3 positives & negatives from Arsenal’s draw with Southampton

Arsenal recorded their first draw since January (0-0 vs Burnley) as they were held by Southampton on Sunday afternoon.

It was a frustrating match, to say the least, as Arsenal dropped their first points since the loss to Manchester United.

This game reminded me a bit of the defeat at St. Mary’s last season. It was a disappointing afternoon where the team wasn’t quite able to get it right.

3 positives & negatives from Arsenal’s draw with Southampton

As with most draws, there are some good and bad to be discussed. Here are my three positives and negatives from the game.

Positive #1: Still top of the league

It might be all doom and gloom on Arsenal Twitter right now, but Arsenal are still two points clear of Manchester City at the top of the table and five clear of Spurs after their defeat to Newcastle.

All is not lost with these dropped points, Arsenal are still a good team and they’ll continue to show that.

Negative #1: Refereeing

The referee, Robert Jones, had an absolute howler of a match.

There were multiple big missed calls and continuous fouling by Southampton that was allowed to continue through the entire match. There were penalty shouts, multiple red card shouts, and all-around terrible calls.

Lyanco, in particular, was very lucky not to be dismissed. He could have racked up multiple offences for his actions but all he got was a yellow for his troubles.

Gabriel Jesus was manhandled throughout the game but rarely did he receive any help from Jones, while Bukayo Saka had similar experiences.

If the ref is going to allow this to happen, it creates a worse product and is awful for player safety. Arsenal didn’t finish their chances today, but there was also no help from the ref and VAR.

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