Arsenal stunned by 2nd-tier Southampton
Second-tier Southampton caused a huge shock by beating Premier League leader Arsenal in the FA Cup quarterfinals after Manchester City dispatched Liverpool 4-0 thanks to a hat trick by Erling Haaland.
Fresh off losing the English League Cup final to City before the international break, Arsenal saw another potential trophy slip from its grasp when conceding in the 85th minute to lose 2-1 at Southampton — a team in seventh place in the Championship.
It left City as the big favourite to clinch a cup double this season, with the thrashing of Liverpool securing a place in the FA Cup semifinals for a record eighth straight season.
Mohamed Salah’s failure from the penalty spot added to the woes of Liverpool, whose meltdown at Etihad Stadium will put more heat on under-pressure manager Arne Slot.
Chelsea also advanced, routing third-tier Port Vale 7-0. The semifinal line-up will be completed Sunday when West Ham hosts Leeds, after which the last-four draw will be made.
Arsenal cup hopes disappearing: So much for Arsenal’s hopes of a quadruple of major trophies this season.
It’s now just the Premier League and Champions League up for grabs with manager Mikel Arteta’s decision to field a weakened lineup backfiring at St. Mary’s stadium. Trailing to a 35th-minute strike by Ross Stewart, Arsenal sent on Viktor Gyokeres — fresh off scoring the goal that lifted Sweden into the World Cup on Tuesday — and the striker equalised in the 68th.
Still, Southampton continued to look dangerous on the counterattack and Shea Charles, a former academy product at Man City, fired home from inside the area to secure a famous win.
“To go and beat arguably the best team in Europe at the minute is an incredible feeling,” Stewart said.
In an added blow to Arsenal ahead of its upcoming Champions League quarterfinal against Sporting Lisbon, Brazil center back Gabriel Magalhaes was forced off with a left knee injury midway through the second half. He was seen later with ice on the knee.
“This is the first moment that we have (this season) with a certain level of difficulty,” said Arteta, whose team has a nine-point lead in the Premier League.
