We have Ramsdale’s acrobatics, Liverpool’s profligacy, and a lot of last-ditch defending to thank for a draw, gouged from a punishing trip to Anfield.
We started off with confidence and style, striding to a two-goal lead, but were pegged back, first before half-time by Salah and then late by a Firmino header.
Liverpool’s momentum grew after a set-to between Xhaka and Alexander, and never dissipated. Perhaps it’s easy to build up a head of steam when you have a referee stoking the engine. Throughout, there was a strange disparity between the threshold for a foul, depending on the shirt colour.
People on the outside have set Arsenal new obstacles all season, whether it was bouncing back from the first defeat or the Europa League schedule, losing Jesus for several months or coping with a tough run in the new year.
Here was the toughest single challenge, definitely since City at home, and maybe since the start of the season:
A trip to the formidable last redoubt of a dissolute army. A wounded rabble accustomed to humiliation everywhere—everywhere but Anfield, where the indignation is shriller than the whistle blown in their favour every couple of minutes
Before we showed up, Liverpool had not conceded a goal at home in 2023, and they have suffered only one defeat all season. They even rested their big boys for this one, seemingly happy to sacrifice a game away at Chelsea mid-week.
When things got started, it was less Sturm und Drang and more slump and droop. Liverpool didn’t know how much to commit to their press, and when they did, we were able to cut through them with two or three composed passes.
Our first break of this kind gave us our opener, when Saka caused mayhem by powering forward. The ball bounced around to Martinelli who dabbed it home.
Arsenal continued to look menacing after the goal. We found Saka in boundless space down the right and his cross was skewed just wide at the back post by Jesus.
Before the half-hour we were two-up. This time Martinelli took advantage of Liverpool’s loose structure after being invited to chase a ball down the left flank by Xhaka. He had time to cut back and pick out Jesus, whose downward header skipped past Alisson.
Liverpool had mustered a couple of chances in between, but had never been able to pin us back, as is their wont in home games. Turns out, all they needed was 50,000+ irate fans and a complaisant referee in Paul Tierney.
A few minutes before the break, Xhaka and Alexander-Arnold had a tiff about something, and this seemed to get the crowd going. For the rest of the game we were heading away corners, blasting goal-kicks up for Van Dijk to win, and scurrying leftwards to try to close the space exploited by Salah.
Their first goal was kind of fortunate, with the ball stabbed across the box blindly by Henderson. Salah stole in to turn it home, but it looked like it rebounded off his shins as Gabriel tried to clear.
The second half was a 51-minute assault. Heavy Metal football as they call it, but with Paul Tierney on the drums. It’s tough to clear your lines when the person receiving the ball is manhandled, and it’s hard to win a duel when your shirt is being pulled, almost every single time.
Conversely, it must be a doddle gambling on the transitions when the initiative is being handed to you by the ref time after time.
In this fashion Liverpool’s pressure built to unbearable levels. Some time early in the first half we dealt with one of what felt like a hundred corners. Jota was first to the ball, running away from goal before suffering some kind of seizure, locking up and collapsing at the feet of a perplexed Rob Holding. The result was a gift of a penalty, with love from Paul to ‘Pool.
Justice was done when Salah scuffed the penalty wide, but Liverpool’s Tierney-driven momentum continued to build. Summing up that impunity, Konate went straight through Xhaka with studs showing. No card. No foul in fact, and it sparked another Liverpool attack.
The few times we were able to negotiate their press, we looked dangerous, but our decision-making was foggy, dulled no doubt by constant firefighting.
In the last half-hour they managed to bundle through our backline more frequently, forcing Ramsdale into a succession of ever more astonishing saves. He clawed away a Salah strike, and plunged to halt Darwin, who had been unleashed when Klopp sent on all of the strikers.
The frustrating thing about the equalizer was that we had just started to give Liverpool something to worry about, especially with overloads down the left. A couple of minutes before Liverpool’s goal, Gabriel had a free header from a corner, directed straight at Alisson.
Also frustrating is that Zinchenko got done so easily by Alexander-Arnold, who had all the time he needed to scoop it to Firmino unmarked.
