst much resistance. Bravo!
I was so proud of our team and club yesterday, and I still am. I’m also very proud of the wider Arsenal community, who continue to lead the way in women’s football. The result yesterday will have an impact felt for years.
UTA!
Thanks for the Liew link, Countryman. A fine piece.
And a huge thanks to Ned and the monks for their efforts with the predictathon. To Scruz and TTG too. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the competition and the weekly updates and charts. It’s been a great addition to the site, and has raised some money for a good cause. Hopefully we can grow it and get a few more participants next year!
Under normal circumstances, I’d find it hard to get up for the men’s game today. However, there is a lot on the line for the Ode To Saka lads as they go head to head with the Top Sheep for the Ropey League Cup. I wish my opponents the best of luck today… and my lads will be playing for the win!
Last football match of what has felt like a long season today. We hit the road to Southampton in about 90 minutes.
Safe travels, C100 and enjoy the match!
I can only wish that I had seen the wimen’s final, but reading your comments and this piece https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/articles/c3rp477qzvyo — were inspirational to say the least. May the women’s victory inspire the Arsenal men’s team to greater heights next season, and a well esrned summer to all.
Nice touch from MA8, giving Zinchenko and KT3 a final start for the Arsenal:
Raya
Partey White Kiwior KT3
Rice Merino Zinchenko
Nwaneri Martinelli Sterling
Sterling, not so much. No sign of Calafiori. :0(
Martinelli playing down the middle?
It would also be a nice touch for Jack Henry-Francis to come off the bench for a debut appearance before he leaves the club this summer.
Word is that Calafiori is having more trouble with his knee.
GSD@31: Glad to hear you enjoy the Predictathon. Bath should get a hat-tip along with TTG and Scruz. It takes a team…
I’d love to get the number of participants up, and we are open to ideas about how to do that, and to any other changes we could make to improve the game. Two divisions, perhaps? More tiebreaker-like mini-predictions?
The 2025-26 PL season opens on August 16, so mark your calendars for around the start of August when the entry forms will be sent out.
But first, all is still to play for in this year’s version….
I’m very concerned about Calafiori . He was excellent last week, playing at centre back for the second half . But he’s absent again. About his sixth injury of the season. The boy is very injury prone – such a pity
@5 great shout sir! Zin indeed starting and KT3 finishing his
tour of duty with a goal. The last knockings of the season always
used to be a time for farewells (or hellos from the youngsters)
and it is nice to see MA respecting the tradition.
@39 whilst your concern is understandable TTG I am not sure I’d read too much into this game as I think it was an XI put out partly on an understandable sentimentality.
Sterling is starting after all.
At least we avoided ending the season with what would have been a sadly representative draw. Good karma in the goal scorers, though. It is a shame Raya was denied outright ownership of the golden glove.
Breaking news on the GHF Predictathon: The final result is so close at the top and bottom that it is going to a hand recount.
Matt,
I appreciate your point about different criteria for selection but I heard Calafiori got injured in training- again .
A friend texted me from the ground agonising about Sterling’s performance. He thought he was awful
Song heard to Ipswich and again today.
If Sterling scores
We’re on the piss.
On a différent sentimental note it seems Lineker’s last MoTD effort was
a tribute filled affair. I must admit he has often annoyed me but it does say
something for a man that a lot of differing people will stand up and call him
‘Friend’
@44 TTG, oh i see about Cala. I appreciate your point too, I like Calafiori as
a player and think he was a good signing, but it will be a shame if he
turns out to be on a similar injury prone trajectory to Tomi. Very differing defenders in their
own way but both fine players.
The final update to the GHF Predictathon has been posted. After a day of surprises and a long season, we have a winner.
You know where to find it….
Ollie needs to be relegated. It’s too far for an away game.
Well congratulations to Potsticker and commiserations to the young Dr F,
a fine front-runner for several weeks. I would commiserate with Dino too
but he has the consolation of a Cup Winners medal from the Holics Fantasy
League Cup🎉🎉🎉 All hail King Rex!
Congrats Matt on the half-ton.
And Potsticker on the Predictathon!
