Arsenal 1–1 Southampton
By: Maxwell Argento
Tags: Europe, Writing, Sports, Premier League, Soccer

Arsenal 1–1 Southampton

By: Maxwell Argento

Mikel Arteta’s men currently occupy 15th position in the Premier League, and are only five points off of the relegation places with 14.

Game Summary

Mikel Arteta finally dropped both Alexandre Lacazette and Willian due to poor performance and gave starts to youngsters Ainsley Maitland-Niles, Nicolas Pépé and Eddie Nketiah. The changes, although giving Arsenal a bit more flair in the final third, didn't make much of a difference in the first interval.

Southampton, buoyed by the prospect of going to the top of the Premier League table with three points, started the match with positive intent and were the better side. Former Arsenal player Theo Walcott took advantage of his side’s fast start and chipped Bernd Leno in the 18th minute to get the Saints off the mark and on the score sheet.

Theo Walcott celebrates his well-taken goal in the 18th minute against his former club at the Emirates

The cool finish is just what Arsenal have been missing this season, and was the difference in a first half that saw the Gunners look second rate in every aspect of the game.

Arsenal looked much more spirited at the beginning of the second half, and were able to even the scoring on 52 minutes. Bukayo Saka picked the ball up on the left wing for Arsenal and, after slipping through three Saints players, played a lovely combination with Nketiah and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who slotted the ball into the right corner to even the score.

Aubameyang’s goal from open play was his first for Arsenal since Sept. 12 against Fulham

At this moment you would expect the larger club, especially after having equalized at home, to go and take the game to their opponents and claim the three points. Such was never the case for Arsenal, as their centreback Gabriel claimed two yellow cards in the space of 4 minutes to reduce his team to 10 men only moments after their equalizer. From there Arsenal did well to clamp down on the point with one less man, but will still feel incredibly downtrodden by their recent run of performances.

Let’s take a look at the bigger picture for Arsenal and identify the three biggest problems that have them a couple of results away from being in a relegation battle.

Lack of Leaders in the Squad

One big reason why Arsenal never look like getting over the line within games is because they don’t have anyone on the pitch who can drag them over it. Although Aubameyang currently wears the armband for Arsenal (and I’m sure is well respected in the squad) I have never felt that he is true captain material or finds enjoyment in carrying the burden of being a leader of men.

David Luiz probably has the experience and influence to wear the armband but is far too inconsistent emotionally and on the pitch to ever claim the title. Keiran Tierney looks like a vocal leader on the pitch and could be eventual captain material, but is too young and hasn’t been settled at the club long enough to be in contention.

Tierney has been one of the bright spots for Arsenal this campaign, playing on the left side of defense as either a fullback or centreback.

It should be top priority for Arteta to bring several more players in, one or two of which have the ability and persona to lead the club and get their team over the hump. All good squads have big personalities and leaders that can be counted on to be there in the biggest moments, which is something Arsenal are currently lacking in a big way.

Lack of Squad Quality

The other thing Arsenal lack is quality. I wrote about it briefly several days ago and will say it again; Arsenal currently do not have a squad that has them anywhere near the quality of the top six clubs in the league.

In the context of the match against the Saints, it was clear that Southampton currently have the better, more refined, more grooved squad in comparison to the Gunners, with a handful of players who would walk right into Arsenal’s squad. If Arsenal had wanted to bring attacking players on at halftime to try and turn the tide of the match, they would’ve been forced to bring on players that had been dropped due to poor performances, which is more than enough to prove just how bare their squad is.

If Arteta is afforded more time with the club past this season I expect he will need 2–3 transfer windows to get his squad up to the level of teams like Chelsea, Manchester United and Tottenham, who admittedly still have ways to go to get to the levels that teams like Liverpool have reached. Signing Thomas Partey was a great start, but there is no doubt they need much more.

Lack of Discipline

Emphasis over recent days has been directed to Arsenal’s red card record in the Premier League since Mikel Arteta’s tenure started, and for good reason. The Gunners have recorded seven red cards in the time that Arteta has been at the helm, which is four more than any other club.

Gabriel protesting the second of his two yellow cards (62')

Whether it is just isolated instances of petulance or something bigger, that stat must be terribly worrying for Arteta. As Arsenal go farther and farther down the table, losing points because of not having 11 men on the field will have larger consequences. The red cards are disastrous from a squad management perspective as well, as the squad is already weak to begin with and can’t sustain suspended players without the quality of the team dropping.

As fans continue to (hopefully) be integrated back into stadiums I hope that it elicits more discipline on the part of the players to stay on the pitch for 90 full minutes. If not, Arsenal will continue to plummet down the league table, with Arteta’s hopes of a future on the Arsenal bench plummeting with equal measure.