Bournemouth welcome Arsenal to the Vitality Stadium for a Premier League fixture that pits a side searching for lift against a team setting the pace at the top. The hosts have competed hard through a punishing run of games without being rewarded often enough, while Arsenal arrive in confident mood after a powerful finish to December that has strengthened their grip on first place.
Recent results give the match its shape. Bournemouth’s last outing in any competition was a 2–2 draw away at Chelsea on 30 December, a game that burst into life early and again showed they can create chances against elite opposition. The frustration is what came before it: a 4–1 defeat at Brentford and a growing sense that decent performances are too frequently ending with only a point or none at all. Over their last six league matches, the Cherries have drawn four and lost two, and they have not won a league game in 10—a stretch that has left them hovering in the bottom-half despite regularly looking capable of troubling teams on the day.
Arsenal’s momentum is far more straightforward. Their last match in any competition was a 4–1 home win over Aston Villa on 30 December, decided by a scintillating second-half spell that underlined their depth and attacking variety. That result also made it four straight Premier League victories, keeping them clear at the summit heading into the first weekend of the new year. With the title race beginning to take clearer shape, this is the type of away fixture leaders are judged on: not the glamour tie, but the difficult one where focus matters as much as quality.
Team news is important and there are a few clear headlines. Arsenal have a significant fitness question over Declan Rice, who has been managing a knee problem and remains a decision to be made close to kick-off. In defence, Riccardo Calafiori and Cristhian Mosquera are ruled out, while the return of Gabriel Magalhães has helped ease strain at the back. Up front, Kai Havertz is back available, giving Mikel Arteta another option alongside Viktor Gyökeres and Gabriel Jesus. For Bournemouth, the biggest confirmed absence is Tyler Adams, who is expected to miss time after an MCL tear, reducing midfield bite and leadership at a moment when they badly need stability. Otherwise, Andoni Iraola’s selection has largely been shaped by managing workloads rather than wholesale injury disruption.
There is still plenty of attacking threat on show. Bournemouth’s best moments often run through Antoine Semenyo, who has been one of their most productive forwards this season and remains central to how they carry danger on the break. Justin Kluivert has also been a key contributor in recent weeks, and Bournemouth tend to look most dangerous when they can get runners beyond the ball quickly rather than building too slowly. Arsenal’s in-form names are hard to ignore: Leandro Trossard has been among their most decisive finishers across 2025, Bukayo Saka remains the creative heartbeat from wide areas, and Gyökeres provides a constant box threat that forces defenders to make uncomfortable choices.
Tactically, the pattern is easy to imagine but not necessarily easy to stop. Bournemouth will want intensity, quick pressure, and a game that feels uncomfortable for Arsenal—especially early on, when the Vitality crowd can turn a strong start into real momentum. Arsenal, as ever, will look to control territory and tempo, moving Bournemouth’s block side to side and waiting for the spaces that appear when concentration drops. If the leaders score first, the match can open up sharply; if it stays level into the second half, the tension shifts and Bournemouth’s belief grows.
It’s a fixture built around contrasting needs: Arsenal aiming to keep their title pace clean and ruthless, Bournemouth desperate for the win that resets their season. With a few key injury questions and match-winners on both sides, it has the feel of a game that could be decided by one big moment—either a burst of Arsenal quality, or a Bournemouth transition that finally lands where it counts.
