Southampton 2 – 2 Arsenal: Arsenal guilty of cardinal sins against Saints
Add comment January 27th, 2014
Southampton 2 – 2 Arsenal
Match report | Highlights | Arsene’s reaction
You can’t win ‘em all…

In the heat of a closely-fought title race, it’s easy to forget that you simply can’t win every game. In isolation, a draw at Southampton is not a bad result. However, I suspect the Arsenal fans’ disappointment with the outcome stems from a pre-emptive anxiety about the fixtures we face over the coming weeks. Although this was a tough tie, it’s relatively easy compared to the harrowing schedule that awaits.
There was plenty to admire about Southampton…
In the first half, they were excellent. I had sort of assumed they were something of a spent force this season. After a superb start they appeared to have burnt out. Perhaps the players were guilty of making the same assumption. Despite having had a day less to prepare for the game, they absolutely flew out the blocks. The Saints didn’t march in – they stormed in, and their way with out wives. Their superiority was perfectly captured by convincing manner in which Jay Rodriguez bullied Bacary Sagna throughout the 90 minutes – a rare sight indeed.
This was one of our worst performances this season…
Apart from a seven minute spell at the start of the second half, we were all over the place. The most worrying development was the return of a genuine sense of chaos in our play. On other occasions when we’ve dropped points this season, the machine has simply failed to function efficiently. Against Southampton, the machine went haywire. Nothing really seemed to work. Conceding a goal immediately after taking the lead is particularly concerning: that sort of sloppiness is unlike the Arsenal defence we’ve come to appreciate in 2013/14.
We missed a “box-to-box midfielder 
The midfield looked horribly disjointed. Aaron Ramsey, Tomas Rosicky and Jack Wilshere were all out injured, so Arsene Wenger was forced to field Mikel Arteta and Mathieu Flamini behind Mesut Ozil. The gap between the defensive midfielders and the playmaker was enormous, and Southampton were able to exploit the space between at will. With Ozil playing high up, close to Giroud, there was no obvious link between the midfield and the attack. It wasn’t pretty.
Ramsey’s injury set-back is a big blow…
It seems the Welshman is set to miss the next four to six weeks, having aggravated his thigh injury. Obviously his dynamism in the middle of the park will be a big miss, but the main reason I was so keen to have him back was his goal contribution. With Walcott out, I hoped Ramsey could take up the strain. Santi Cazorla and Olivier Giroud are both quietly racking up the goals, but with Arsene Wenger patently unwilling to use Lukas Podolski I wonder how many genuine goal threats our first XI offers. Mesut Ozil’s last goal certainly feels like a long time ago.
Transfers: Just when I thought I was out…
…Arsene has dragged me back in. Speaking to Sky Sports News after the game, he seemed relatively optimistic about the prospect of a new acquisition before Friday’s deadline. I can only think that the injury to Ramsey has forced his hand. For a few weeks now, he’s been saying that “unless we have another injury†we have no major need. That injury, unfortunately, has arrived. Time to push the Draxler button?
Further Reading: ESPN | Bleacher Report