The onslaught continued, but not without reply. Tierney dragged a shot wide, and Martinelli over-hit a simple pass to set Saka clear. Well, it would have been simple if he hadn’t needed to spend the whole match switched on and sprinting back towards our goal.
At our end, Ramsdale pulled off a scarcely believable save from a deflected strike, and Konate miscued with the goal gaping. Maybe he’d have made better contact if Xhaka’s shin had been in the way.
Arteta claimed it was two points dropped. Possibly, but a draw is a creditable result when you’re facing the 2019-20 version of Liverpool, with 2019-20 refereeing. Truly, there’s nowhere quite like fortress Anfield, as the other big sides have discovered this season. Birdkamp.
Positively Arsenal 
.
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I think it’s fair to say we lost composure after letting in the first scruffy/lucky goal. We went from dominating for 40 minutes to being dominated for 55. In the end it was a miracle we didn’t lose.
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Terrific blog again Birdkamp btw.
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Nice work Bird, as always!
It was one heck of a wind-up game? It took me hours to calm down, ( calm down, clam down).I nearly had a fight with the sofa afterwards, but I knew I’d lose.
Trouble is that its easy to feel an instant knee-jerk reaction and think we’ve thrown the league away, but as my wife said last night, we shall see, and the season has thrown up lost of oddball results so far. At this moment we haven’t thrown anything away either. Ok, its not as secure as we would like for sure, but what to do? Keep on keepin’ on!
Perhaps it was a game that had been built up into something bigger than it was(certainly in my bonce) and that can put all sorts of extraneous pressure on? Chant No1?
But we are still the best team in the league, better than City or the Toon-at this moment, and all on 25p less.
Maybe its just better to have got it out of the way, the fear of Liverpool at Anfield, where we’ve only won once ever and that was in 89. I reckon we will give City an Newcastle a run for their arrogance for sure. For sure? Well I hope so!
If Robertson was playing for Fulham against ManUre would he have been sent off and banned for 1,000 games? Saka yellow card was one massive pile of bs, and the whole game was reffed with a high standard of hypocrisy (imo). The mini scrap with official No4 is a yellow and walking to take a corner is a yellow. Custards yellow too.
Sometimes I feel Liverpool are one heck of a conceited team?
It hurts we didnt win, and yet we are all glad for the magic gloves of Ramsdale.
Anyway: COYG!
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Do you believe that Arsenal players never hold onto opponents’ shirts or do not drop like being shot when an opponent gets near to them?
Please, be realistic.
Martinelli fell to the ground holding his face, Kane style, when the replay showed that he had barely been touched, if at all.
The ref kept the game moving and did not stop it for minor infringements on both sides.
VAR was not called upon once (unless it had taken a holiday). Does that not say anything about the refereeing?
Please stop this continuous moaning about the referees. That you continue to do so belittles yourself and ignores the good qualities of the game.
We did not win because we were simply not good enough.
How many saves like Ramsdale had to make did Allerson have to make?
Perhaps being shown reality will buck our players a bit, so that they remember that you win games by scoring goals and not conceding them, not by passing the ball between defenders.
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Another great review BK, however I was a little disappointed you mention the Xhaka/AA incident as the media are making it significant and it had absolutely nothing to do with the rest of the game, pool had had chances before then and it was the poor defending for the goal that got the crowd going again.
If we do mention the incident then Xhaka should of booked for the initial challenge but retaliation off the ball has always been a red aka Beckham in the world cup.
Apparently Liverpool were suddenly awesome in the second half but we came out playing several yards deeper and we were putting no pressure on their back for, the forward press had gone and when we did it was only with a couple of players an it was ineffective.
Actually we done a Conte and retracted into our own half and just relied on the counter. Again when we did counter we didn’t commit enough players.
Mikel has always been criticized for late substitutions and again ten minutes after half time you could see we were struggling but no subs came and no change of shape.
Even after the penalty no change, Liverpool subs came on still no change.
In a game where possession is becoming more and more important our two forward Brazilians, who like to dribble more than pass, were becoming a liability.
When our subs finally came they were probably considered defensive when Mikel said before the game he was going to be positive and take the game to them.
