FA Cup quarterfinals: Southampton vs Arsenal preview, prediction, team news and head-to-head

• Over 3.5 goals

• Both teams to score

• Arsenal to win

The English football quadruple remains an elusive achievement for all clubs in the land, as Arsenal's dream of winning an unrivalled four trophies in one season unravelled under the Wembley arch, where Pep Guardiola schooled his former apprentice for yet the umpteenth time.

An Eberechi Eze and Martin Odegaard-less Arsenal had no answer to Nico O'Reilly's quickfire second-half double, in what was arguably the most alarming display of bluntness from Mikel Arteta's troops.

Nevertheless, a tremendous treble is very much within reach for the Gunners. They remain nine points clear at the Premier League summit, have a winnable Champions League quarter-final with Sporting Lisbon on the horizon, and are just 90 minutes away from another Wembley appearance in the FA Cup.

Arsenal’s run to this stage has been rather kind, facing lower league opposition in Portsmouth, Wigan and Mansfield, scoring ten goals in the process and conceding twice.

Mikel Arteta’s side will have to guard against complacency when they face the Saints who are unbeaten since January, as their form suggests a surprise could be on the cards.

Southampton, meanwhile, overcame Premier League opposition in Fulham at Craven Cottage in one of the shock results from round five as Ross Stewart scored a 91st minute penalty.

Arsenal bested Southampton twice in the 2024-25 Premier League to help them on their relegation journey, including a 2-1 final-day success in which Kieran Tierney scored an emotional last Gunners goal.

The Gunners’ 2-1 success at Mansfield in round five of the FA Cup was very much a case of job done for Arteta's men, who have reached the quarter-finals for the first time since their last cup triumph in 2019-20.

In fact, they have gone on to win the tournament on each of the last four occasions that they have reached the semi-finals.

Southampton FA Cup form: 🟩🟩🟩

Southampton form (all competitions): 🟩🟩🟧🟩🟩🟩

Arsenal FA Cup form: 🟩🟩🟩

Arsenal form (all competitions): 🟩🟩🟧🟩🟩🟥

No fewer than 10 Arsenal players pulled out of international duty in March; some with noticeable, well-reported injuries in Eberechi Eze and Noni Madueke, and others with unforeseen issues in Martin Zubimendi, Piero Hincapie, Declan Rice, Bukayo Saka, Leandro Trossard, William Saliba, Gabriel Magalhaes and Jurrien Timber.

Expect Arteta to remain tight-lipped on their conditions in his pre-game press conference, but it would not be a shock to see all of them spared with the Sporting first leg in mind. The same goes for Martin Odegaard (knee), while Mikel Merino (foot) is definitely sidelined.

With no Madueke and likely no Saka, 16-year-old phenom Max Dowman will surely be given a shot from the start at St Mary's, where Kepa Arrizabalaga should continue in between the posts despite another EFL Cup blunder.

Southampton are not in perfect shape for the quarter-final either, as midfield metronome Flynn Downes and playmaker Kuryu Matsuki are both suspended owing to an accumulation of yellow cards, having been booked for the second time in the FA Cup at Craven Cottage.

Ex-Brentford right-back Mads Roerslev (knee) is out for the season, while Welington (muscle), Jay Robinson (thigh) and Alex McCarthy (wrist) are also on the treatment table.

To make matters worse, skipper Jack Stephens suffered a training-ground injury on Monday, and Leo Scienza was not seen at all as he continues his recuperation from a groin problem.

Southampton: Peretz; Bree, Wood, Harwood-Bellis, Manning; Jander, Romeu; Fellows, Azaz, Edozie; Stewart

Arsenal: Kepa; White, Salmon, Mosquera, Calafiori; Havertz, Norgaard, Lewis-Skelly; Dowman, Gyokeres, G. Jesus

This will be a lot trickier than many expect as Southampton are in very good form and have nothing to lose, which makes them a dangerous opponent.

However, with a Championship play-off spot very much achievable, perhaps the Saints may prioritise promotion back to the Premier League over a cup semi-final.

Arsenal should have enough to overcome Southampton and continue their quest for trophies. We expect the visitors to get the job done and rather comfortably.

Correct score prediction: Southampton 1-3 Arsenal