Shea Charles Stuns Arsenal to Send Southampton into FA Cup Semi-Finals

Southampton, England – The talk of a quadruple always felt fanciful, quashed by defeat at Wembley a fortnight ago, and now, after being humbled by second-tier Southampton, suddenly Arsenal are left fighting on just the two fronts.

A late Shea Charles strike earned their fearless Championship opponents, transformed by Tonda Eckert from relegation candidates into prime promotion hopefuls within six months, a ticket to play under the arch in the FA Cup semi-finals at the end of this month.

For Saints, only the fifth team to beat the Premier League leaders this season, the spirit of 1976 lives on. For Arsenal, after the pain of a Carabao Cup final loss, this spelled successive defeats for the first time this campaign and now their season really is at risk of unravelling.

Stewart Strikes First

Perhaps most frustrating for Arsenal was the fact Stewart's opener, 11 minutes before half-time, started on the edge of their own 18-yard box. Martin Ødegaard, featuring for the first time since February's north London derby win, surrendered possession with a loose backheel and Léo Scienza, the Brazilian who returned for the hosts, carried the ball towards halfway.

Saints flew forward, now five v five, and when James Bree looked towards the back post he spied Stewart lurking. Ben White completely misjudged Bree's chipped cross and Stewart, after chesting the ball, dispatched a low strike past Kepa Arrizabalaga, one of four players retained from the Wembley defeat by City.

Gyökeres Levels Before Charles Winner

All Viktor Gyökeres required was a sniff of goal to restore parity but before he levelled Southampton had chances to double their advantage. Tom Fellows excitedly blasted over after intercepting Cristhian Mosquera's poor pass and then Scienza fired another warning, cutting inside White and curling a right-foot shot on to the top of the Arsenal bar.

But while Saints led by only a single goal, Arsenal were very much alive and when Kai Havertz ran off Cameron Bragg, the 20-year-old academy graduate, and pulled the ball back from inside the six-yard box, Gyökeres buried his finish.

Just as Arsenal sought to dial up the pressure, with 16-year-old Max Dowman on his third senior start forcing Daniel Peretz into a save and Gabriel Martinelli thrashing wide, it was Saints who found a second goal through Charles. The former Manchester City youngster, who returned from Northern Ireland duty only on Friday, calmly found the corner with his right foot via a post to cue ecstasy in the stands.

No Time for Arsenal to Mope

There is no time for Mikel Arteta or his players to mope, with a flight to Lisbon in less than 48 hours for Tuesday's Champions League quarter-final first leg at Sporting. After the second leg, the small matter of a Premier League trip to Manchester City, who trail them by nine points but possess a game in hand.

Southampton's Spirit of 1976

Southampton's players, as in previous rounds starting at Doncaster in January, wore a limited-edition yellow-and-blue commemorative strip to celebrate the 50th anniversary of winning this competition at the old Wembley, when Bobby Stokes scored the only goal to immortalise Lawrie McMenemy's side. Every now and then yellow balloons to mark the occasion blew across the pitch.

Saints embarked on a glorious victory lap, linking hands and charging in unison towards the Northam Stand. Scienza, lagging behind the rest of his teammates, soaked the love from the home support. Stewart, somehow, revved them up another notch or two as, fittingly, "Just Can't Get Enough" blared over the speakers.

"We're back in Championship action in north Wales on Tuesday night," came the message from the stadium announcer, sensing the party may be subsiding. Who, really, was he kidding? "Que sera, sera, whatever will be, will be," the home fans sang on loop. It was a line that, strangely, felt an equally apt takeaway for Arsenal on a sobering night.

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