Heh, Sancho! But the transport links are good!
Congratulations to Potsticker for winning the Predictathon and well done Dr F Junior for a great performance. Congratulations also to TTG for a storming triumph in the Ropey League and to GSD for winning the Ropey League Cup. Well done all.
Well done Potsticker on your Predictathon triumph! Commiserations to Doc Junior who had a fantastic campaign.
I am indeed pleased with a dominant display in the Ropey Cup, but I must congratulate TTG on a resounding victory in the league. The table does not lie, and he deserves his victory as much as 22 loss Spurs deserve their 17th place. (38 points and their manager says they’ve had an outstanding season. I continue to fall out of love with that rivalry.)
Huge thanks to Baff for massive behind the scenes efforts this year, stepping into the big shoes of C100 (he’s one of our own!) A large tipple of your choosing is on the bar for you sir. Well earned and then some.
And thanks to all of the people involved in the nuts and bolts of the site – publishing articles, keeping the place looking spic and span and all the rest. Thanks so much, i wouldn’t know where to start and there wouldn’t be a blog without you all.
And to the writers. I think a huge strength of this blog is that it is a home to many different voices. Of course, we are reasonably well aligned in general attitude, but I love getting different takes as the seasons progress and enjoy all the different styles everyone brings.
The drinks continue to be a well-informed, humourous place to discuss Arsenal, and it has been a pleasure to see some new posters through the year, and a couple of much-missed old ones pop in too.
It’s been a tough season but sharing it with you all here continues to be a huge part of my experience as an Arsenal fan, and I am very grateful to all the readers and everyone who is involved in producing the blog for being part of that experience. Thank everyone.
I’m looking forward to a strong summer from the club in terms of developing the squad and getting ready for the new season, but everyone needs a break first. Me included, and I’ll likely be in the bar less for the next ten weeks or so. But I’m sure we’ll all fit and raring to go in August!
Until then… drinks all round!
*raises glass after GSD’s excellent speech*
We said GSD. A great summer to you and to all the ‘holics who deserve their well earned afternoon or two in the hammock. Or on a firmer surface if your spine needs it, as mine most certainly will. 🍷
Raises a glass to GSD and to all Holics. Fine sentiments well expressed. As Dave would have said, as indeed he did say often, you guys are the mutts.
Well said, everyone above !
I think GSD summed up very nicely why we, hopefully, all enjoy this place – never forgetting that Dave’s ethics still strongly rule the roost.
Thanks to Bath for his schedule managing and writing duties. How he fits all his travails between his travels is more than a mere lexicographer’s puzzle.
And thanks too to Ned and TTG for their running of the blog – and unprecedented levels of observation and statistics charts from the monks which make participation so much more enjoyable. A look at the final table sees my own perfectly timed run to my lowest position of the season on the final day ! I notice around me the majority of main article writers firmly rooted in the lower reaches of the table. So if you expect real football knowledge from your writers you’d better look somewhere else !
Hope to see some of you during the next couple of months – even if GSD is summernating! (It was a job to get that past the spillchucker – and that ! )
GSD@54: Well said. Nothing to add, save well in for the half-ton, OM.
Trev@58: As for your observation in your penultimate paragraph, I am reminded of the financial advisor who said, ‘We make our money from giving our advice, not from taking it’
Congratulations to Potsticker for an excellent win , well played Dr.F Junior and props to GSD. I think he and I have to play off in the GHF Super Cup in Monaco in the autumn .
Bath in particular has done a magnificent job behind the scenes helped by Scruz who appears to be less of a sex maniac than previously and also gratitude to Pangloss for his help . Thanks to them all and I repeat my thanks to Ned whose administration of the Predictathon has been superb .
And please don’t be a stranger in the summer . We have a lot of top articles lined up . We will be looking at the last season in detail, deciding who we need to buy, looking in detail at our ladies Champions League winning teams and dissecting the competitions and why the winners were successful. C100 will be sharing reflections on his travels and we will be all over any news as it develops . I also hope that the Supporters Trust will be sharing their thoughts on how the club is run with us . So stay with us !
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