%20rotate(-8.06)%22%2F%3E%0A%20%20%3Cpolygon%20class%3D%22cls-1%22%20points%3D%22336.19%20136.81%20330.16%2094.25%20326.06%2071.19%20326.44%2071.13%20335.22%2093.54%20352.29%20134.52%20373.95%20131.46%20362.7%2052.01%20350.02%2053.8%20356.05%2096.36%20360.15%20119.42%20359.77%20119.48%20350.99%2097.08%20333.91%2056.09%20312.25%2059.15%20323.51%20138.6%20336.19%20136.81%22%2F%3E%0A%20%20%3Cpolygon%20class%3D%22cls-1%22%20points%3D%22402.91%2059.3%20412.36%20126.02%20427.17%20123.92%20417.72%2057.21%20431.59%2055.24%20429.79%2042.51%20387.23%2048.53%20389.04%2061.27%20402.91%2059.3%22%2F%3E%0A%20%20%3Cpolygon%20class%3D%22cls-1%22%20points%3D%22463.51%20118.77%20458.69%2084.71%20474.68%2082.44%20479.51%20116.5%20494.36%20114.4%20483.11%2034.95%20468.26%2037.06%20472.96%2070.25%20456.96%2072.52%20452.26%2039.32%20437.4%2041.43%20448.65%20120.88%20463.51%20118.77%22%2F%3E%0A%20%20%3Cpolygon%20class%3D%22cls-1%22%20points%3D%22540.5%20107.87%20538.77%2095.68%20518.91%2098.49%20515.77%2076.29%20535.63%2073.47%20533.93%2061.5%20514.07%2064.32%20511.11%2043.42%20530.98%2040.61%20529.25%2028.42%20494.53%2033.34%20505.78%20112.78%20540.5%20107.87%22%2F%3E%0A%20%20%3Cpolygon%20class%3D%22cls-1%22%20points%3D%22299.03%20155.17%20301.29%20171.58%20542.78%20138.39%20540.5%20121.97%20299.03%20155.17%22%2F%3E%0A%3C%2Fsvg%3E)
Arsenal Vs Southampton: Recap, Highlights And Analysis
Arsenal hosted Southampton on Wednesday night in the fifth round of the EFL Cup. Here is the full recap, all the highlights and analysis from the 2-0 loss.
Well that was dire! In a truly dreadful game which sums up the uselessness and pure dullness of the EFL Cup, Arsenal put in their worst performance of the season, lacking any sort of energy or desire, nevermind the clunky feel that was prevalent whenever the team was in possession.
Related Story: Arsene Wenger's Best Starting XI
Arsene Wenger did pick a fairly defensive team with both Francis Coquelin and Mohamed Elneny starting in the two holding roles. Both were terrible with the ball at their feet and weren’t able to track runners or block rebounds on the edge of the box for the two first half Southampton goals.
The first half started with a quintessentially League Cup feel. Neither side were playing quite a full strength team and both seemed lacklustre in possession, happy to pass the ball square and backwards for much of the early stages.
With few chances for either team, it was looking as though this could well develop into a rather drab game. That was until Jordy Clasie decided to smash open the deadlock with a thunderous strike from the edge of the area. The build up started with the impressive Ryan Bertrand pushing forward down the left-hand side. He pulls the ball back, the resultant shot is blocked before falling beautifully for Clasie to finish emphatically.
More from Pain in the Arsenal
- 3 observations from Arsenal’s victory at Goodison Park
- 3 standout players from 1-0 victory over Everton
- 3 positives & negatives from Goodison Park victory
- Arsenal vs PSV preview: Prediction, team news & lineups
- 3 talking points from Arsenal’s victory at Goodison Park
The first hald continued in true league cup fashion. Neither were in the ascendancy for long, neither threatened much, especially in the final third and both looked extremely comfortable defensively. Both Francis Coquelin and Mohamed Elneny were not able to inject the needed pace or precision in central areas but also were defensively sound as a pair.
However, as the half progressed, Arsenal’s issues progressed and ultimately Southampton extended their lead through Bertrand. Sofiane Boufal, another Saints player who was a threat throughout the opening 45 minutes, was released freely down the left flank once again. He waited patiently, backed Gabriel Paulista into the Arsenal penalty area, then looked up, pulled the ball back to the edge of the area where Bertrand swept the ball home into the bottom far corner, just beating the block of Rob Holding.
It was a dire first half for the Gunners and there wasn’t one player who played well. They were lethargic, leggy and lacklustre in what was initially thought of as quite an important game by many members of the fanbase.
The second half did not bring much to be positive about either. While Aaron Ramsey was able to get on the ball more frequently, Granit Xhaka sprayed a few nice passes around after coming on for the injured Mohamed Elneny just before the break but Lucas Perez was still worryingly quiet with Virgil Van Dijk, in particular, keeping very close tabs, using his greater power and physicality to dominate the Spanish forward.
As the match progressed, there was never a sense that Arsenal could haul themselves back into the game, and in fact, in the latter stages of the game, it was Southampton that had the better chances. Steven Davis had a shot from the centre of the penalty area over and Shane Long missed a gilt-edged opportunity after beating Gabriel Paulista.
While the Gunners finally began to push for the goal, with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain poorly shooting over after being found well by Xhaka and a Kieran Gibbs header being cleared off the line, their efforts were a prime case of too little too late. Ainsley Maitland-Niles had some nice touches, as did Xhaka, but there were few clear-cut openings created as the game fizzled out.
Next: Arsenal: 30 Greatest Players In History
The optimist may twist the result as a good loss thanks to the reduced number of games later in the season, and while exiting the EFL Cup is certainly not the biggest concern to Wenger or his team, the performance, after a string of underwhelming performances, is. Arsenal must quickly drag themselves, somehow, into some good form with the Christmas period on the horizon, otherwise, it won’t just be the EFL Cup that they can wave goodbye to.