Arsenal got off to a brilliant start with Martinelli being his usual Duracell Bunny and flying into space to put us 1-0 up in just 58 seconds. He is leading the attack down the left and drew the first booking after just 5 minutes, and Arsenal were looking awesome.
We got a scare after 9 minutes when Ramsdale called for assistance for a pulled muscle but he opted to carry on.
Xhaka had a go around 13 minutes but Alisson was quick enough, and it was offside anyway.
Martinelli had an accidental heavy tackle on Trent-Arnold and it didn’t look good for the England right-back.
It was proper end to end football, with Liverpool getting more of the ball firing them down the wings, and we had a little scare when an interception from Saliba looked like it was going to sneak poat Ramsdale but our Number One got his hand down quickly.
Liverpool were all out for the equaliser and when Salah slipped it into the box, Darwin Nunez got their first, and we were back on equal terms…
Arsenal seemed to have lost their composure and Liverpool were worryingly taking control. Arsenal had to work hard defending up to the break, including 5 minutes aded on, but with perfect timing, right before the whistle, an excellent counter attack saw Martinelli causing havoc down the left. He slipped the ball neatly to Saka in the box and Arsenal were in the lead once again.
Phew, what a rollercoaster of a half!
The second half started just as lively and Martinelli made a nuisance of himself and Arsenal had a big chance in the first minute again, but Liverpool bungled the ball away…
Arsenal were definitely looking more confident now, and after 5 minutes Odegaard had a big chance but tamely shot it at Alisson.
Then came another shock as Liverpool scored against the run of play, with Firmino slipping the ball into Ransdale’s bottom corner, and it is was back to nail-biting time for all Gooners with half an hour to go..
The game went back to end-to-end, but Liverpool were definitely getting a bit feisty, with Arsenal players getting knocked about the pitch, but Arsenal came close yet again with Tsimikas clearing off the line.
With 20 minutes to go MO Salah was taken off after having had hardly any impact on the game, and Arsenal continued going after the winner. and came close yet again with 15 minutes to go when Xhaka fired the ball into the box, but no banana.
But we attacked and attacked and when Xhaka got the ball back into the box with Martinelli again and again, and suddenly the ref gives us a penalty. The melee afterwards lookedlike turning into a fight with a very upset Granit Xhaka, but the ref finally got the players calm enough for Saka to step up to the spot.
And HE SCORES!!!! With a very cool sidestep into the corner. Well done Saka!
With 15 minutes to go Arteta swaps Tierney for Odegaard to try and hold on to this lead, and Arsenal are fighting to keep the lead, and of course he gives the armband to Granit Xhaka…
Arsenal were then looking relaxed and passing the ball about without letting Liverpool get anywhere near the ball. They are looking lie they intend to furstrate Klopp’s side and are doing it very well indeed. In between defending for their lives!
Liverpool even tried a dive for a penalty but it was quickly dismissed. And even the ref gave Liverpool an extra 3 minutes to equalise but the Gunners held fast.
Arsenal fans have been so used to seeing our team get torn apart by Liverpool, watching this has been even more sweet, amd it is even better that we go back to the top of the Premier League!
COYG!
Liverpool had no chance today. If anything it was our high line that gave them hope. We weren’t even at our best because this could’ve been a far worse scoreline. There were so many spaces in their defense and they had no midfield for most part. Once again we need to check the way we shape ourselves to defend on the counter. It was an easy win for me. The scoreline is not a reflection of what happened. Tomiyasu even pocketed their best player. If we beat all the top teams at least once we have a chance the title. I hope this won’t be 07/08 again.
In first half Lpool were starting to exploit out high line and our decision in final 3rd could have much better. But in a fixture where we used to have no idea of how to get out of our own half, this time we frequently got in their half, frequently created scoring chances and frequently scored. To be able to do this to Lpool is satisfying in itself no matter how we played. Also, no major decisions went against us in this fixture that is also rare in itself. So we are helping ourselves and luck is helping us to this point. God helps who help themselves, so let’s keep helping ourselves.
I swear in this decision go against us, we use to get injuries but this time it was Liverpool getting injury. Martinelli is world class, despite defenders gang up against Saka he is still doing well. Everyone did well. But Gabriell maghale is scare though, everytime ball is with him am scared
Yes, you are right. Gabriel maghale is our weak link in the defense. So many goals we conceded this season is due to his error, including the first Liverpool goal. It will be daunting to watch him face Haaland. If we afe to have any chance for the title, Arteta needs to replace him with a better center back.
No Kev, we have Mikel the Matador. He has learnt how to win, after all was he not a cone man to some other coach who is a serial winner? Those who come to the Emirates will be tamed – Rodgers, Conte, Klopp. Who’s next? I’m waiting for tan Hag and Pep!
We should really stop playing that high line against teams with quality, Man Utd took full advantage of this and both Liverfool goals came through that as well. ManC with Haaland will destroy us honestly.
Liverpool goals didn’t come from highline rather our first 2 goals was from Liverpool’s highline.
Liverpool’s first goal came from a throwing while the second was from settled play.
Every big team plays a highline.
