Arsenal endured another frustrating game, playing out a lacklustre 1-1 draw at Southampton in English Premier League.
The New Year's Day match at St Mary's promised much, after Arsenal's 7-3 drubbing of Newcastle at the weekend, but delivered little as an insipid Gunners were held by Southampton, with the goals coming from Gaston Ramirez and an own goal from Guilherme Do Prado.
The Saints took the lead through Ramirez in the 34th minute, after some shambolic defending from the Gunners who shot themselves in the foot yet again.
Lukas Podolski, who had a poor game like pretty much every other Arsenal player, played a suicidal backward pass to Laurent Koscielny, which was intercepted by Southampton.
However, Arsenal had another chance to clear the ball, but Bacary Sagna completely mishit his clearance from the right side of the box, allowing Southampton to threaten the goal yet again, which Ramirez eventually did, slamming home from just inside the area.
The Gunners were level just before halftime, albeit with a bit of luck. Theo Walcott swung in a nice freekick from Arsenal left, which Do Prado could only deflect into his own net.
Southampton will feel a little aggrieved to not go away with all three points, after Ramirez had a goal ruled out, although replays suggested he was onside. However, the Saints playmaker did shove Koscielny out of the way just before taking his chance, which would then justify the decision.
Arsenal, when they needed to come out firing in the second period, did the exact opposite, giving away the ball cheaply in dangerous areas, with the likes of Sagna having an extremely forgettable game.
The template to get points against Arsenal has been set this season - press the ball when the Gunners are in possession, and make the most of your chances.
The lack of creativity has been alarmingly frequent this year, and despite being a part of some high-scoring games, there is little doubt that this team has a lot of work to do, with losing out on Champions League qualification a serious concern.
