Arsenal beat Southampton 2-0 yesterday to stretch their lead at the top of the Premier League to four points. Here are five things we learned from the clash.
1) Pochettino has Southampton popping it
Arsenal are renowned for their slick football, but this season Southampton have showed that they can pop the ball around as well. In fact, the Hampshire club completed more passes than the Gunners yesterday, 374 to 371.
2) Koscielny is a unit
The Frenchman made 10 clearances, won all four of his tackles and made three interceptions. He was dominant throughout and retained the Southampton frontline brilliantly.
3) Arsenal struggle in individual take ons
A remarkable statistic from the clash at the Emirates is that Arsenal won just six of their 28 take ons, which is something that Arsene Wenger will have to look at before their next game. Perhaps they should stick to fizzing the ball around the pitch.
4) Saint’s closing game is effective
Mauricio Pochettino has Saints closing down as a unit this season and it’s working out well. From their 35 attempted tackles, 29 of those were won, which is an impressive feat.
5) Arsenal are domineering in the air
Arsenal are by no means the tallest team in the division, but from the 32 headed duels that were contested for yesterday afternoon, Arsenal won just four.