I don’t know when you guys would actually understand football
Liverpool should be ashamed. Thugs
yep
Liverpool looked very vulnerable to counter-attack and we capitalized on that effectively, but the first half showed that Liverpool were still more confident and better passers than us. We won today, but I’m afraid Man City and Liverpool will dominate us next time
“We won today, but I’m afraid Man City and Liverpool will dominate us next time”
I need your crystal ball
Very negative comment GOI. We were the better team but they took their chances better – hence the score was close.
It’s just my honest observation. We’ll see whether we can win the ball possession against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in the first half or not
It’s not honest though, we dominated Liverpool and they have had bad results outside this game so why would you think that?
City are City and have Haaland nevermind De Bruyne but everyone knows that,
They dictated the tempo in the first half, despite our effort to win the ball possession
2nd half?
💯 Liverpool dominated 1st half, but my man of the Arteta great game plan
Sometimes it feels like you make these comments against the rin of play just to show that you have a better understanding of the game than the rest of us
Nope. Just remember my opinion today when we meet Man City
Shut up. Your opinion means nothing when we meet City. They are the dominant team in Europe for the last 4 years (even if they did win the CL) and have added Haaland. You don’t get kudos for predicting we are behind City??????? Seriously????????? Every person in the football world knows that?????????????
didn’t* not did
Lol. City would probably beat any teams >5 times out of 10 in the world right now.
Shouldn’t of said shut up. Rest stands and not personal at all.
Angus.
Please go to bed.
Let’s just enjoy our win shall we?
? I thought it was right regardless, maybe I was wrong. Night
You definitely not a gunner.
If I wasn’t a Gooner, I wouldn’t have been commenting on this site for many years
Comenting here is not what makes people Gunnar’s, I just believe that you are part of this site administrator, your comments are mostly to attract reply rather than making sense
I think he is not a gunner too….. We won Liverpool and You are already pointing at our game against them and manc in the reverse fixture. GoI rest and be happy. Until then.. we won today and that’s it
Your right to some extent dude 👍
You sound so confident for a side that had just one shot in a whole half.
I believe Liverpool were shocked by the effectiveness of our counter-attacks, hence their drop of confidence in second half. But they dictated the tempo in the first half
Doesn’t that just mean that we were better on the day GAI?
If we were better than them in confidence and passing, we should’ve dominated them in the first half
We did !!! donut 🙂
You are just unbelievable mate.please give it a rest with your pessimism and negativities.
Even your almighty man city will not be able to dominate Liverpool for 90min, watch your almighty city play against Liverpool a week from today, please stop talking about Liverpool like they are some league one side
It was one of the most nail biting game, n time just seemed to have stopped for most of the game. Finally sigh of relief after final whistle.
Liverpool were terrible defensively. I don’t like how we pressed in the first half and it seems like intensity has expectedly dropped. However, there is no proof Liverpool will dominate us next time.
This result is huge for us. Pool play dirty when they’re not in total control and we managed to go into the lead three times!
They were trash. We have to be more clinical and finish off such teams. The dilly dally infront of goal is to much.
Arteta mentioned about his fear of Liverpool’s excellent build-up play and Allison’s distribution, so I guess Arteta instructed his attackers not to press too high up the pitch
I think Arteta still has an inferiority complex against Klopp and Guardiola, hence the highly cautious approach instead of doing our usual high press
Luckily, his tactic worked and we managed to catch Liverpool on the break, but I don’t think it’ll work against Man City or at Anfield. I bet this scheme was what Conte wanted last week
We need to keep up with the press. We should keep working more on being disciplined positionally so we don’t have to waste more energy when pressing. However, it is clear intensity has dropped a bit. I peeped that even in our win against Bodo Glimt.
Yes, we shouldn’t have been more effective in pressing
*should
We won, name the Liverpool chances missed then name ours………. *sigh*
We won but we should’ve also won the ball possession in the first half, since we played at home
Imagine when we play at Anfield or Etihad next time. Liverpool and Man City would likely pin us down until they score a couple of goals
This is the biggest trash I have had, we have been to those ground with a more inferior team and they didn’t skin us, the last time we played at armfield they couldn’t even score
I am pleased with this win it shows that Arteta and the team are constantly improving constantly evolving if we played the high press we would have lost this game, I think Klopp though we going to play the way we played against the spuds, you could see his team was set up for our high press but Arteta out foxed him today well done Gunners
Liverpool are still a good team, but we dominated them in the second half. Their midfield was mostly slow, and they are not the same without Mane. On the overall balance of play we deservedly won. They could not cope with our wide players and in the second half Partey was immense. Clever by Arteta to play 4 Centre Backs as our last line. Ben, Saliba, Gabriel and Tomi. Matip and Virgil VD never got a look in. The Odegaard/Martinelli goal after just a minute was almost the definition of our style of play. Amazing.
You are just unbelievable mate.please give it a rest with your pessimism and negativities.we had better possession against united.yet we were beaten. Since when has higher possession Always translated to wins.
@Gai “We won today, but I’m afraid Man City and Liverpool will dominate us next time”
And you think the team would not improve and Arteta is unwise not to do his homework. Fear not Gai
Let’s see how we approach the game at Stamford Bridge
GAI
I thought Dan was a glass half empty but at times you’re the same
Seems recent going way back I don’t remember GAI talking like this so not sure why he’s changed. Lately guessing it’s an Arteta thing.
I think @GAI is just nervous.. He does not want to get too ahead of himself so that when things don’t go well he can point back to these pessimistic comments..
