Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal side may be playing with the utmost confidence, but the experienced Gunners boss knows that can soon change.
The Frenchman takes his team to Southampton on Boxing Day knowing they could end the night top of the Barclays Premier League. That comes on the back of three successive league wins, including Monday’s crucial victory over title rivals Manchester City at the Emirates Stadium.
Southampton are not in the type of form that saw them finish a club-record seventh last season but they still have the players to provide upsets. Last year Ronald Koeman welcomed Arsenal on New Year’s Day and saw his Saints pick up a 2-0 win thanks to some calamitous defending from the visitors.
But after that set-back, Wenger’s men have gone on to amass 10 points more than any other Premier League side in 2015 and, with two home games against Bournemouth and Newcastle following their trip to the south coast, momentum is with Arsenal as they look to overhaul high-flying Leicester.
Wenger, however, knows all too well the fragility which accompanies such momentum.
“The confidence is very high,” he said. “Confidence is built up very slowly and goes very quickly, so let’s take care of our next performance.
“We have been top of the league [at this stage] in previous years and I think football is pragmatic. Nobody can predict what can happen in the next 17 games, for example, and you just want to go with the same attitude and spirit.
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