Arsenal Left Adrift After Liverpool Draw
Arsenal's chances in the Premier League title race seem to be slipping away as they threw the lead twice in a 2-2 draw against Liverpool at the Emirates on Sunday. Mikel Arteta's team, having finished runners-up to Manchester City for the last two seasons, now find themselves five points behind Pep Guardiola's squad.
Arsenal's lead was established early, ninth-minute to be exact, when Bukayo Saka outplayed Liverpool full-back Andrew Robertson to score. The Gunners' lead was restored by a 43rd-minute header from Mikel Merino, despite an equalising 17-minute goal from Liverpool's Virgil van Dijk. However, Mohamed Salah's 81st-minute equaliser finally secured a draw for Liverpool.
The already disappointing day for Arsenal was further marred by a suspected knee injury Gabriel Magalhães, forcing him to limp out of the game at 54 minutes.
Despite being the stronger and more creative team, Arsenal couldn't secure a win, letting Liverpool emerge with a draw that keeps them ahead in the race to catch Manchester City at the top of the league table.
Certainly, for Arsenal, the absence of regular defender William Saliba due to a previous red card, required a new strategy for reshuffling the defence line. This hiccup in defence saw Ben White partnering with Gabriel at centre-back and the addition of midfielder Thomas Partey on right-back and Jurriën Timber on the left, recovering from a muscular issue.
On the other hand, Liverpool's manager, Arne Slot found the resilience of his team tested, and passed, in the face of such a strong opponent. Operating with a disciplined 4-3-3 formation and key defensive players, Slot's team may not have the magic of Klopp's previous team, but after nine games under their belt, they stand firm in the second spot in the table and trail Manchester City by just one point.