Personally I think their defence looked suspect and the best form of defense is attack. Basically we could just of outscored them.
However at the end of the day it is a good result and before the game many would of taken a point. It just means we need to get a result at city….oh a win the rest of our games.
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Thanks Mils and PG. League is looking a little slimmer now—chased by a blank-cheque super-team with a goal-sh*tting cyborg, and with two horrible away trips still to come. No conclusions to be drawn just yet though.
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Thanks Ian, this was written within an hour of the game finishing, without revisiting it. While Liverpool had a couple of chances earlier in the half, I felt that the pressure and volume increased greatly after that incident. I don’t think Xhaka did much wrong, and he had been at the heart of our best stuff. Definitely don’t blame him.
Sitting deeper is OK by me in a tough away match like that. I think I was most disappointed by the lack of patience and composure. Throughout the game we showed that a couple of measured passes in deep midfield could totally unbalance them, but—as we became more jaded—we resorted to Hollywood balls over the top and long restarts from the GK.
Also folded into that, I thought Jesus was on the wrong end of a few decisions as he tried to hold up the ball, and this would have alleviated some of the pressure.
It’s frustrating that they were there for the taking, but I’m grateful it wasn’t worse. And then on reflection a draw at Anfield is objectively a good result.
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Agreed ref had home(Liverpool bias), Saka getting booked for walking, Benny Blanco tackle that got him booked was not as reckless as kuonates on Xhaka with no booking, all the Liverpool players that went in strong on Saka from Robertson, Henderson fabinio only one booked was fabinio, yeah the ref let a lot slide on their side.
Still a very good performance from the team considering how strong pool are at home.
Thought Mikel was slow to make changes but I could see why he resisted for so long and they scored after trossard and kiwor came on.
It easier to say with hindsight Zinchenko should have come off earlier but a point is a good result at Anfield.
What ever happens now till the end of the season Arteta and the lads have exceeded my expectations, I couldn’t watch a game last season as most of the football was crap, yesterday’s game was as good as anything I seen in the last 5 yrs or so.
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‘You have not heard from me for sone time as my interest in the team and blogging has been waining.’
Arsenal draw a game after a run of straight wins.
I suppose so much depends on how much you believe in coincidence.
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I wonder why you comment on me and your suggestions about my intentions, rather than on the substance of what I said,
I told you the reason why I have not shown that much interest in blogging, so that should not be an excuse for a snide comment.
The main theme of my contributions relates to the constant and repeated blaming of the refs which I am sure is given as an excuse or a reason for the draw,
If I have looked at the blog and this is the only one that I have really looked at over the months, I have not felt the need to comment, especially as they have usually been after wins and the repeated mantra of the ref, the ref, has not been at the forefront.
Here we have a good start to a performance followed by the exact opposite and an excuse/reason given for it is once again the ref, when in my view it was because we were simply not good enough.
A team aspiring to be champions of the Premier League should not shut up shop and fall back even if it is 2 up, against a team that has not let in a goal at home in 2023 and who we have not beaten at their ground for 11 years.
Then to blame Xhaka, as the article in the Times did this morning is another case of not seeing the wood for the trees.
Would anyone in their right mind think that had Xhaka not had that set to with Robertson the Liverpool fans and players would have just made no efforts to retrieve the situation?
Such nonsense is why I have not been reading the newspaper reports or watching highlights.
If I can see a game, I will watch it if I can. If I can’t, I will be happy with the score and the occasional look here.
I stopped looking at other blogs because their contributors persisted in insulting people whose views they did not like.
Perhaps I will have to give this one a miss for the same reason.
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Thank you BK
For me this was one of those close contests where defensive power in the subs bench was missed. holding onto a lead in a draining battle away from home with a heavily tilting or tilted official and with Saliba Tommy and Elneny all out there were no like for like replacements available but for a rookie CB to help out or swap the super tired/fatigued FBs from 70 mins onwards.
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Thanks Gee, not sure on what the consensus is about the officiating, but don’t mind directing my frustration towards Paul Tierney, deserved or not.
Not here to be even-handed, after all!