😊
SueP, I’m just worried we’ll get pinned down at Anfield and Etihad
We may do but today enjoy the moment
Don’t Bury Liverpool juste yet…Their first half showed us what a good team they are……
True. Despite our efforts to control the tempo, Liverpool won the ball possession in the first half
Give it a rest! You just postet 14 negative comments just on this tread. Got no idea!
Possession without substance don’t win you games we should know this
What nonsense? We defeated Liverpool and you think they would have defeated us? On what basis? Arsenal players missed most chances they created, it would have been a different scoreline. We don’t value what we have, pathetic.
Liverpool has been much better than us for many years, but we are in a positive process and will probably get better.
Liverpool has peeked and have many players that are not going to get better. What you saw was a superb Arsenal team exposing Liverpool weaknesses. In spite we did mistakes and could have been defending better we won the game.
Liverpool played one of their best games this season, but wasn’t able to get the points 🔴⚪️
Arteta MASTERCLASS!!!! Facing Tomiyasu with Salah!!!
Oh my God I don’t know what to comment!!! My heart is racing. My pressure is off the roof!!!
This is the process!!!
So when some of us been calling for his starting its not because we hate anybody. This is another match which proves Tomiyasu should always start when fit unless there are some situations where he shouldn’t.
Mate there’s no reason to drop Ben White!! Allow it, everybody’s pushing each other! Everybody’s delivering week in week out, the manager knows best. You saw it today
It’s not about reasons. You start the better player no matter what when he’s in form. White is ok but Tomiyasu is crucial. That is a point no-one can deny.
But Ben has been better at right back and is the better player!
He can never be better than Tomiyasu in any position. I’m not even hating when I say this.
Did you watch the game White was fantastic?
You really don’t get it do you Kev ?
The balance, the value Ben gives to the team. Yes Tomiyaso is good but Ben is becoming indispensable. Tomiyaso might be better individually at RB but Ben makes the whole team great
Absolutely Eddie, Ben has been a rock at right back but it seems Tomi could be our new left back 😊
I agree with Kev on this one Eddie. Tomi is better than B. White when fit.
How about we just celebrate the fact that both White and Tomiyasu were huge today rather than squabbling over which one is better? An argument can be made both ways.
For me the more interesting debate is whether a Saliba-Gabriel pairing is superior to Saliba-White.
Exactly what I was thinking.There shouldn’t be a question about which one of white and Tommy should be starting cos both should be in the starting line up .The obvious weak link in the defence now is gaby and this goes to show the increase in quality this season over the previous one as he was arguably our best defender last season.
Tomiyasu was such a great signing – just a super defender who can play anywhere in the back 4 and doesn’t have any significant weaknesses I can see. That’s not to say he’s perfect and can’t improve, but he’s at least competent at everything really.
Agree it was a great decision to slot him in against Liverpool’s right – ensured we turned a potential strength of theirs against them!
The real test is MAN City.
Not really!we are aware that we are not on their level jus yet.evrn if we were to lose to City,it wouldn’t info the great work which MA and the whole team have been doing. it’s going to be a good test to measure the gap between both teams, that’s all.
No, the real test is the next game we play. It’s no good looking ahead to the City game, if we lose to City then we make sure we win against the lower placed teams
You are a wise and true gunner. Our next task is to win the next match…. I can’t believe so called fans like gotanidea underrated our players before and still after we beat Liverpool, isn’t that pathetic? I’m not saying we would win the league but why criticise the team when by this time last year we were no where near the top 3?
I never believed in you Arteta, my apologies, good work!
Good work boys.
Sick and tired of those who keep shifting goal posts on the so-called real test! At first it was Spurs and then Liverpool and now you speak of Man city. What is that real test of it yours? Why don’t you accept that our team is has greatly to improved and reserve your uncalled for comments?
David, I’m with you; the EPL table is the true indicator of progress, particularly once every team has played one another. Consistency will be required to maintain progress to the end of the season.
I wholly agree with you. That is a more sensible approach than the unending hints at real test whatever that means. It is possible for Arsenal to beat Man City though it seems inconceivable for many people at the moment. I believe Man City will be beaten at some point in time. A lot of factors including injuries to some key players, fatigue or even overconfidence can cause a team to lose. I believe Arsenal can pip Man City to the title if it is our destiny this season. Who imagined that Leicester of all teams would win EPL? Even when they were beating all the big teams a lot of people continued to write them off thinking they would collapse at some stage. We all now know the rest is history.
David, in that season Arsenal beat Leicester City home and away. It was games lost/drawn against other sides that cost Arsenal the title.
The fact that Liverpool started to rough up our players,tell us the whole story.if they couldn’t beat us by outplaying us, they’d try a different way.anyway,great win even if it was not against an in form Liverpool team.having said that,last season we would have lost the game.thid Arsenal team is growing with every passing week. COYG!!👏👊💪🥳
Exactly. First time I’ve seen Liverpool actually scared of us in YEARS. Outplayed them and Arteta beat Klopp tactically as well.
🎯
Saka Jesus Martinelli should scare you. ✌
I disagree with you, everything team must be under par to lose to a team. Liverpool have been good recently but I want to ask you a question, can you compare this Liverpool side to the Henry, Pires, Vieira Arsenal? I can argue Arsenal lost their best team when we lost lost those men. So believing we won an underperforming Liverpool Is as good as believing Liverpool has been winning an underperforming Arsenal these recent years. We beat Liverpool period.
