Premier League

ARSENAL 1 (Aubameyang 52, Gabriel sent off 62)
SOUTHAMPTON 1 (Walcott 18)

PIERRE-EMERICK Aubameyang scored his first goal in six matches as 10-man Arsenal ended a run of three straight Premier League defeats with a 1-1 draw against Southampton tonight (Wednesday).

Theo Walcott opened the scoring against his former club. But Aubameyang hit back to level for the hosts, who had Gabriel sent off just after the hour mark.

“Playing so long with 10-men against a really good side, you have to take a point,” reasoned Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta after the match.

“We defended with our lives, and showed a lot of character and personality to hang on.”

There was something inevitable about the opening goal as Walcott returned to haunt his old club 18 minutes in.

Almost 400 games for the Gunners didn’t stop the winger from reeling away with his arms outstretched in celebration after smartly dinking the ball over Bernd Leno.

The assist went to Che Adams, but in truth it was Arsenal’s woeful defending that made the goal as Gabriel and Mohamed Elneny got themselves in a muddle in the middle of the park.

Arsenal fans were expected to be at the Emirates before it was announced that London was moving into tier 3.

Perhaps being made to stay home was a blessing in disguise as Arsenal’s response to falling behind was limited to a cheap penalty appeal from Dani Ceballos and a first-time effort from Nicolas Pepe that was routinely saved by Saints keeper Alex McCarthy.

The Gunners didn’t look like a side that knew how to get back into the game. That was until early in the second half when Bukayo Saka produced some much-needed magic.

The England international weaved past three Southampton challenges before laying the ball off to Eddie Nketiah, who slipped a clever pass to Aubameyang.

The Gunners skipper curled a finish into the bottom corner to score a desperately needed goal – Arsenal’s first from open play in almost 13 hours of football.

The magnitude of the strike wasn’t lost on Arteta, who punched the air in sweet relief. That relief, however, didn’t last long.

Gabriel picked up two bookings in the space of just four minutes to earn a needless red card and leave Arsenal in the all-too-familiar position of finishing a league game with 10-men.

The dismissal left Arteta’s side desperately clinging on to a point in the hope of avoiding a fifth successive home defeat for the first time in the club’s history.

That said, they could have stolen all three late on, only for Rob Holding’s header to come back off the woodwork.

Arsenal: Leno, Maitland-Niles, Holding, Gabriel (sent off, 62), Tierney, Ceballos (Willock, 67), Elneny, Saka, Pepe (Cedric Soares, 85), Aubameyang, Nketiah (Luiz, 65)
Substitutes not used: Runarsson, Mustafi, Willian, Lacazette

Southampton: McCarthy, Walker-Peters, Bednarek, Vestergaard, Bertrand, Armstrong (Redmond, 63), Ward-Prowse, Romeu, Walcott (Djenepo, 63), Adams, Ings
Substitutes not used: Forster, Stephens, Salisu, Diallo, N’Lundulu