Arsenal missed out on the opportunity to go to the top of the Premier League table with after suffering a humiliating 4-0 defeat away at Southampton.
Having beaten Manchester City 2-1 on Monday night, Arsene Wenger would have hoped to see his team pick up the three points required to leapfrog Leicester City. Instead, his side looked drained and disorganised as the Saints ran riot. Arsenal just couldn't handle the speed of Shane Long and Sadio Mane on the break, and Wenger's men finished up on the end of a hammering.
The Gunners must now summon the energy needed to get back on track against Bournemouth in less than 48 hours' time. Simply put, they'll be eager to put this Boxing Day embarrassment behind them as soon as possible.
GK Petr Cech, 6 -- The experienced goalkeeper's wait to set a new Premier League clean sheet record goes on. Cech will come away feeling aggrieved, having been left horribly exposed by an underperforming Arsenal defence. But he did not cover himself in glory for Southampton's final two goals. When a corner was whipped toward the near post, he could arguably have come to claim the ball himself rather than leaving it to his defenders. Then in stoppage time, he was slow to get down to stop Shane Long's effort.
DF Hector Bellerin, 5 -- The Spanish full-back was guilty of standing off Ryan Bertrand in the build-up to Southampton's first goal. That typified this Arsenal display: they were second to everything, and for a player with Bellerin's raw speed, it's inexcusable.
DF Per Mertesacker, 5 -- After an imperious performance against Manchester City, Mertesacker looked curiously unsure of himself at St. Mary's. Perhaps he was unsettled by Ronald Koeman's decision to start with Long and Mane, whose speed was like kryptonite to the ponderous German.
DF Laurent Koscielny, 5 -- Normally so sure-footed, Koscielny was as poor in this game as he was in the equivalent fixture last season. His desire to redeem himself occasionally led to his being caught upfield and out of position. He will be understandably irritated by Southampton's second goal -- replays appeared to show Long tripping him in the build-up though it went unspotted by the referee.
DF Nacho Monreal, 6 -- Arsenal's most reliable performer did not disgrace himself at Southampton. He never lets himself down and was as committed and industrious as ever. However, he did fail to take advantage of couple of good opportunities to cross having overlapped on the left wing.
MF Mathieu Flamini, 5 -- This was a match in which Arsenal really missed Francis Coquelin. His elder compatriot, Flamini, could not keep pace with Southampton's efficient counter-attacking style. Rumours of a January signing in this position continue to swirl. On this evidence, a new arrival can't come soon enough.
MF Aaron Ramsey, 7 -- The Welshman is arguably the only Arsenal player who can go home with head held high. He had some great moments in the heart of the midfield but unfortunately for Arsenal, none of his teammates matched his performance level.
MF Mesut Ozil, 6 -- Arsenal's primary playmaker spent the 90 minutes looking for space but was unable to escape the attentions of Southampton's Victor Wanyama. When Alexis Sanchez and Santi Cazorla are absent, the weight of responsibility on Ozil is enormous, but when he fails to deliver, Arsenal look distressingly blunt in attack.
FW Theo Walcott, 5 -- Walcott would have hoped to have made a better impression than this on return to his former club. He was a peripheral figure in the game and struggled to replicate the electric form he showed against Manchester City earlier this week.
FW Joel Campbell, 5 -- In this match, the gap in quality between Joel Campbell and the man he's effectively replacing in the starting XI (Alexis) was made starkly apparent. The Chilean is capable of producing something out of nothing, whereas Campbell simply offered nothing on Saturday. In a dysfunctional team display, his shortcomings were exposed.
FW Olivier Giroud, 5 -- You could be forgiven for thinking Giroud wasn't even playing in this game. Starved of service, the Frenchman was utterly anonymous.
Substitutes:
MF Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, 5 -- Introduced as a replacement for Campbell after 64 minutes, Oxlade-Chamberlain did not make any great impression on the game.
MF, Calum Chambers, NR -- Replaced Flamini after 73 minutes in a curious switch and to no real effect.
MF Alex Iwobi, NR -- The youngster came on for Walcott (78) in difficult circumstances but showed plenty of energy and enthusiasm.