Hit them hard and early, but Pool was as stubborn as a mule.
The monkey is finally off our back
A win is all that matters. There are no negatives. We just have to appreciate the level of work Arteta has done. This is the youngest team in the league.
We are top of the league.
Good job
We are a better team than Liverpool this season, we just need to believe a bit more In Our selves when playing the big 3 clubs because this season we look easily the second best team (close to city and they are flying atm) 10 points clear in the top 4 💪
The tomiyasu switch to face Salah was masterclass and bringing Tierney in to go 3 at d back …arteta wow
Amazing football all round…kudos to d lads…. The new found fighting spirit will take us really far….
Let’s see what city brings…we are ready, their defense is there for the taking….onto the next one can’t wait
Agree Inst – credit for Arteta today for faultless calls – a huge improvement in his learning curve from last season.
Luck swung our way regarding the penalty, you can argue it indefinitely depending on who you support. Thankfully it was our turn to get the call to give us a well deserved win. As mentioned above great performances especially from Partey, Jesus, Martinellii, Saliba and Saka. We got away with playing four centre halves but it also stunts our attack and it won’t work against the likes of Manchester City. A shame though because Tomiyasu deserves to start regularly. More importantly, though, Arsenal are in a great position going into a long break which will also give the likes of Zivchenko Odegaard and ESR time to heal.
No luck on the penalty shouldn’t be given sometimes it will but that would be unlucky ffs. We have a long long way to go to even out decisions like that, long way.
I think we were very lucky on the Gabriel handball. It was completely accidental, but i can’t see how they argue it was a natural position.
On the penalty in our favour, I think it was correct, but Liverpool will argue it was soft, with some justification. We got the rub on the penalty calls for sure overall.
Anyway, nice to be on the positive end in one of these big games for once – doesn’t seem to happen often
dont think either were penalties to be honest. how can you say arm is unnatural position. when you run and stop and change direction your arms will not be down by your side, that is unnatural.
ours was soft, but which ever way it was given wasnt going to be overturned. great performance by the team, although still worry about gabriel in back 4…may be time for white at cb and tomi at rb
I’m not so concerned about Gabriel as many seem to be, but I’d rather keep white at RB and move Tomi to CB as I think he’s the better defender, especially as a partner for saliba.
Perfect solution to the gabriel conundrum.i watched him play left center back for Japan l
Flawlessly and if he could out Salah as a left back which I would assume more demanding than lcb , they he would do well.
Re the unnatural position – you may be right, but they’ve given numerous previous penalties when the arm has been up like that. It seems to be what they mean by unnatural. I don’t like it, personally, but it is what it is.
Also, I think we’d want a penalty if it happened in their box
agree, with what i have seen given previously i would probs expect a penalty, but it shouldnt be in all instances…its the inconsistency which annoys everyone.
gaby just didnt seem very assured, especially with the high ball over the top. would like to see tomi at CB to see how he did
👍
Cmon Joe S. Damn Arteta with faint praise why not? He made the call specifically for this game and it worked. But for their good and our bad finishing the scoreline would be far greater, as we controlled 75% of the game. So sorry – I wouldn’t base my comment on a “lucky” penalty swinging the game.
No disrespect meant to Arteta guy,He hasn’t put a foot wrong. I’ve even supported him when we lost at Old Trafford when others accused him of nativity. I still think that we need a Cancello like wing back who can overlap and give the likes of Saka and Martinellii some support when going forward. The United goals and Liverpool’s yesterday also demonstrate how easy it is to slip through our defensive structure. Two or three passes from the opposition and all Arsenal’s superiority going forward was left undone. It’s something to think about as opposition managers will also have noticed. Regarding the performance though,; it was inspired, beautiful to watch and justly rewarded.
accused him of naivety
Saka taking and missing that penalty at the Euros was a blessing in disguise.i doubt that he will ever feel that much pressure to score one.
We keep this team two years and we’r going to dominantes the league…..For me 2024 is the year to reap the fruits of the incredible work we’r seeing under Arteta/Edu…..This year for me is a bit short
It looks like we could see the same team play together for another few years.on top of that,several very good additions.
We played so well in the second half. We deserve to win and could have been a more lop-sided win had our shooting been better!
Wow!!
I’m with Eddie – if I die tomorrow I die happy! Another hurdle, another mental block broken. Nobody these days wins every game but beat the big boys in the home games and second place is very much on. Superb from Gabi, Saka, Jesus, Tomi, Partey et al – ok Liverpool have lost something at the back but any team with Salah, Jota, Diaz, Firmino and Nunez up front will cause problems and they really wanted this. Huge credit to the guys for the effort, skill, commitment, togetherness today – just the decision making in the area to work on. Yay!!!
Onwards and upwards! Enjoy tonight!
I understand why Arteta really wanted Martinez
Leave it out. Gabriel is the enemy number 1 currently for those seeking negativity. He was undroppable not long ago. Leave him alone.
I thought saliba got caught out in their second goal – hasn’t made many mistakes, but that was one.
