Alan Shearer blames four Arsenal players for 2-2 draw with Southampton

Alan Shearer (Photo: BBC Sport / Screengrab)

Alan Shearer has singled out four Arsenal players for criticism following their 2-2 draw with Southampton at The Emirates in Saturday afternoon.

The Gunners fought back from losing positions twice to rescue a point in a disappointing performance by the home side.

Arsenal conceded 21 shots on Bernd Leno’s goal as the Premier League strugglers looked to secure an upset in north London.

The Gunners have seen their top-four challenge fade in recent weeks following a run of five games without a victory.

Arsenal have only managed to win four times in 13 outings in the Premier League so far this season.

Unai Emery’s men are eight points adrift of fourth-placed Chelsea FC following their sixth stalemate of the campaign.

Former Newcastle striker Shearer was critical of four Arsenal players following their poor performances in the 2-2 draw with Southampton.

“Where do we start? They were sloppy, so bad defensively. [Kieran] Tierney set the tone after a couple of minutes, caught on the ball, poor touches,” Shearer said on Match of the Day.

“[Lucas] Torreira then got caught on the ball, Arsenal got away with it. Six players and the manager are moaning to the referee when Southampton score, they were too clever for them.

“David Luiz… by the time the ball is in the net he’s not even in the box, it’s too late, he’s switching off.

“These mistakes are happening every single week trying to play out of the back but they’re not good enough to play out from the back, they keep giving chances away.

“I might get criticised for talking about fouling but what does [N’golo] Kante, Fabinho and Fernandinho do? They foul and they stop attacks.

“It’s a lack of experience from [Matteo Guendouzi] because look at the space Southampton have got to run into.”

Arsenal signed six new players in the summer transfer window in an attempt to build a squad capable of challenging for a top-four finish.

However, the likes of David Luiz, Nicolas Pepe and Kieran Tierney have been unable to elevate Arsenal to another level.

Arsenal will make the trip to Norwich City in their next Premier League fixture at Carrow Road on Sunday.

The Gunners have failed to finish in the top four in the last three seasons.

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