Arsene Wenger is confident Arsenal will numb the pain of the shellacking at Southampton within 48 hours.

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The trip to St Mary’s seemingly offered the Frenchman’s side a great chance to go top of the Premier League, but a poor display saw them return to north London reeling from a shock 4-0 defeat.

There is little time for Arsenal to wallow, though, as the hectic festive period means they take on another south-coast side on Monday night.

Bournemouth will look to ratchet up the pressure, but Wenger is confident of a positive response at the Emirates Stadium.

“I believe what I say to my players is between my players and myself,” he said. “These players have fantastic spirit and they can show that in 48 hours.

“We are in a job where we have to respond. We want to respond from disappointments. Unfortunately, there’s no possible career without disappointment. Nobody, not even the best players in the world, can have that.

“It’s down to how you respond and I trust my players to respond in a very strong way on Monday.”

Wenger certainly will not be taking Bournemouth lightly and praised the promoted side ahead of a match which could see the Gunners belatedly reach the league summit.

Surprise leaders Leicester do not face Manchester City until Tuesday, but Wenger is not concerned about starting 2016 in pole position.

“Whether we are one point behind or one point in front it is not too important,” he added. “It is the quality of our performance that counts.”

The Gunners boss, who is set to start Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain in place of Theo Walcott, downplayed speculation linking Arsenal to Basel’s Egyptian international midfielder Mohamed Elneny.