Arsenal 3-3 Southampton: Player ratings as Gunners hand City title advantage

With the looming fixture against Manchester City, Arsenal hosted the Saints at the Emirates with one mission in mind… to win.

After dropping points in the previous two away fixtures, three points were necessary for Arteta to instil confidence in his squad.  The Gunners fought for a result against the Saints in what can only be considered one of the best games of the season.  The score finished 3-3.

The game’s first goal came inside one minute with Aaron Ramsdale, known for his play out of the back, attempting a stray pass that saw Southampton’s Carlos Alcaraz net the opener.

The second Southampton dagger came in the fifteenth minute. A lovely pass was slotted behind Arsenal defender Gabriel into the path of Walcott, who neatly directed the ball into Ramsdale’s goal.

Martinelli responded moments later with a technical finish inside the box. Saka pressed down the right wing using the touchline to his advantage and fired a ball into the area, which was converted by the Brazilian star.

The second half began with hope for Arsenal but was killed by a header from Caleta-Car, which put the Saints’ advantage back to two.

Odegaard scored a late goal to bring the deficit to 3-2. Saka followed it up a minute later to equalize heading into injury time.

Here are the player ratings from the 3-3 draw with Southampton.

Goalkeeper and Defenders

Aaron Ramsdale – (3.5/10)

Catastrophe hit Arsenal within the game’s first minute. Ramsdale gave Southampton the lead with a poor pass, putting the Gunners in a problematic situation early.  He conceded another 14 minutes later, giving Walcott his second goal of the season. He also conceded another from a set piece.

Ben White – (5.5/10)

The centre-back turned right-back has formed quite a connection with winger Saka.  However, Ben White failed to make a substantial impact tonight. He almost scored with a flick-on header that was cleared off the line by Alcaraz—a mild performance for White.

Rob Holding (5/10)

When Rob Holding first entered the side, Arsenal fans were happy to see Arsenal maintain their quality. However, since Saliba’s injury, Arsenal has not kept a clean sheet. He put on a subpar performance today.

Gabriel (6/10)

The defender was caught napping for the first goal, with Walcott making a darting in behind.  The Brazilian has evolved into Arsenal’s most reliable defender in quality and health.

Oleksandr Zinchenko (5/10)

Zinchenko was often found out of his defensive position, which may have cost Arsenal the second goal; the Ukrainian was trying to make things happen offensively and uncharacteristically gave the ball away.

Continued on the next slide…