The trip to the Emirates back in November was when it all started to go wrong, hopefully tonight will the the catalyst that sparks Saints back to life in the Premier League.

The trip to North London was the 12th game of the Premier League season for Saints, in the previous 11 games they had earned 22 points, starting with that game at the Emirates there have been exactly 11 games played up until today and Saints have only gained another 9 points, not even relegation form and the contrast between the two 11 game spells could not be more different.

Of course there have been some mitigating circumstances, injuries to key players being one as well as a run of games that saw Saints play 7 fixtures against the top 8 sides in the division, no excuses but it wasnt an easy run.

So perhaps this fixture will see some closure on a poor run of results and enable Saints to move forwards.

It might not be tonight though that Saints begin their recovery in the league, to be honest playing the League leaders at home with a patched up defence is going to be harder, form wise Arsenal have gained 16 points out of their last 6 games, Saints have got only 7, the omens are not good for this game.

In fact just about the only pointer that Saints can get something out of this game is historical in that in the past when the chips are down we have usually pulled something out of the hat and that is the biggest hope for tonight, certainly the form book suggests that there will be only one winner.

So the job for tonight is firstly to make sure that we play with pride and passion and that will make it difficult for the Gunners, then we need to make sure we cut out the errors and lack of concentration that have dogged the past few months, if we do this then firstly we will have a good foundation to build on for the rest of the season, but secondly we might just sneak something along the way.

What we know about Arsenal on the road is that they can score goals, in the past six games away from the Emirates they have put 12 goals past their opponents, but they have also conceded 9, however when you realise that six of those were up at the Etihad against Man City then it distorts the form table somewhat.

Overall this is an Arsenal side that averages around 2 goals a game, we have to make sure that they dont do that tonight, if we do then we then have to break down a defence that when taking out that freak result against City has only conceded 12 goals in total from the other 21 games.

So the forecast is bleak for Saints if we read the statistics, but football can be a strange game and although not many Saints fans will be confident in keeping the gunners at bay with the patched up defence, we should remember that in still will be a better defence than the ones that beat both Chelsea and Man City at home last term and no worse than the one which beat Liverpool add that to the fact that the team as a whole is stronger in all departments with an extra years experience for the youngsters to boot, then this game is far from lost before we start.

But for me it is about showing that this club has not fallen apart, perhaps we wont get even a point from tonight's game, but it is about showing that we are well equipped for the final run in, last year we got 19 points from our final 16 games, not a great total in any respects, but if we repeat that total in the last 16 games this season then we will have 50 points and that should be good enough for a top ten finish probably the 9th place we currently sit in, league football is a marathon not a sprint, sometimes you lose a few battles, but the only thing that matters is where you are come the end of the season.

On the injury front Artur Boruc should be fit after being rested on Saturday due to a back injury picked up at Sunderland, Rickie Lambert is a doubt with a hamstring, but should be fit enough to take his place on the bench and Victor Wanyama likewise will be in the squad, but having not played in two months is unlikely to be risked, however he may get on the bench and may be used in the later stages of the game.

Photo: Action Images

legod7 added 12:25 - Jan 28 How can we have a "patched up defence " with only ONE defender from our squad out through injury. No way would that in any other Premiership club be called patched up. We have 3 available keepers , 2 available right backs , 2 available left backs and 3 available centre backs.
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SaintNick added 12:49 - Jan 28 I have a pair of trousers, if i have one hole in them and i put 1 patch on it, do i have a perfect pair of trousers or a patched up pair ? Exactly, sometimes 1 player out needs more of a patch that two
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schatfield added 13:39 - Jan 28 we do have a patched up defense because its Lovren out. Anyone else, and maybe the hole wouldnt be too bad, but because its him, its a biggie.
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slynch added 14:11 - Jan 28 SaintNick unlike your trousers Saints' defence is not even "patched up" because Yosh and Hooi are not a patch on Lovren. However, I think a better metaphor is a bucket. Saints' defence is a bucket with a hole in it. Their only hope is that everyone in front of Spiderman keeps Arsenal occupied and stops them from pouring water in it. I've been thinking too long, about your trousers with a hole in them and I need to go and lie down, now.

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