Gabriel got “lucky” with handball call, but given it was accidental, it was lucky not to be unlucky really
@Davi I think the ball hit he’s chest then hit the arm not sure if that’s a rule for not giving penalty’s 🤔
Nah that can’t be relevant? Would be very odd if it was. Who knows these days – they seem to change it every other week
The ball hit his hand without hitting the chest first as I watched from the replays. According to the changes in the handball rules (2021),”an arm extended from the body makes the body bigger in an unnatural position. If the ball strikes that arm, particularly if it is blocking a shot in goal, there is a greater likelihood that we will penalize that”. So this is why Liverpool fans are arguing that it should be a penalty. However, the rule goes on and says “The proximity of the player whose arm or hand makes contact with the ball to where the ball was struck from will still be an important consideration for officials when making the decision to award a handball or not”. Based on this paragraph, it is clear to me that it is not a penalty.
That’s a good point.
The way the team has been performing this season,I somehow find it unfair to single out players, either for special praises or criticism for that matter.this is going to be a long season and most players will go through difficult patches.
gabriel is a good defender, just has to many instances of panic/lack of composure
That’s how you do it. Massive statement! Seeing out this game was MASSIVE. It’s been a looonnnng time since we’ve had a performance against a big side that has kicked out butts for years, where we actually handed it to them and capitalized on their mistakes. Well done Arsenal, well done Arteta! COYGG!!!
SMASHING team Win!
The naysayers on this group do not want to admit that “The Process” is taking shape. The doubters first said we have not played any significant team yet that’s why we top of the log. Than we got beaten by ManUtd, they were in full voice again. They said Tottenham will be our real test we beat them,and than it was Liverpool,( who they believed by the way that we will drop points against both Tottenham and Liverpool) and we took care of them. Instead of giving credit they say Liverpool was rubbish. So to all you negative doubters out there, please go and support another team. As for us Gooners IT’S “ONWARD AND UPWARD”!!!!! COYG!!!
Boring ,give it a rest and enjoy the moment .
The so called naysayers have every right to call out this manager and team from past experiences .
This season we have picked up so maybe a few more will get on board including myself .
wasn’t even going at you just pointing out that Dboy was talking as you have but the opposite.
It seems we have forgotten the end of last season – now that was shite and we were right to call it out…. unless that was part of the process!!
I don’t remember anyone saying we would finish 9th.
All I remember is no european football, out of the cups early on, top four spot in our hands, only to throw it away.
Since then, MA has transformed the club and the fans have responded to the change – simple as that.
Yes Angus i predicted top 4
as I put money on it the same as the season before and gave money to charity on this very website when we did t make it .
Anyway I’m off to bed as I’ve enjoyed this today so can’t be arsed arguing with someone that is never wrong ,so good night and enjoy the win .
fair enough kettle black in that regard. I know I see things from my opinion all the time but I intercepted a conversation I didn’t go at you, you did go at me after so it gets weird there because I wasn’t stating my opinion then. You were certainly not championing a top 4 bid last year I’d remember, in the early days SueP was the only supporter willing to comment out loud in that way. I personally annoyed Sue too much on the last NLD last season which is the game you get most your ammo from (told a lot of people to shut up because it mattered, it was bad but it was real.)
If you did that for charity kudos but you didn’t back it up with your comments whatsoever throughout the season which is why I question it. I was one of the most optimistic fans on here and I said we were nailed on 5th and had to argue endlessly on it against you often as I remember so…. You had us 4th? Why would you disagree with me then? I had us 5th.
Thanks Dboy, my thought exactly, some fans are just too negative about us and its like they don’t want us to progress and succeed. Nobody is perfect even sometimes city play some woeful football and still manage to win, we won against palace, Fulham, villa, Leicester, they called them small team that we should beat big team but fortunately for the man utd beat us they were all jubilating and shouting that we were only good against average and small team, then we beat Brantford away( 3-0), tott and now liv, some of them are still complaining and said we should meet man city, haha, some fans are gullible and do not want to accept that we have really changed and improved….
Thank you gunners for the fantastic win and very important 3 points, always keep the good work going and continue to make us proud… COYG..
I have a very warm COYG glow
Fantastic win
Great win ,not dominant but progress all the same 👏
Good call from Arteta to play tomi ,who I believe only got skinned once by salah .
While the defending overall was nothing to write home about keeping Liverpool at bay to very few chances was good to see ,but the real praise should be for Martinelli Jesus and saka (who I’ve been critical of late ) who made Liverpools defensive lineup look like they didn’t want to be there ,the sub change of TAA at half time backs that up .
Mart goes from strength to strength,and we had a few fans moaning that he keeps the ball for to long ,well that’s his game ,not every player needs to one touch it off .
Martinelli MOTM for me ,White second .
Only disappointments were Odegaard ,who after the assit i did t realise he was there and Xhaka who as now been pushed more forward the same .
Great win though and can probably see us top 2-3 this season .
Well done all 👏
Agree Dan K – except for overplaying in the box our front 3 were incredible, as was Tomi and Partey. CB’s not great but any front line with Salah, Diaz, Jota, Nunez and Firmino will give you a hard time! Agree about GM getting better every game and he was frightening today. I feel Saka is back to his best and In Jesus we had another Costa today. At least we now have Vieira for those quiet Ode games, and although I concurred re Xhaka I note pundits saying he was quietly excellent. Nice to see grit, team spirit and tactics getting us there so often now. It allows us to win games without having to necessarily play at our best individually. We are certainly not a dull team to watch this season!
