Liverpool suffered another Premier League home defeat as Arsenal secured a 1-0 victory at Anfield on Sunday afternoon. Kai Havertz scored the only goal of the match on 16 minutes, with the Reds dominating possession but failing to register a single shot on target, although Florian Wirtz did hit the crossbar.
The result means Andoni Iraola's side missed the chance to move back into the top four and saw their five-game winning run come to an end in tedious fashion.
Defensive Struggles and Midfield Bright Spot
Alisson Becker was rated 5/10 after scrambling to make one save in the first half, but a poor pass out of the back prompted the opener. He did make a decent stop from Christos Tzolis after the break.
Ronald Araujo received 6/10, rousing the crowd with two meaty challenges before the interval but unable to offer quality going forward. Arsenal began to find gaps in behind the Uruguayan in the final quarter, and he was substituted.
Jeremy Jacquet earned 7/10 for keeping his composure against the different test of Havertz, including one brilliant piece of defending after the interval. Virgil van Dijk also scored 6/10, attempting to get Liverpool going from the back with searching passes before the break but stretched defensively on occasion.
Attacking Frustrations and Key Performances
Milos Kerkez was one of two players rated 5/10, with too many crosses finding an Arsenal head and a difficult time against Noni Madueke, though his effort was not faulted. He was booked and substituted.
Trey Nyoni also scored 6/10 on his first Premier League start, possibly fortunate not to be censured more severely for two early challenges, but certainly not overawed. He was substituted.
Alexis Mac Allister was easily Liverpool's best player with 8/10, strong in the challenge and seeking to find gaps in and behind the Arsenal defence, sending a header just over towards the interval. He was booked.
Second-Half Substitutions
Cody Gakpo scored 6/10, starting on the right and taking a while to get going, though his pressing and running began to make inroads before fewer openings in the second half. Florian Wirtz also received 6/10, flitting in and out of the game but continuing to work to find spaces, with one pass releasing Isak for a shot.
Bradley Barcola was rated 6/10, should have done better with an early opening but caused Arsenal issues before the interval with direct running down the left, yet unable to make much impact in the second half and booked. Alexander Isak also scored 6/10, subdued in the opening exchanges but then almost on the end of a Van Dijk header and off target with two other efforts, and should have had a penalty when clearly tugged by Timber.
Among the substitutes, Dominik Szoboszlai (for Nyoni 58) scored 6/10 with a couple of strong runs on his return to action, and Rio Ngumoha (for Gakpo 67) also scored 6/10 but didn't really get much out of the Arsenal defence. Kostas Tsimikas (for Kerkez 81) had not much impact, Victor Munoz (for Araujo 81) tried a few runs down the right from full-back, and Lewis Koumas (for Wirtz 81) saw his effort go unrewarded.
