Thrilling Liverpool deal Arsene Wenger another low
Liverpool were magnificent, dynamic, direct, and clinical. In Mohamed Salah, the Chelsea ‘reject’ signed from Roma this summer, they have an attacker with the potential to be one of the Premier League’s most thrilling imports.
But goals from him, Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane, and substitute Daniel Sturridge will be washed aside in the analysis of this Anfield massacre and focus, instead, will turn on an Arsenal side that so far this season has conceded three in beating Leicester, lost at Stoke and now produced… this.
The third goal summed up Arsenal’s misery, Liverpool’s mastery, and came direct from an Arsenal corner headed out of the home penalty area.
Hector Bellerin misjudged the bounce terribly, some 20 yards inside the opposition half, allowing the electrifying Salah to head it beyond him and spark a foot race in which there was only ever going to be one winner.
Salah showed great control and poise, not to mention pace, to advance and slot the ball past the diving Petr Cech from 15 yards.
How often does an elite team concede from their own corners? Not often, but then Arsenal had already managed to gift Liverpool a second goal from another promising attacking position of their own, on 39 minutes.
The impressive young Liverpool full-back Joe Gomez broke up that particular attack with Emre Can and Roberto Firmino leading the charge from one penalty area to the other.
The ball ended up at the feet of Sadio Mane who nonchalantly cut into the Arsenal area before curling an unstoppable finish beyond the last defender Rob Holding and the diving Cech.
It had looked as though this would be a trying afternoon for Wenger well before kick-off, when he announced a line-up that saw him relegate club record signing Alexandre Lacazette to the bench to recall Alexis Sanchez for his first outing since the FA Cup final in May.
But, arguably more mystifying, was Wenger’s choice to persist with his system of playing three at the back. The 21-year-old Holding was left out at Stoke last week because the manager was concerned about his confidence.
After this showing, one of the country’s most promising young defenders could be in therapy for years, given the manner in which he was harried, pulled out of position and handed the harshest of football lessons by a rampant Liverpool.
Yet Arsenal could, and should, have drawn first blood as Sanchez darted forward and slipped through a pass for Welbeck who, under pressure from Gomez, could only hook his shot over the Liverpool goal after seven minutes.
A lead there and, perhaps, events might have unfolded differently. After all, Jurgen Klopp had taken a big gamble of his own in leaving first choice goalkeeper Simon Mignolet out of his squad completely and calling up German understudy Loris Karius.
The 24-year-old hardly set the world alight in his debut season and, last night, his kicking was the source of the few moments of anxiety that Liverpool had to endure, with the German repeatedly being hurried into near-errors. An Arsenal lead would have been a serious test of his and Anfield’s nerves.
But that would be nothing more than wishful thinking for Wenger and the Arsenal fans who would end the day by belting out their familiar refrains for him to be axed.
Cech scurried across his goal brilliantly, as Salah looked certain to convert Can’s far-post cross after 10 minutes but six minutes later Liverpool were deservedly ahead.
Young Gomez started his storming afternoon with a right-wing cross that picked out the run of Firmino who had ghosted between Holding and Laurent Koscielny far too easily to head in from six yards.
Jordan Henderson should have added to that lead soon after when Firmino played him clean through on Cech and Salah cut in from the right to test the keeper with a shot that he kept out, but almost presented the rebound to Firmino in the process.
Arsenal were marginally better immediately after the restart, although Wenger could have done far more than take off Aaron Ramsey, replaced by the more defensive Francis Coquelin, at the interval. Quite how the hopeless Mesut Ozil managed to survive the half-time cull is anyone’s guess.
But it did not take long for Liverpool to revert to the first half pattern — Can flicking Salah’s free-kick just wide, Salah racing clear and curling a shot wide and, after the hosts had scored a third, Mane would have grabbed a fourth but for Cech’s excellence.
The fourth goal did come, eventually, for Sturridge, who rose to meet Salah’s far post cross after another telling Can contribution. The scoreline did not at all flatter the hosts.
Karius 5; Gomez 8, Matip 7, Lovren 7, Moreno 7; Can 8 (Grujic 83), Henderson 6, Wijnaldum 6; Salah 9, Firmino 8 (Milner 80), Mane 8 (Sturridge 73, 6).
Klavan, Solanke, Ward, Alexander-Arnold.
Cech 7; Holding 4, Koscielny 5, Monreal 6; Xhaka 5; Oxlade-Chamberlain 7 (Lacazette 62, 6), Ozil 4, Ramsey 5 (Coquelin 45, 6), Sanchez 5 (Giroud 62, 6), Bellerin 5; Welbeck 5.
Ospina, Walcott, Mustafi, Kolasinac.
C Pawson 7
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