Agree guy ,Jesus does that dirt work which allows marts and saka to do their thing .
Massive win – Liverpool haven’t been great recently but i do think they have (had) a psychological edge on us. To break that barrier is tough and shows how far we come, especially after conceding equalisers twice
Tomi pocket going home:keys, ID card ,Salah ,Trent A Arnold.,…Awsome!!!
That’s funny🤣
A wonderful result, great team performance, superb supporters, excellent first eleven and substitutions, beat Liverpool and we are top of the league again.
What is there not to be positive about?
Why are some fans above saying city and chelsea will expose us?
For heavens sake, don’t you think they will be worrying about us?
I am VERY disappointed with the way pool acted during the game. They need to show a bit of respect and not try to kick us off the park.
Hats off to the referee – he controlled the game in such a professional way and he was directly in front of the penalty decision.
What a way to start my holiday!!
Fantastic result, and absolutely deserved, as we were clearly the better team against Liverpool for the first time in the league in XX(?) years.
Martinelli MOTM. But White, Tomiasu and Saka were great too. And Odegaard? What a superb captain’s performance.
And Arteta? I was surprised at seeing Tomiasu picked at LB, but how clever was that?
Pretty much what i posted uptop anders .
But Odegaard? Didnt see anything from him today which agaist the bigger teams seems the norm ,suppose we all see things differently.
Guess, we are almost in agreement, then 😉
I will be surprised, if Odegaard gets poor ratings by the various media outlets etc.
I honestly think, he had very good game.
AndersS, I agree. Unfortunately Martin Odegaard goes about his work in a low profile, understated, yet competent, effective and efficient way, which goes under the radar of some people
I agree with you Anders, Martin got very much attention from Liverpool and the used two or three players to isolate him, and prevent him from dictating the game. In spite of that he was able to show his qualities. He has just been injured and is probably a few per cent short of his normal level. I’m sure that Klopp would have signed him if he got a chance.
👍
Assist for the first goal!🤔
Which I mentioned 🙄
A Statement win
Now we need Liverpool to do us a huge favour against City at Anfield
Our attacking front 3 are outstanding today
Xhaka and Odeegard struggled in the first half after our early lead
But I’m gonna say this, Partey is World Class and he’s key to how/where we finish this season
Those lunging long balls from deep to the flanks, those break in plays are very much crucial to why our attacking line flourished in this game
The only letdown is our finishing
I don’t care about title talks atm
But i very much believe in this team
You can see the passion, the mentality shown when coming from a goal down
The fans have made their huge presence noticed and you can feel it even before kickoff
Even though in this particular game, there were quiet moments and nervy ones
On to the next game
Coyg!
We are in a title challenge!!!!!!!!!
The only thing that needs to be answered is getting results against the top 6 away from home. We need to tighten up the defence to do that, that is why we lost at utd but we have a litter time to perfect our away tactics. Excellent result that goes without saying. We just dont beat Liverpool in the league, so that is a massive knock for them and boost for us. Liverpool v City next week is a massive game for us, Liverpool and City. Its finally getting exciting.
I don’t see us winning the league In the long run so I would rather Liverpool is beaten once again which will push them further down as a top four contender
Do you call them fans? We have one who is always obsessed about tactics and selections made by the gaffer. He believes we will be exposed by every potential opponent we face and only highlights our perceived ‘weakness’ and opposition ‘strength’.
The other holds a personal grudge with Ben White. He come here after each game to moan about how White is overrated and should not be playing for the club.
They keep hoping we lose so they can be blame the gaffer and certain players they are not happy to see donning our famous shirt.
What are you on about Dendrite?
This is a forum for ALL Arsenal fans, who have differing opinions.
I’ve yet to find any Arsenal fan / supporter who wants the team to lose (maybe just one actually) and we are all behind the club.
Stop trying to stir things up, your the one causing division.
Remember Ken you correcting me that it was us not Liverpool that owed the other a good beating? Well that notwithstanding, we have got our pound of flesh.
David, I remember posting that to you . Perhaps ken also did!
@Ken,it is because of comments like his that I barely comment these days.you cannot give your honest opinion,disagree with anything… without being attacked and called not a “real’ Gunner!!
🎯 ken and si.
The better team won but it is clearly evident that Gabriel is becoming a liability being culpable for yet another goal.Tomi proved his excellence as a defender by blotting out Salah, and should be a permanent feature in our back four,along with the impressive, White and Saliba and our best LB in Tierney.Liverpool had a measure of control in midfield in the second period of the first half due to Xhaka and Odegaard playing too high up the pitch and being out of touch with Partey.They sorted out that problem in the second half and we became the dominant side .A very important win in terms of putting to rest any feelings of inferiority against Liverpool.
Agree Grandad. I watched potted highlights of every league game this season and it’s worrying how often it’s at least partly IMO Gabriel’s mistake that leads to us conceding (I counted 5 goals over just 9 games). If we want to reach the very top he just makes too many, and he’s not improving, which is a real problem, as are his frequent losses of temper and confidence during games.
I totally agree with you. The first Liverpool goal is definitely his mistake. A miskick and then unable to track Nunez that leads to Liverpool equilizer. Not to mentioned the handball that looks deliberate. Lucky the decision is not a penalty against us.
