Arsenal held by Southampton at the Emirates

Arsenal 0 Southampton 0

For Arsenal a tremor that started as a festive flinch has now turned into a full-on winter wobble. A 0-0 draw against a powerful, compact Southampton on a fretful night at the Emirates leaves Arsène Wenger’s team without a goal in their last three league games and with a title challenge that looks increasingly snarled in the midwinter gloom.

Fraser Forster was brilliant here, producing a full range of saves in the Southampton goal, from the athletic to the instinctive. But Arsenal were also oddly lacklustre for the first hour of this match and hesitant in their finishing. All the urgency came in the final 20 minutes, by which time Southampton were well set in defence with Forster a thrillingly resolute yellow wall.

Four points clear of Manchester City on Christmas Day, five weeks later Arsenal now find themselves in fourth place having won just two of their last seven Premier League games.

Arsenal came here still wobbling, distantly, from their 4-0 Boxing Day defeat by Southampton. Wenger’s excuses this week for that flaccid performance (“it was Christmas”) seemed a little odd, albeit they came with the promise of a furious sense of focus here. Out-run at St Mary’s and then overpowered in the first half by Chelsea last week, Arsenal would surely look to start with purpose here.

Or not, as it turned out. There are times where the more potent atmosphere of a smaller, less commercially inaccessible stadium might be a genuine asset to this team. Highbury was hardly a notorious cauldron but it could be fiery and tight when the moment came. In almost total silence from London’s largest home crowd, it was Southampton who began with more composure, James Ward-Prowse drawing an early save from Petr Cech with a driven cross-cum-shot free-kick.

Arsenal had made seven changes from the FA Cup defeat of Burnley, the most notable the return of Mesut Özil to start alongside Alexis Sánchez for the first time since November. And Özil had Arsenal's first chance with 12 minutes gone, running on to Sánchez's floated pass and taking the most beautiful stone-dead touch, only for Forster to save well with his legs as he shot.

Özil was a scampering, lime-booted menace right across the front line in the opening quarter, not just Arsenal’s liveliest attacker but pretty much a one-man attack.

Southampton started with the defence rejigged to a four after the recent experiment with three at the back that brought them here having not conceded a goal for 200 minutes of Premier League football. They looked intent on keeping it that way as, at times, nine outfield players dropped deep around Forster’s area.

Arsenal went wide, Héctor Bellerín skating outside Cédric Soares with 20 minutes gone and producing a fine cross that Olivier Giroud headed back across goal. Özil flicked towards an apparently gaping net from five yards out only to see Forster, spreading his arms, produce a genuinely stunning save, part guesswork, part instant reaction.

With Oriol Romeu and Victor Wanyama a muscular double bolt in midfield, Southampton broke with some comfort and purpose from behind their guard, Romeu, Sadio Mané and Dusan Tadic all finding space to shoot at goal. With half-time approaching Özil was again crowded out inside the six-yard box after good work from Joel Campbell. But it was Southampton, composed in defence and intermittently energetic in support of Shane Long, who looked the happier team at the break.

Arsenal returned energised – these things are relative – and almost scored straight away, Forster again producing an outstanding save. This time it was from Giroud after a fine driving run by Aaron Ramsey, Forster leaping high, superhero-style, to palm away Giroud's hooked shot. Still, though, Romeu, Wanyama and Ward-Prowse kept a grip on central midfield, while Mané was always dangerous at the other end.

For Arsenal, Giroud looked cumbersome linking the play, Campbell energetic but vague. With Sánchez still finding his gears and Ramsey filling in deeper, Wenger’s XI here looked alarmingly dependent on its lone passing scalpel.

Theo Walcott came on just past the hour mark, a man for a crisis perhaps, but a man also with one Premier League goal since September. Walcott drew a double save from Forster, the first a weak low shot with time to think, the second a thrash at chest height. Moments later Laurent Koscielny headed Özil’s fizzed cross over the bar from three yards out.

And still the chances came. Romeu kicked off the line from Sánchez’s neat turn and poked shot. Özil and Sánchez combined with real fluency only for Forster, again, to claw the ball away. Chasing a goal, Wenger sent on Francis Coquelin, who was immediately booked for an angry tackle on Shane Long. Six minutes of added time brought a strangled roar of hope from the home fans but Southampton remained spiky and resilient to the end.

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