Two chances for the title remain
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Premier League leaders Arsenal FC were surprisingly eliminated in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup by a second division team. At FC Southampton, the Londoners with national player Kai Havertz lost 1:2 (0:1).
Ross Stewart gave Southampton the lead in the 35th minute. The favorite ran after this deficit for a long time before Viktor Gyökeres equalized after a pass from Havertz (68th). But Shea Charles (85th) let the hosts celebrate in the end, with Bayern loanee Daniel Peretz guarding the goal.
“I’m really disappointed with how we missed the chance to get back to Wembley,” said coach Mikel Arteta after the game, standing in front of his charges. “I love my players. I’m not going to criticize them for what they’ve done over the last nine months just because we lost a game here.”
The Gunners still have two chances for the title this season. In the Premier League they are nine points ahead of rivals Manchester City, and in the Champions League the quarter-final first leg against Sporting Lisbon is on Tuesday. “Someone has to take responsibility. That’s me. We still have the best time of the season ahead of us,” said Arteta.
Liverpool go down against Man City: three goals from Haaland
Man City had already stormed into the semi-finals again in the morning thanks to a hat-trick from Erling Haaland. Even without the suspended Pep Guardiola on the sidelines, the Skyblues won their quarter-final against champions Liverpool FC 4-0 (2-0) in their home stadium.
From the stands, Guardiola saw a brace from Haaland in the first half: in the 38th minute, the exceptional striker converted a penalty kick, and shortly before half-time he headed in to make it 2-0 (45th+2). The Norwegian scored his third goal for last year’s finalists in the 57th minute to make it 4-0. Antoine Semenyo (50th) had previously made it 3-0. Mohamed Salah missed a penalty for Liverpool (64th).
The semi-finals will take place on April 25th and 26th. Cup defenders Crystal Palace had already been eliminated in the third round by sixth division club FC Macclesfield. In addition to Southampton and Man City, Chelsea FC achieved a 7-0 (3-0) win against third division team FC Port Vale, and on Sunday West Ham United and Leeds United tied for last place.