On the handball Jota was too close to Gabriel so according to the handball rule it cannot be given considering the distance between the too players
*two not too
@Grandad
Good point about Gabriel M. Was reading on Yahoo Sport, that Klopp instructed his forwards to target Gabby. He does get caught flat footed a lot, as well as ball watching. Saliba try’s his best to clean up after him, but…IJS
👍 sound analysis, Grandad. I too would be more comfortable with White replacing Gabriel at CB and bring back Tierney.
OG White is playing so well at RB I would slot in Tomi as a straight replacement for Gabriel with KT at LB.
Fair enough 🤗
I agree with your comment about Gabriel making more and more frequent mistakes lately. However, when Ben white was playing cb last year, Gabriel was significantly better. I think that White’s strengths are more highlighted at the rb position and his weaknesses more exposed as a cb. So I think that moving him back to cb will not improve the team. Maybe a new cb could be in the cards for next year, so that Gabriel can xan be third choice (or motivated to improve), while white and tomi battle it out for lb. One player short of having great depth of high quality in defence, both in bench and starting 11.
We are top of the league! Say we are top of the league! Just Chelsea away to come from the big 6 before the WC, what do we have to fear? Spurs/Liverpool were the scary games, we’ve won both and they are gone. No longer an easy start after those two. Upwards and upwards! Good time to be a Gooner!
League games pre World Cup (one a week):
Leeds (A)
Soton (A)
Forest (H)
Chelsea (A)
Wolves (A)
4 of 5 away, but concerned? No? Me neither!
Outside Chelsea obviously, Leeds is the scariest. Southampton are struggling, Wolves are Wolves be tight but we win 1 or 2 nil. As usual, our next game is our toughest test, as it should be!
it’s do-able. We go to Chelsea with no fear. Leeds and Southampton are capable sides and we’ll need to keep the intensity up. I’m more concerned about us getting unlucky with injuries. If we can keep everyone fit going into WC we’re gonna do great.
Great win, and an important win against Liverpool. Evererybody in the team did play well but my MOTM is Martinelly though.
It’s rare to see a team be so dominant against Liverpool most of the game. Well done, Arsenal. Well done Arteta.
Realistically what does Odegard do for the team other than wear the captain band..I prefer the viera over him cox he lacks the wisdom of when to pass or shoot, Infact his constant passing is the reason he flops when u need him to put easy chances away.. thanks to Jesus, Martinelli n of course Saka cox Odegard would have made us lose a vital 2 point cox he will never step up in big matches as a captain.. thanks
I think I agree to an extent
Chris
There must be a reason why MA picks him as our captain over all our other players.
He at times even frustrates myself but you can not argue with facts when he plays passes and cuts defence apart such as our first goal.
He may make us lose?
He has played in 2 of our biggest games this season
Today and against the spuds and I didn’t see us lose.
Ps
To all the contributors on here.
Wonderful and entertaining read but as DK mentioned earlier it is boring reading comments saying told you so and trying to mock non believers from yesterday year.
Most people on here are fully on board now and to the ones who are still not too sure I am sure in time you will be but to all the ones who had faith at the beginning and calling out. Can we stop and just enjoy the moment.
Back to sitting top and winning against a still very good side today.
Confidence is a very fragile thing so whilst we have it, let’s enjoy it
Onwards and upwards
👍Allanball08, well said. Chris, Martin Odegaard is the captain of the Norwegian national team and has been a proven performer fot Arsenal. Viera, while a good prospect has yet to have the club or international record of Odegaard. Given the number of games Arsenal has to play, Viera will get plenty of opportunities to prove himself.
Please tell me which Arsenal player that got more attention from Liverpool players than Ødegaard? They used two or three players to isolate him and prevent him from dictating the game, why? What do Klopp understand that you obviously don’t understand 😉
Didrik, excellent point about the multiple marking, including I might add, closing down the passing lanes, yet Odegard still set up one goal.
Did you watch the game, Chris? Do you actually watch the performances of Odegaard with a nuanced eye, or do you simply dislike him and the fact that he is the captain of Arsenal? Do you realize he was directly responsible for the first goal with such a sublime pass – and also involved in the second goal? Do the math. Would Arsenal have won without him? Be true to yourself.
Brilliant game and wonderful perf.
But I have long said that many players are basically THICK!
Witness GABRIEL, in the 91st minute with us 3-2 up andsdefending a lead He was openly arguring with Henderson for a fairly long time and get this; RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE REF!
TELL ME, IS THAT STUPID OR IS THAT MORE THAN STUPID!
Jon
for a long time now pool have bullied teams. He, Henderson is king of that and hats of to Gabriel for telling Henderson to do one.
Last season pool came to town, we played them off the park and we got done. From the moment they took the lead we turned in to boys and they grew as men.
The game was done and we didn’t have it in us to come back.
Today we stood tall, didn’t back off and we looked like the mature team and they looked like boys.
If that is part of the process to stand up and take no lip or prisoners then so be it.
Have to agree with you on this.
Our dominance in the 2’nd half turned Liverpool into a “Stoke like” team with dirty tackles and what have you.
It is important some of the few more “senior” players like Gabriel stand up and show, we aren’t going to take it.
