There is no other league that can create utter chaos, at least consistently, as the Premier League can with yesterday’s 2-2 draw between Liverpool and Arsenal at Anfield. It begins with end-to-end action, with two teams clashing with each other for various durations of the game. which is then mixed with a combination of noise and The two lend a desperation to almost every action on the field that leaves every fan who watches with their hands on their knees when it’s over. If Italy Spain, or Germany want to know what lies at the core of both the popularity and a stratospheric ascent above the Premier League Financially, that’s all.
What the 2-2 draw means for Arsenal and their still-miraculous title chase, where they have been for years, remains in the eyes of the beholder. In fact, he dominated the conversation after the final whistle. Is The draw is taking place at Anfield There’s always a good result, or it’s always disappointing Throw Distant 2-0 lead anywhere, Pmaybe both.
What is undeniable is that without Aaron Ramsdale in injury time, Arsenal would have had none of this debate, as they would have been left with nothing and would certainly have handed the initiative to Manchester City.
The second save is the one that received the most fanfare, given how certain Ibrahim Konate looked to score and his proximity to the goal line. But the first against Mo Salah is more impressive, as Konate’s awkward finish gives Ramsdale a chance. Salah’s save about made everything difficult, given that he was going for the corner anyway, it was going through players, and it took a deflection that only took it away from Ramsdale and sent him Given even less time to react. it’s world class, Without both, Arsenal are probably in full blown trouble.
And they will be there with their hands. For the first 40 minutes, Arsenal looked as good as they have been all season. They strangle Liverpool, giving them the same “typewriter” that your older brothers used to torment you with. He along with Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli cut down the limbs of both Liverpool fullbacks, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andrew Robertson using his usual slingshot method of movement – moving wider and wider until the right moment to cut inside. Doesn’t come to messing through and acres. The space he plays between opposing fullbacks and centrebacks. When he had the ball, when he moved Oleksandr Zinchenko into midfield, he essentially had four against three there, and two of Liverpool’s three were Jordan Henderson and Fabinho, two players who have been spitting oil since August. and making a strange noise. A Robertson shot wide of the post while Liverpool were originally 2–0 down. The crowd was silent if not outright rebellion. It looked easy for Arsenal.
I was big then, I’m younger now
But even though this is the new armoury, possibly superseding the old armoury, there are still traces of later erasures in the former. Arsenal just had to keep the ball, which Liverpool really couldn’t do much about, couldn’t do anything stupid, and find a third goal when Liverpool went too far and Virgil van Dijk was at the zoo. had left for his regular visit. Season.
And they couldn’t do that. For reasons known only to him, as is always the case, Granite Plinth When Granite Plinth, and decided to grapple with Alexander-Arnold. It smacked of a player who still didn’t know how to deal with his team’s dominance, and it woke Liverpool and, perhaps more importantly, the Anfield crowd, into a tizzy. As lousy as the Reds have been this season, there are still few teams on the planet who would want to face an entirely bedraggled Anfield. Within minutes, Liverpool had a goal and Speed.
Halftime might have calmed things down if the referee’s assistant hadn’t decided Chris Pronger Robertson (What?) Which only kept up the ruckus during the break. Only in England.
As good as Arsenal were in the first half, they were just as good in the second half. Liverpool took a page from their book, and City moved with the ball to Alexander-Arnold in midfield. With Xhaka and Thomas Partey dropping so deeply back, it would require one of the world’s best passers of all time to separate them. When Thiago was introduced, it only got worse for Arsenal. from both sides They were being shelled and never got close enough to either Alexander-Arnold or Thiago.
And if Salah hadn’t basically worn out the entire match, he probably would have lost and lost badly. Salah not only missed the penalty for the second time, but He could not get a shot on target (he had 10 shots!) until the last shot was saved by Ramsdale. If you want some idea of what has happened to Liverpool this season, you only have to look at Van Dijk wandering in the first half as if he had lost his phone or Salah not scoring four goals, With the kind of opportunities he used to bury. a great starting point. As wonderful a manager as Klopp is, and the way they functioned as a team, there was an element of individual brilliance that covered all the cracks, a la triangle offense only working if Jordan or Kobe picked up the pieces. Used to be for. They just don’t have it, and the results are there for all to see.
Nevertheless, Salah missed the penalty and Ramsdale’s saves are the kind of moments when teams look back and see the margins on which trophies were collected and lost. Going from a win to a draw means Arsenal need at least a draw at City at the end of the month. Given how many teams are in the relegation fight, no one has a free pass to run-in, so most weeks both teams will be seeing an opponent with something on the line.
The scary thing for Arsenal is that every time City basically had to be perfect in the run-in to claim the title, last season and in 2019, they were (rave, rave). But thanks to Ramsdale, Arsenal will still allow City to do just that.
To follow along as Sam still tries to come to grips with his enjoyment of watching Arsenal, follow him on Twitter @felsgate,