Cheers FP. Tomiyasu would have been great. Actually, had it been Holding dropping into a three with Saliba and Gabriel, we might have looked a bit safer, I dunno. Clearly, our injuries this season have been ultra-focussed. Where it was attack for months, it’s now defence, including Elneny.
They play with more width than anyone, and it’s likely that a fit Tomyasu would have replaced Zinchenko bit earlier than Tierney, whom Arteta doesn’t seem to trust as much. FB something to address in the summer because I agree that there was no reason not to make a change a lot earlier.
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Jig, I agree with alot of what you say however I and many others have been complaining about PIGMOL win, lose or draw for many years.
While our poor second half performance and late subs are the main reason for the result the poor standard of officiating cannot be ignored in our game as in any other.
Every week in every game there are some disgraceful decisions just look at the Brighton game and the fact PIGMOL can’t work a simple piece of technology and keep having to give official apologies is testament itself they are either incompetent or corrupt.
Personally I like reading your opinion so please keep posting on here as this is probably the most honest site in the ARSENAL hemisphere and the conflicting opinions are a positive not a negative.
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Just to confirm that the subs issue is not in hindsight, we have been saying it since Mikel first rocked up.
Apart from making subs very late he also tends to make like for like on most, not all but most, occasions.
I thought we brought Jorginho for these very such games, hard to get past, cool under pressure and has the experience of seeing it all.
If we were to sit, soak up pressure then counter wouldn’t a Xhaka, Partey and Jorginho midfield been the hardest to get past and more likely to retain possession in difficult circumstances, something we never did the whole of the second half.
In a cauldron like Anfield was a young , all be it talented, CB the best idea when the team was struggling. It seemed unfair on the player and the team.
If we needed three CBs then surely Ben going in to a five would of been better. We have lots of players who can’t fill in at full back for half a game.
I know none of us are managers just observers but it just seemed we capitulated not in spirit but in tactics.
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@ianspace2014 I don’t disagree with you and think it is reasonable to have wanted the subs earlier than they appeared.
if you don’t win the game then of course the tactics, strategies and changes will be scrutinised.
Mikel and the team can always learn and improve so hopefully that happens as they go.
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Again it’s not just when we don’t get the right result, I think he has made the same mistakes when we have won games.
Eddie was massively underplayed before he was needed and Reiss is probably suffering the same fate this year.
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Click like on your 7.48pm post Ian. Great observations, especially re J20.
COYG!
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Contributors have been complaining about Arteta’s poor use of substitutions since he came almost as much as they have been blaming the refs.
The sign of a good, even a great manager is how he manages his resources and is able to think on his feet as the game continues.
it is clear to me that he brought on the Polish defender in order to pack the defence, ignoring the fact that the Liverpool attacking machine, when it gets going, and it was certainly in full swing, can batter any defence, especially one where it has been bolstered by an inexperienced player.
Now he has Trossard, his choice, we can expect Eddie and Reiss, not his choices, to disappear out of sight again.
He always favours “his” purchases over those who were not, except where he had to, as was the case with Saka, Saliba and Martinelli.
I expect that when Martinelli goes off the boil, he will also disappear from view, to be replaced by Trossard.
How often have our substitutions made a difference? Almost never.
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JJ
you are contradicting yourself as excuses for referees were not made (not by me at least) after defeats or draws but this season before said fixtures were made like on Sunday.
In fact Shotta wrote a website/blog in advance of the pgmob var boondoggle : read it and weep mate!
If you show with your own comments that you have not read the comments here before the match whilst stating you have been reading then most readers will simply assume that you a) misread, b)can’t read or c) are a troll who knows the history of the Tottenham
Doesn’t take much here for most here to be critical of Arteta. Just ask George!
But whatever you do, don’t ask him about The history of the Tottenham.
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Arsenal u18’s will face West Ham United in the FA Youth Cup final at Emirates Stadium on Tuesday, April 25 at 7pm.
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nketiah is back in full training, and its reported that Saliba is close to a return, afc said to be taking extra time with saliba’s return to guard against any set back with his back injury
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Good to see our opponents, west ham, playing away in Europe tonight and maybe we can take advantage with a fast start and getting them knackered for the second half.
