Revenge is sweet for Mikel Arteta's Arsenal in win at Saints

While Saints progressed into round five of the cup at the weekend, Premier League points were up for grabs this time and the hosts started perfectly with Stuart Armstrong firing in an early opener.

However, Arsenal rallied to lead by half-time through goals from Nicolas Pepe and Bukayo Saka.

And the win was sealed with around 20 minutes to play when Alexandre Lacazette tapped home a third.

Victory lifts the Gunners above Saints in the table, leaving Ralph Hasenhuttl’s men in 11th.

Hasenhuttl made three changes from Saturday’s FA Cup win over the same opponents. Two were enforced, with Ryan Bertrand serving a one-match ban having picked up a fifth yellow card of the season, while Kyle Walker-Peters missed out due to a quad injury suffered in training on Monday. That saw young full-backs Jake Vokins and Yan Valery handed first Premier League starts of the season. The other alteration saw Alex McCarthy return in goal in place of Fraser Forster.

There was also a welcome return to the matchday squad for Nathan Redmond, who took his place among the substitutes after recovering from injury.

The Gunners also made significant changes from their loss at the weekend, boosting their line-up with the likes of Thomas Partey, Emile Smith Rowe and Lacazette.

And the refreshed Arsenal side should have taken the lead in the opening seconds. After a sloppy pass out the back by Jan Bednarek, Granit Xhaka sent Lacazette through on goal, but the Frenchman was denied one-on-one by McCarthy.

Saints instantly punished the miss. After Danny Ings’s header from a Valery cross was deflected behind, the resulting corner saw James Ward-Prowse mark his 300th appearance for the club with a pinpoint assist. The skipper picked out Armstrong on the edge of the box to rifle home, despite a strong hand from goalkeeper Bernd Leno.

But the fast-paced contest soon produced its second goal.

With barely eight minutes on the clock, the game was tied up at 1-1 and it was a mistake at the back again from the hosts. This time Jack Stephens was the guilty party, conceding possession too easily and allowing Arsenal forward. Xhaka threaded it through for Pepe in the left channel and the winger held off his man before slotting past McCarthy inside the box.

The Gunners came close to taking the lead when former Saint Cedric volleyed narrowly past the post, before the hosts best spell of the half.

Leno was called into a brilliant diving stop to tip away a Che Adams header from a perfect Vokins cross, before Valery and Armstrong fired efforts off target.

But it was Mikel Arteta’s men who would take a slender lead into half-time. Lacazette provided the assist, turning the ball on for Saka to spin between Stephens and Vokins.

The winger still had plenty to do, but skipped around a marauding McCarthy before slotting right-footed into the unguarded net.

Saints started the second half well with Theo Walcott, who joined Arsenal from Saints in 2006, stinging the palms of Leno.

Chances were not falling as frequently as during the first period, with the visitors having to wait until the hour mark before registering another effort, Saka firing well wide.

Midway through the second half, Hasenhuttl turned to his bench for the first time. Redmond returned for the first time since December 19 after recovering from a muscle problem, and replaced Vokins. Ibrahima Diallo slotted into left-back, with Armstrong moving deeper.

Arteta instantly responded, introducing Willian in place of Smith Rowe. And moments later, Arsenal added a third goal. Willian was instantly involved, laying the ball back for Cedric to ping a superb cross-field pass to Saka. The young England international slid the ball across goal, where Lacazette was on hand to tap home at the back post.

Hasenhuttl immediately called academy duo Dan N’Lundulu and Caleb Watts on from the bench, with Walcott and Ings replaced.

Saints created a couple of openings in the closing minutes, including a Ward-Prowse free-kick tipped away by Leno, as Arsenal closed out the victory.

Saints: McCarthy; Valery, Bednarek, Stephens, Vokins (Redmond, 67); Ward-Prowse, Diallo; Walcott (N’Lundulu, 75), Armstrong; Ings (Watts, 75), Adams.

Unused subs: Ramsay, Jankewitz, Chauke, Ferry, Long, Forster (g/k).

Booked: Watts.

Arsenal: Leno; Bellerin, Holding, Luiz, Cedric; Partey (Elneny, 78), Xhaka; Saka, Smith Rowe (Willian, 72), Pepe (Willock, 90+2); Lacazette.

Unused subs: Chambers, Gabriel, Maitland-Niles, Martinelli, Nketiah, Ryan (g/k).

Booked: Bellerin, Pepe.

Referee: Kevin Friend.

VAR: Robert Jones.