Southampton 1 - 1 Arsenal - Player Ratings
SOUTHAMPTON, ENGLAND – JANUARY 01: Olivier Giroud of Arsenal and Maya Yoshida of Southampton compete for the ball during the Barclays Premier league match between Southampton and Arsenal at St Mary
Artur Boruc : 5
Didn’t have much to do actually but was always shaky as he dropped crosses and his distribution was awful as well.
Maya Yoshida : 7
The Japanese defender stifled the attack of the in-form Theo Walcott. Was denied a penalty which would have been given on another day.
Jose Fonte : 6.5
Starting to recover from the dreadful start to the Premier League. Was strong and quick and won the ball from Podolski and Walcott well.
Jack Cork : 6
Gave a slightly lethargic performance while going forward but was solid defensively. Wasn’t troubled much.
Luke Shaw : 7
Controlled the extremely pacy Oxelade-Chamberlain. Even after the Arsenal wingers shifted flanks he stood firm and held his ground.
Morgan Schneiderlin : 6.5
Broke down Arsenal’s attacks and his work rate was a cause of pressure for Arsenal as he forced them to lose the ball. Made a rash tackle on Cazorla and earned a booking.
Steven Davis : 5.5
Didn’t have the most attractive of games but ran around the pitch tirelessly forcing errors from the jittery Arsenal midfield.
Guilherme Do Prado : 6.5
Couldn’t do much as he made a diving attempt to clear Walcott’s free kick. Made a very good attempt at a long range shot but was kept out by Szczesny. Worked well for the team.
Jason Puncheon : 6
Should have scored early on. Made up for it initially by tormenting Gibbs but gave away the free kick in Arteta that allowed them to score.
Rickie Lambert : 7
Was a beast in the air as he managed to win aerial battle even when he was outnumbered. Apart from that, he was slightly off his pace and was substituted with 15 minutes to go.
Gaston Ramirez : 7.5
Picked the ball after chaos in the Arsenal defense and coolly slotted it home. A goal that would put his team ahead after taking the ball on his chest really well was unfortunate to have been flagged offside. Caused all sort of worried for Wenger’s side.
SUBSTITUTIONS
James Ward-Prowse : 6
Came on in the 77th minute. Continued building up pressure as Southampton looked for a winner.
Jay Rodriguez : 5
Came on for Lambert in the 74th minute. Didn’t have the same attacking prowess as the man he substituted
Steve de Ridder : N/A
Came on for Do Prado in the 83rd minute
SOUTHAMPTON, ENGLAND – JANUARY 01: Theo Walcott of Arsenal goes past James Ward-Prowse of Southampton during the Barclays Premier league match between Southampton and Arsenal at St Mary
Wojciech Szczesny : 6.5
Made a good effort to thrust the ball away from Lambert as he was almost certain to score. Plucked crosses well as he received no help from his defenders.
Bacary Sagna : 4.5
Made a very poor clearance which led to Ramirez’s goal. Made quite a few stray passes which is unlike him. Didn’t contribute to attack also. Has to improve or find himself replaced by Jenkinson.
Thomas Vermaelen : 6
Was the only positive in a terrible defensive performance by Arsenal although he did make a poor clearance which allowed Ramirez to score. Got about his job well.
Laurent Koscielny : 5.5
Was bossed in the air by Lambert. Wasn’t available whenever Arteta needed an outlet to curb the oncoming Southampton pressure.
Kieran Gibbs : 5.5
Made good initial block was just on the floor as Ramirez shot the opener past him. Couldn’t angle his cross in which could have sealed the game. Was solid defensively.
Mikel Arteta : 5.5
Tried to keep things moving in the midfield although he did have a laboured performance which was evident as he didn’t help the players under pressure an outlet.
Lukas Podolski : 4
Caught in possession in the opener. Had a very quiet game and made no real contribution to the attack. Came off for Giroud with half an hour left.
Jack Wilshere : 6
Showed his courage in going in for challenges but unfortunately came out worse many times. Below his usual standard but kept working for the Arsenal cause.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain : 6
With a fairly easy target like Shaw, he didn’t make full use of it, often losing the ball to him. Threw in a few crosses but didn’t find any targets. Was replaced by Gervinho.
Theo Walcott : 6
Swung in a dangerous free kick which led to the Arsenal’s equalizer. Saw little of the ball due to good marking and breaking of Arsenal’s play by Southampton. A lot was expected after a blistering performance against Newcastle but failed to live up to the expectations.
Santi Cazorla : 5.5
An off day for the Spanish playmaker. Disappointing passing and ball control. Was easily nullified by Southampton. Replaced by Ramsey.
SUBSTITUTIONS
Aaron Ramsey : 5
Wasted a great goalscoring opportunity. Wasn’t able to get going as he didn’t do much with the ball when he managed to get it.
Olivier Giroud : 6
Held up play well but didn’t have the support to finish off the attacks.
Gervinho : 3.5
Even though he was on for 15 minutes only he pulled off a terrible performance. Wasted good opportunities and made appalling passes. Looked very very short of confidence.