Facing Southampton, Mikel Arteta Failed to Maximize the Opportunity for Arsenal  

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta. (Instagram @mikelarteta)

JAKARTA - Arsenal coach Mikel Arteta said that failing to maximize opportunities made his squad lose 1-2 to Southampton in the 2025/2026 FA Cup quarterfinal at St Mary's Stadium, Southampton, Sunday morning WIB.

"We had moments where we were very dominant, creating opportunities and situations around the penalty box, but we didn't maximize it enough," Arteta said, quoted by Antara from Arsenal's official website.

Based on the record from the football statistics site Fotmob, The Gunners dominated the course of the match by having 64 percent ball possession, but only scored one goal despite having seven shots on target from 23 attempts.

In addition, Arteta also admitted that his team performed poorly in defending in their own penalty area, which should be their strength. This can be seen from Southampton who were able to score two goals from only four shots on target.

The situation made the 43-year-old tactician disappointed. After failing to win the 2025/2026 English League Cup by losing to Manchester City in the final, they were also eliminated from the FA Cup. Two trophies were also swept away.

"We tried until the last second. However, there are certain things that must be done in football if you want to win," said Arteta.

Arteta also asked his players to forget the negative results in the FA Cup and asked to focus on the two tournaments that Arsenal is still participating in this season, namely the English League and the Champions League.

In the English League, Arsenal is still leading the standings with 70 points from 31 matches, nine points behind second-placed Manchester City.

Meanwhile, in the Champions League, Arsenal will face Sporting CP in the first leg of the quarterfinal at the Jose Alvalade Stadium, Lisbon, Wednesday (8/4) early morning WIB.

Arsenal lost 1-2 to Southampton in the 2025/2026 FA Cup quarterfinal at St Mary's Stadium, Southampton, Sunday morning WIB. Arsenal's goal was scored by Viktor Gyokeres (68'). Meanwhile, the two home team goals were scored by Ross Stewart (35') and Shea Charles (85').

The defeat made Bukayo Saka and his friends fail to advance to the 2025/2026 FA Cup semi-finals after last advancing to the round in the 2019/2020 season, where they became champions.

In addition, Arsenal also closed their opportunity to win three trophies in one season (treble) for the first time in their history.