Arteta takes responsibility for Arsenal's farewell
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has taken full responsibility for his team's FA Cup quarter-final exit at the hands of Southampton on Saturday.
Two weeks after their disappointing League Cup final defeat to Manchester City, the Premier League leaders, hampered by absences, lost 2-1 to Championship side Southampton at St. Mary's Stadium.
Southampton took the lead in the 35th minute through Ross Stewart, before Victor Geukeris equalized for Arsenal in the 68th minute. Shea Charles then scored the winner for Southampton in the 85th minute, sending them through to the semi-finals, where the draw will take place on Sunday.
"I'm really disappointed with the way we've lost the chance to go back to Wembley," Arteta said.
"I love my players, what they've done for the last nine months, and I'm not going to criticize them for losing a game here, considering the way they've tried and the way they've sacrificed their bodies in everything." "Perhaps some of them shouldn't be here today, but I will defend them more than ever," he explained.
"Someone has to take responsibility, and that someone is me. We have the best period of the season ahead of us... Now is a pivotal moment. There are always moments in a season, usually two or three, and this is the first one where we're experiencing a certain level of difficulty," he continued.
"We'll call it difficult when we play in the Champions League quarter-finals and in the decisive stages of the league... If this is a difficult period, I think there have been many more difficult ones, so let's stand firm, adapt to the situation, and perform as we have been doing all season."