Southampton, a second division club, caused a surprise in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup on Saturday by eliminating Premier League leader Arsenal (2-1), who now sees another possible trophy slipping away.
Playing at St Mary’s Stadium, currently seventh in the Championship, opened the scoring through Ross Stewart (35th minute), only to be equalized by a goal from substitute Viktor Gyökeres (68th minute) before sealing the win through Shea Charles (85th minute). Arsenal suffered their second disappointment following the League Cup final loss to Manchester City, their Premier League rival, before the March international break. The dream of a quadruple has disappeared within two weeks for Mikel Arteta’s team, who will need to regroup to secure the league title and perform well in the upcoming Champions League quarter-finals against Sporting.
Arsenal’s Defensive Struggles
In the south of England, Arsenal’s defense was repeatedly tested, especially by forward Leo Scienza, who was denied by Cristhian Mosquera (18th minute) and hit the crossbar with a shot against Kepa Arrizabalaga (61st minute). They conceded the first goal from a counterattack, with Ross Stewart taking advantage of a center misjudged by Ben White (35th minute, 1-0).
Goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga, a regular in domestic cup competitions, failed to save Shea Charles’ winning goal (85th minute, 2-1). The visitors had several scoring opportunities, but the opposing goalkeeper was vigilant, particularly denying attempts from captain Martin Odegaard (25th minute) and 16-year-old forward Max Dowman (29th, 84th minute). There were also defensive efforts to block shots from Gabriel Martinelli (10th minute) and Dowman (53rd minute).
Only Viktor Gyökeres managed to score against Southampton, capitalizing on a pass from Kai Havertz (68th minute, 1-1). The Saints will find out their future opponent on Sunday.
