Fragile defence ruins a complete performance vs Arsenal
By Zubin Daver
Liverpool beat Arsenal 3-1 in the Premier League on Monday.
Anfield the fortress and the Reds have made it 61 league games unbeaten at home.
Sadio Mane, Andrew Robertson and Diogo Jota were all on the scoresheet as Liverpool beat Arsenal 3-1. The Reds are now just two games away at Anfield to equal the existing club record of going 63 games without a loss.
Arsenal have managed to defeat Liverpool just once in their last 11 Premier League meetings, including this one. This game was always going to be a tough one for the Gunners especially given the horrible record away from home over the last year or two.
Jurgen Klopp’s team started the game positively, as they moved the ball around well and controlled the game in the opening 15 minutes. Any sort of hesitation that Liverpool might not be able to maintain their level of play this season is surely put to bed.
The Reds were good on the ball and limited Arsenal from encroaching into their half, let alone the final third. The side was constantly pressing through the game and repeatedly knocked on the door with Mane’s point-blank shot at Bernd Leno being saved, Trent Alexander-Arnold’s deflected shot hitting the crossbar and Gini Wijnaldum’s tame effort on goal.
With this win, Liverpool have now created a three point gap between themselves and their traditional top-six rivals. Fans were hoping to see Thiago get his full debut, however he missed out due to a minor fitness issue.
As expected, this game which promised to be a goal thriller lived up to its reputation. Another defensive error, this time by Andy Robertson, led to Alexandre Lacazette scoring the opener with Liverpool hitting back a couple of minutes later as Mohamed Salah and Mane combined to score the equaliser.
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Alexander-Arnold and Robertson combined to give Liverpool the lead and he was certainly relieved after being the reason Arsenal got onto the scoring sheet in the first place.
In all honesty, the Liverpool backline had multiple turnovers where they lost possession of the ball in situations where they were not under pressure. The defence has looked fragile as compared to how astute they were in the beginning of last season and this could end up being a cause of concern for Klopp as the season progresses.
The only thing that looks good from a personnel point of view is the fact that Virgil Van Dijk has been immense at the back with a wonderful passing range.
The second half of the game lacked bite. Except for a few moments here and there, and obviously Jota’s debut goal, to seal the win. Despite of playing just about 12 minutes, he made some meaningful contributions with about three shots and the goal which he rightly deserved.
Jota joins an illustrious list as he is only the 13th player in Liverpool history to score on debut.
Overall, it was a thorough performance of champions from the men in red. They join Leicester and noisy neighbours, Everton, at the top of the table with nine points from their first three league games.
Next. Liverpool player ratings v Arsenal: Alisson back, selfish Salah, pivotal Keita. dark
Klopp’s men have now won all three of their opening fixtures in the Premier League and their next game in the league is a game away at Villa Park.