Southampton 1-0 Arsenal: 4 talking points as top four fades

2. Lack of Goals Frightening

That’s now two goals Arsenal have scored from their last 63 attempts. It’s easy to see where the main problems lie.

Eddie Nketiah did OK on his return to the team, looking engaged from the off and aiming to run the channels and stretch the pitch, but his hold-up play isn’t effective enough and the chances didn’t fall for him. In a side without an effective centre-forward there is much additional pressure on the wide players to contribute, and when they fall short it leaves the side in danger.

Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka didn’t have the cutting edge on Saturday and when those vital components of your team are struggling it makes scoring a goal, let alone victory, a mountain to climb.

Against three heavily weakened and demoralised sides Arsenal have scored just one goal. And it was heavily deflected. The chances have been there in each of the games and the lack of conversion has been the side’s undoing.

Even if this team haven’t deserved to win any of these games, they’ve had the opportunities to sneak a result. At Palace there were chances for Smith Rowe and Odegaard at 2-0, against Brighton Robert Sanchez denied the Gunners more than once, and in this one it was Forster’s turn to make some miraculous stops in either half.

No reliable centre-forward, and no cutting edge elsewhere. The potential to score, let alone win, is dwindling.

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