Arsenal’s hopes for making it into the top four by the end of the season have seen a huge setback after that frustrating loss to Southampton at St. Mary’s Stadium, 1-0. The Gunners failed to put up a fight and have now dented their chances at a top four finish.
With the season now closing into its final games, it seems that the Gunners are having a little bit of a problem down the stretch as they suffered another big loss that could have given them a push in the 2021-22 season.
While the Arsenal FC sponsorship won’t be affected by the direct result of the club’s season finish, it is still a huge task to consider since they are so close to making it back to the Champions League once more. This loss to the Saints was an unnecessary stepback that could have been avoided.
This game was a disaster for the Gunners, and they could have thrived with their impressive lineup after strings of success in the past few games. Their stars struggled hard and could not find a big goal at the end of the final whistle.
Arsenal’s meltdown
Arsenal owned the game on paper. They had a lot of chances to seal away the game with either a draw or a win. The Gunners had 23 shots for the whole night, but only six of them were close to the net. That was a huge disaster considering the fact that they had a lot of good looks that could have given them the win.
So far, the Gunners were still efficient on other stats. The team owned the ball for 76% of the game and even had 655 passes on 88% accuracy. Still, it was not enough to pull off a win for Arsenal. That handed them their third loss in a row and fourth in the last five games.
Arsenal could not match the defensive energy that the Saints have put up. The home crowd warmed enough for the opposing club, which somehow hampered Arsenal’s groove for most of the match. The rest was in the books as they failed to show a strong force for the rest of the game.
This says a lot about the team’s chances of making it into the Champions League – which has been a long dream ever since Arsenal had a poor stretch in the past few years. This is a chance they cannot waste, which means they have to recover from their loss to Southampton.
Southampton’s big burst
Southampton failed to capitalise on the offensive end, but they did have an early goal from Jan Bednarek which sealed the deal from the first half. The Saints’ defence benefitted well from goalkeeper Fraser Forster’s antics, who blocked out key shots from Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard, and Emile Smith-Rowe.
That level of defence saved Southampton from being decimated by one of the best offences in the league. They did a great job of hampering Arsenal’s pace from start to finish, and no one can deny the effectiveness of their formation.
Ralph Hasenhuttl earned a lot of praise for his dedicated genius in this win, outwitting Arsenal in a crucial game that also cut their gap from the top 10 – a finish that Southampton has been looking for since their poor finish in the 2020-21 season.
Big takeaways
That big burst by Southampton on the defensive end only shows that there is more to expect from the squad in the coming games. With the season now down to its final matches, the Saints are showing glimpses of hope that they can actually beat the odds and even win big.
Arsenal, on the other hand, still has a few chances left to show that they have what it takes to score the needed wins. Who knows, making it into the top four would surely reward them with more companies pushing for an Arsenal FC sponsorship in the long run.
Both teams have a lot to learn from this game. This will surely affect their hyped play in the closing games of the 2021-22 run as they hope to go for a strong finish. Both clubs have been fun to watch, but fans also expect them to push deeper into the league table for a much better look in the closing games of the season.
