Arsenal analysis: Arsene Wenger should start planning for life without Alexis Sanchez after another wasteful display

Olivier Giroud climbed off the bench to rescue a point for Arsenal in a 1-1 draw at Southampton.

The French frontman struck two minutes from the end as Saints just failed to hang on to Charlie Austin's early opener.

Austin had punished Arsenal for a calamitous beginning to the match with his fourth goal in his last three starts.

The draw puts another nail in the coffin of Arsenal's Premier League title challenge, with Arsene Wenger's side now 14 points off leaders Manchester City having played a game more.

James Benge assesses the key talking points...

What more does Sanchez have to do before serious questions are asked about whether Arsene Wenger should start planning for life without a player who seems all but certain to leave this summer?

Sanchez’s magnificent cross for Giroud’s equaliser was a reminder of the qualities the Chilean brings to the Gunners’ attack, but it came after 87 minutes when he had been more hindrance than help.

On 32 occasions across the 90 minutes he managed to give possession away, two short of the seasonal record he set against Manchester United last week. Sanchez accurately completed only 68 per cent of his passes compared to the 95 per cent of fellow forward Mesut Ozil.

His belief that his way was the best for Arsenal was typified when he stole the ball off the feet of Aaron Ramsey in the Southampton area, wasting his hastily acquired possession.

Though he was in fine form during a run of three wins in late November, Sanchez has spent much of this season looking like he bears the scars of the summer’s transfer saga.

If that doesn’t change over the festive period, Wenger would be advised to seriously consider any midseason bids for his struggling star.

No player has scored as many goals off the bench for one club as Giroud, whose 17th strike as a substitute brought him level with Manchester United great Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and puts him only six off Jermain Defoe as the Premier League’s top scoring substitute.

If he is willing to settle for an impact role for the remainder of the season and beyond, you would not bet against Giroud claiming that record for his own. Already this season his goals off the bench have earned Arsenal three points from games against Leicester and Southampton.

What a relief it must be for Wenger to know that when everything is going wrong in their build-up play, they can just lump the ball up to one of Europe’s outstanding target men.

Wenger admitted before today’s game that his preference was for a four-man defence, which he deployed for the first time since April in Thursday’s 6-0 romp past BATE Borisov. But at St Mary’s the trio returned, Per Mertesacker replacing the injured Shkodran Mustafi.

It immediately appeared that Wenger had erred in his selection when Mertesacker gave the ball away and slipped to allow Austin to score the opener, but it would seem strange to blame a system for the errors by the club captain, Mustafi and Laurent Koscielny in Arsenal’s last two games.

Those same errors were defining Arsenal’s woeful spring run earlier this year and it seems apparent that if the defence switched on when Wenger made a first major change to his defensive system in two decades, they are now back to their blasé approach. Remedying that should be the manager’s first priority.

Eleven of Arsenal’s last 20 away league games have ended in defeat, with the likes of Stoke, West Brom and Crystal Palace having enjoyed home comforts against the Gunners.

Indeed, only Everton and Burnley have failed to take at least a point against Wenger’s visitors this season.

The Gunners appear unable to impose themselves on their hosts and unwilling to settle for playing on the counter. The 0-0 draw at Chelsea ought to be the template but against sides they would expect to win, Arsenal seem too eager to take the game to their hosts.