Mikel Arteta assessed the performance of his players in a 2-1 loss to Southampton in the FA Cup.
Arsenal were knocked by a 2-0 defeat to Manchester City in the Carabao Cup final before the international break, but there were still hopes of taking one of three major trophies at the start of April. The team returned to action against the Saints in the quarterfinals of the world’s oldest cup competition, and they hoped to take it back to the Emirates Stadium for the first time since 2020.
The guests deployed a rotated lineup at St. Mary’s, but the Championship outfit still stunned the favourites, disturbing their dominance in the first half and sucker punching them during the second.
‘They were more efficient’
There were several talking points from the display on Saturday evening for the Arsenal manager.
Ross Stewart scored the first goal of the game, getting the better of Ben White, who misjudged the flight of a switched pass in the buildup to the finish. Cristhian Mosquera, Martin Odegaard and Myles Lewis-Skelly were among the players guilty of sloppy giveaways in ball possession as the hosts had continually counterattacked before this breakthrough, exploiting unnecessary errors.
The Premier League leaders were also short of efficiency in the final third. Odegaard was gifted a great cutback opportunity by Gabriel Martinelli in the first half hour, completely mishitting his effort. There was the solace of another strike for Viktor Gyokeres, who grabbed four goals in two matches for Sweden to send his nation into the World Cup during the international break, but the questions about the individual quality and ruthlessness of the offensive roster remain relevant.
*“They are a really good side. It's not a coincidence among the run they're in. They were more efficient than us when it mattered most, and that's why they are at Wembley Stadium. I wish them the best.*
*“We played against any kind of behaviours from the opponent. We've played 51 games, so imagine the amount of games we've played and won in different ways. It wasn't about that and without taking any credit from Southampton, it was very related to something that we have to do a lot better.*
“We’re very disappointed in the manner that we lost the opportunity to get back to Wembley.
“I think we again had many, many periods of dominance from our side when we generated chances and situations - we didn't capitalise on that enough - and when you defend in and around the box and directly in the manner that we did today, you're going to put yourself in a really difficult position.
“They did capitalise on that, and that's the reason why we're out.
“[Individual errors] are part of football, and unfortunately when you make them, you hope the opponent is not going to capitalise and today they have done.
*“I think that [**Gabriel Magalhaes*] felt something - I don't know exactly what it is. We're going to have to assess him - but obviously when a player is asking to be substituted, it's never good news.”