I wholly agree with you. That is a more sensible approach than the unending hints at real test whatever that means. It is possible for Arsenal to beat Man City though it seems inconceivable for many people at the moment. I believe Man City will be beaten at some point in time. A lot of factors including injuries to some key players, fatigue or even overconfidence can cause a team to lose. I believe Arsenal can pip Man City to the title if it is our destiny this season. Who imagined that Leicester of all teams would win EPL? Even when they were beating all the big teams a lot of people continued to write them off thinking they would collapse at some stage. We all now know the rest is history.
Jon, we will find out. There is an allegation that Jordan Henderson verbally abused Gabriel with a racial epithet. It is currently being investigated. That is what you saw.
I am hugely impressed by this win. Well I was actually impressed last season when we faced Liverpool (we lost but in that match ,for the 1st time in 6years or thereabout Liverpool respected Arsenal ;I knew we were up to something great. Within that span 10 man arsenal also lost 2-1 to city with a late city goal. With 10 men Arsenal still played robust football ⚽ and you couldn’t tell they were a man down; on the foundation of these kind of performances this current team was built.
“Gotanidea” am sorry you really had no idea of the context to which this victory against Liverpool eludes to.
For the bare thought of you thinking arsenal can retain ball possession against Liverpool for 90min speaks volumes of the teams progress. Well that thought could only become reality in La la Land.
I expected Liverpool to have Thier spells , which they did. They overall had more possession but arsenal had more possession in the final 3rd and more shorts on 🎯 Target( 7) to pools (4). Not just the gameplay I was looking out for, but the teams mentality. And believe me mentality is a KEY factor that determines success. Mentality includes tangibles which you can see on the field and intangibles which is a collection of everything that happens outside the pitch. Arsenal did not concede any goal when Liverpool dominated but rather, conceded on the counter. The middle of the first half when Liverpool had possession, and where wining most duels arsenal kept their shape; I really liked this: when things are not going your way have mini-back up plan to mitigate ur opponent. It is ludicrous and Foolish to think Liverpool would take a trip down to the Emirates stadium to get dominated. “Gotanidea ” I am not calling you foolish but the idea is. Even Pep Guadiola(my mentor by the way) can not think of totally dominating Liverpool but understands that matches would be won at the different phrases of the game. Heck! Liverpool has made Guadiola to more defensive minded in thier current meetings and you think Arsenal will just dominate Pool for 90mins , “Gotanidea” you really “Havenoidea” .
At half time Arteta read the game well & communicated it to his players, hence they came out to play Liverpool without fear in the 2nd half.
When Liverpool equalized for both goals, the momentum shifted but Arsenal kept composure and took the game to Liverpool (I must say the lads have ice in Thier veins).
The Arsenal of before would have crumbled.
When Arsenal went 3-2 up ; they showed excellent game management to see out the game such that Liverpool had no way back in.
Truly this match was a test…..Gooners passed in flying colours
Using the boxing analogy ‘styles make fights’ Imho we match up better against City than against Liverpool which is why over recent seasons we have generally been more competitive in our matches against City e.g last January at the Emirates. So Halaand aside we should not fear them.
You damn right
Martinelli was rightly MOTM bit for me White and Tomiyasu were the unsung heroes. Huge games from both of them.
Great game, intense filled. Facing Liverpool without Mane 😩 a breath of fresh air, would have been a different ball game entirely. Kudos to the frontline for putting in the work, I wonder why odegaard can’t take a decision in the box, facing goal he should shoot more as against Fulham it worked. One game at a time, now unto Leeds. Gently cop those 3 points and take it one step at a time slowly but surely building consistency over time. Oh so proud to be a gunner times like this my weekend superb. Gabriel making rash decisions in some cases but what can I say, it happens as nobody is above mistake I hope he improves in that aspect. Partey is key going forward I can only pray he stays fit vital player he is in this system. Gabriel Jesus was massive sweat and blood. What a way to start the week!
That is the fundamental problem with Gabriel, he is not improving, and,sadly, I don’t believe he can.
The only reason Liverpool control the first half was because we scored first and let them have it..
Enjoy2 the moment..
Arsenal dominated Liverpool. I have no idea how many of the Liverpool fouls went unpunished. Tsimikas cynical elbowing of Saka and a brutal one against Jesus never warranted even a foul. Gomez came in for the hapless Trent and brutalise Martinelli throughout the second half. It appears this is Klopp’s tactics to subdue their opponents. Just like how Alex Ferguson and Mourinho used to do. This time we kept our cool and won convincingly.
May i knw why Liverpools 1st goal isnt checked for offside?
Fans/supporters only raise the refereeing decisions that supposedly go against their side, not those that help it!
Well done to the boys and the manager, didn’t manage to watch but fantastic result.
Looks like Liverpool should’ve cashed in on Salah when they had the chance and try and keep Mane. With ourselves, Chelsea, Spuds and United looking like they are doing well it will be interesting to see if Liverpool don’t even make top 4 this year.
PJ-SA, I believe it is a bit early to write off Liverpool FC, but there are concerns with their aging squad.
You missed a heck of a match PJSA – worth watching in full when you get the chance. I’m still trying to work out whether Tomi was brilliant or Salah was very poor – probably a little of each! I agree though that Mane was the man to keep. They say that manager’s cease to influence the same players over time. It may be that ageing midfield exposing their defence more or simply that new motivations are needed, but for me theyre struggling for top 4 this season.