Southampton stunned Arsenal last night in the quarterfinals of the EFL Cup as the Saints ran out 2-0 winners at the Emirates. The visitors dominated the game as Arsenal yet again faltered in the quarter-finals stage of this cup competition.
Both the sides rotated their squads with a view to keeping the team fresh and ready as the games come thick and fast in the English league.
Jordi Clasie scored a brilliant pile-driver; his first goal for the club, at a very crucial stage in the game. Ryan Bertrand doubled the lead in the first half as the Gunners were left as mere strollers in the park by Claude Puel's men in the first half. The second half was a more evenly contested affair but it was too little too late for the hosts to mount a comeback.
Let's take a look at the five talking points from the entertaining game that happened at the Emirates:
#1 Arsenal’s rotation policy bites them
The Gunners made 10 changes from their win against Bournemouth with Mohammed Elneny being the lone survivor from that starting eleven. Elneny was also substituted in the first half due to an injury. The second string side struggled in every department as Southampton were the deserved winners on the night.
Claude Puel has a strict rotation policy which enabled the Saints squad to be ready for selection as on the other hand, Arsenal's fringe team looked lost at times and were devoid of ideas.
The Arsenal manager made a huge mistake by resting all his senior players and in hindsight, he should have at least played a couple of them from the team that beat Bournemouth in the weekend.
#2 Sofiane Boufal and Harrison Reed shine for the Saints
Boufal, the Moroccan international, who is Southampton's record signing at £15 million is slowly making his presence felt in the league. He scored a stunning goal in the last cup round against Sunderland and was also influential against Arsenal and the youngster was unlucky not to cap an impressive performance with a goal.
Though all the attention was on Josh Sims at the weekend, it was the turn of another Southampton's academy gem to make his mark on the game – Harrison Reed. The youngster was brilliant for the visitors as he dictated the tempo of the game and passed the ball around with conviction.
The 21-year-old made his fourth appearance of this season and with showings like this, Reed will get many more chances to make a permanent place for himself in the team.
#3 Lucas Perez and Aaron Ramsey struggled
The former Celta Vigo man who was signed for £17 million was bought to influence these kind of games as Arsenal have better options to play his position for league games and Champions League encounters.
Perez had the stage set for him to cause a selection headache for Wenger but he failed to put in a good performance.
The Spaniard struggled with the ball and also could not muster a good save from Fraser Forster. Ramsey also failed to impress as he needs a continuous run of games under his belt to get back into the rhythm and the good form that he showed in the Euros. The midfielder had a couple of decent chances in the early stages of the second half but failed to trouble the keeper. One of his shots went over the bar and he fluffed his lines with another shot.
#4 Southampton will find it tough to keep hold of Virgil Van Dijk
The former Celtic man has established himself as one of the best in the Premier League and has attracted a host of suitors with Liverpool, Manchester United and Chelsea all interested in signing the Dutch centre-back.
He put up an impressive performance again as he was resolute against Gunners and displayed a calm and composed performance which enabled the Saints to reach their first semi-finals after 1987.
Arsenal came back at the Southampton defence hard in the second half but Van Dijk held his ground and the Gunners were left to shoot from distance on several occasions. He man-marked Lucas Perez to perfection and also covered the area when the full-backs surged ahead. Van Dijk marshalled his troops well and in the end earned a well deserved clean sheet.
#5 Arsenal may have found a new bogey team in Southampton
The Saints emerged victorious the last time these two sides met in the League Cup two years ago. Southampton won 2-1 in the third round as Arsenal crashed out early in the competition. Last season, Southampton thrashed Arsenal 4-0 at St. Mary's as the Gunners had a forgettable encounter, to say the least.
Arsenal have won just one out of their last five matches against Southampton and with both the sides going to play soon in the league, another exciting encounter is on the cards.
