A calamitous mistake by Southampton goalkeeper Artur Boruc set Arsenal en route to a 2-0 victory that sent the Premier League leaders four points clear on Saturday.
Arsenal had already hit the woodwork through Jack Wilshere and Aaron Ramsey at the Emirates Stadium when Boruc attempted to outwit Olivier Giroud with some fancy footwork inside his penalty area in the 22nd minute.
The Poland international attempted one drag-back too many, however, enabling Giroud to steal possession and stab home the opening goal.
Giroud made sure of victory with four minutes remaining, registering his 10th goal of the season from the penalty spot after Jose Fonte had been penalised for pulling Per Mertesacker’s shirt.
“I’m very happy because we were against a good team and they showed why they made good results before,” said Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, whose side are only the second team to beat Southampton in the league this term.
“We couldn’t take our chances, but we took advantage of their mistakes. It’s a very good win against a difficult team.
“They are a good team and if they had won today they would have been level with us at the top of the league, so that shows you how good they are.”
Victory left Arsenal four points above second-place Liverpool, while Southampton remain third but will slip off the podium if Chelsea avoid defeat at West Ham United in the day’s late game.
Earlier, Daniel Sturridge came off the bench to earn Liverpool a 3-3 draw against Everton with an 89th-minute equaliser in a frenetic and richly entertaining Merseyside derby at Goodison Park.
A brace from Romelu Lukaku had put Everton on the brink of a first win over their city rivals in seven matches, but Sturridge’s header gave Liverpool a share of the spoils after a breathless encounter.
“It was a terrific game. I’ve been involved in a few and they are real heart-stoppers,” said Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers.
“We again showed our resilience and ability to fight back. This is a difficult place to come and they haven’t lost at Goodison Park this year.”
Philippe Coutinho’s fifth-minute opener for Liverpool was swiftly cancelled out by Kevin Mirallas, before Luis Suarez restored the visitors’ lead in the 19th minute by bending a 25-yard free-kick into the bottom-right corner.
Mirallas was fortunate to avoid a red card for a knee-high foul on Suarez before half-time, but he teed up Lukaku for both the equaliser and the 82nd-minute header that put Everton in front.
Everton would have moved level on points with Liverpool if they had won, but Sturridge had the final say when he smartly headed past Howard from a Gerrard free-kick.
Everton manager Roberto Martinez said: “It’s really disappointing we didn’t get three points. To concede late on from a dead-ball situation doesn’t reward my team for how they played in the second half.” Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everyday
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