Arsenal's Danny Welbeck celebrates after scoring a goal against West Ham United during their English Premier League soccer match at Upton Park in London December 28, 2014.
Arsenal's Danny Welbeck celebrates after scoring a goal against West Ham United during their English Premier League soccer match at Upton Park in London December 28, 2014. REUTERS/Eddie Keogh

Arsenal striker Danny Welbeck urged his teammates to be ready when they face Southampton FC on New Year's Day.

The Saints, who are occupying the fourth spot on the Premier League table and are only ahead of the north London side on goal difference, gave the Gunners a hard time scoring despite the latter's dominance with 19 total shots.

"They gave us a difficult test at home and we know how well they've been doing this season, so we have to prepare physically, mentally and tactically right for this game," said the 24-year-old England international.

"Going into the New Year, we want to start it off well."

While still not meeting the scoring production expected of him, Welbeck was able to help Arsenal get past West Ham United on Sunday through a goal that proved to be the difference in their 2-1 victory.

"I'm happy with my performance but I think we could've killed the game off a bit earlier," he added.

"We missed a couple of chances - I had one and some of the other players had one where we could've maybe won the game earlier. That's something we need to improve on."

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