With just eight games to go we need to get all the advantages we can especially with the metropolitan police joining the various armies against us.
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Any of you guys like the film “Peanut Butter falcon?”
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The old Footnmouth pulled off a great win today! And the Toon showing that as tight cheeked as they are, they too are beatable…can and Leicester perform wonders today?
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Well let’s hope it doesn’t go to goal difference.
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Good to see and Leicester putting up a fight. Seem to recall Vardy saying nothing was happening at Arsenal.
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Agreed. It could have been 3-3.
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if Arsenal win tomorrow we celebrate st totteringham day with 7 games to play
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4pts required for a top 4 finish
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Is there any way we could get a bonus point tomorrow
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Well it’s down to three points and we still have to play city
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The Unai Emery situation at Villa is very interesting. Should Arsenal have given him more time? I feel that he was in the wrong place at the wrong time. He has of course gained more experience since being at Arsenal but he has done quite a job at Villa so far.
There was of course many things wrong at Arsenal and maybe he didn’t have the toughness that was required, although many do not like that aspect of Arteta’s reign.
It does demonstrate though how complex it is to find the right manager, at the right time to return a club to winning ways.
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BB, yeah, reckon everybody came away a bit wiser from his time at Arsenal. Looking back, even given the timing, the turmoil behind the scenes, and some strange recruitment, I think he’s the wrong profile for us.
Still, I have no idea what the right call would have been. Arteta arriving in 2018 could have gone very badly. There’s a chance he might not have survived it.
Villa is a much better match for Emery. Fair to say he thrives at clubs where he can be an underdog? I don’t think that’s Arsenal.
Of course, what’s happening this season could also be a Conte-style honeymoon. We had something similar in those first months under Emery, but maybe without playing as well as Villa have done recently.
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There’s an article in the daily mail no less celebrating the (former) scouts who developed Saka & Martinelli – was always a fan of Steve Morrow. Any player who wins a cup for the Gunners reaches eternal hero levels and Holding and Xhaka have two already!
Zinchenko out the squad? I suspect that even if not injured or out that as in the Home fixture Tierney would’ve started. Arteta knows his old coach better then most.
Lots of attacking talent on the bench less power to help replace tiring legs and shut out a lead,
In the last decade the Olympic stadium has seen signature performances on the journey for the Arteta (player) & Alexis era cup winning squads: the two backheeled goals by Cazorla & the Alexis hat trick.
COYG
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< correction:
Cazorla & Giroud!
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Cazorla plus Giroud
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Although I totally agree with the mantra take every game as it comes going into the city game nine points clear is a necessity to put pressure on city and meaning a draw at city would be huge.
At the moment the pressure is on us but in that scenario the pressure would be city.
On the game today we need to dent their confidence then screw them into the ground COYG
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Ramsdale, White, Holding, Gabriel, Tierney, Partey, Xhaka, Odegaard, Saka, Jesus, Martinelli
Subs: Turner, Smith Rowe, Kiwior, Trossard, Jorginho, Vieira, Nelson, Walters, Nketiah
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2-0 to the Arsenal
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Jesus and Odegaard with the goals
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fucks sake, a penalty to West Ham, we have been in total domination mode, and in a game we should be going for the jugular and getting our goal difference up, and a bit of slack play and we let them back into the game
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2-1, AFC need to step it up and snuff out any thought of a hammers comeback
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west ham with the bit between their teeth
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HT: West Ham 1-2 Arsenal
Jesus and Odegaard scored to put us in cruise control, sadly our lads took the cruising too far and let west ham back into it, and have struggled to impose ourselves since. Half time was needed by us, hopefully we up it big time in the second half, this was a game, at 2-0 we should have been going all out to massively improve our goal difference, but now its a struggle. We have to score the next goal.
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Sort of oddly disappointing. But of Arteta has often bucked the lads up at HT. …
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Would it be worth giving J20 a run out?
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penalty to arsenal, var will check it
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Saka hits it wide, for fucks sake
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making things hard for ourselves?
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great.
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