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Key events
20 min “What if someone said, ‘henceforth there will be no more end ofs. End of’?” wonders Joshua Keeling. “Then you couldn’t use it anymore…”
Interesting proposition. Tell you what, how about we just switch the internet off for the next five years and let society do a reset?
17 min On Sky Sports, Peter Drury asks Gary Neville how he would play against Bukayo Saka. “Very difficult,” says Neville.
In other news, here’s a video from a popular dopamine factory called YouTube.
16 min Timber’s dangerous header back across goal is crucially cleared by the off-balance Van Dijk. Moments later, Saka produces some magic in a phonebox to beat Mac Allister, and get to the byline in the area. He stabs the ball back but it’s slightly behind Zubimendi at the near post and Liverpool clear.
15 min The stats say Arsenal have had 55 per cent possession but it feels closer to 70.
Stats and feels, forever in opposition.
14 min “I’m not an Arsenal fan, I’ll get that in early,” says Joshua Keeling. “I just want to say I don’t really get the Gyokeres debate. He’s class. End of.”
Imagine how much better life would be if the phrase ‘end of’ was taken literally. Every time somebody uses it, that’s it – the subject is off limits forever more. No more discussion, no more arguments, no more volanic takes, no more end ofs.
I feel calmer just thinking about it.
12 min Liverpool break from an Arsenal corner until Wirtz is pulled back by Trossard. He’s booked.
10 min A peripheral-vision header down from Gyokeres finds Trossard in space, 22 yards out. He mishits a shot into the ground and Konate heads clear.
10 min Liverpool’s plan is to use the pace of Gakpo and Frimpong in wide positions. But so far they haven’t been able to do that at all, with Arsenal pinning them back for the majority of the first 10 minutes.
8 min “Regarding the weather,” begins Ian Copestake, “the southerners and their northern guests will be enduring, I do hope future winter strips include a onesie.”
Masculinity RIP. Some players are even wearing gloves tonight.
7 min Nothing to report. Arsenal are making the running but so far Liverpool have kept them at arm’s length.
5 min “The weird thing about the non-centre-forward fear tonight is that the curious case of the non-centre-forward is how Liverpool won the league,” writes Paul Griffin. “Darwin Nunez just wasn’t very good, so Luis Diaz played there a lot, doing a lot of Sun Ra difficult jazz movement and very little trad jazz knock-it-up-to-the big-man-business at all.
“The solution to this title-winning non problem was to buy two centre forwards, one of whom admittedly does quite a lot of Eric Dolphy weird jazz. I’m not sure the club does needed to drop £200m to fix the aforementioned non problem, especially when they could have paid me £100,000 a week not to be a centre forward. In fact my agent says I’ll do it for £12. And some Bisto.”
So that’s Paul Griffin up front at one end and Charles Antaki at the other. And is that Gary Naylor I can see patrolling the centre of midfield like a marginally less attractive Pirlo?
4 min It’s a truly disgusting night at the Emirates, John Cusack weather. On Sky Sports, Gary Neville suggests a combination of the wind and rain may preclude a free-flowing contest.
3 min “Give the Liverpool warm-up top a break,” says Justin Kavanagh. “When your team is so dull that even their own coach can’t defend their adrenaline-draining football, you need a bit of colour somewhere in the mix. Remember the great ‘1-0 to the Arsenal’ team’s bruised banana kit back in the early 90s? Dog’s vomit, maybe, comes closest to a marketing description.”
2 min Liverpool have started with Gakpo on the left and Wirtz and Szoboszlai as a pair of false nines in a 4-2-4-0 formation. That’s the system that worked so well when they won at the Etihad last season, with Szoboszlai and Curtis Jones as the false nines.
1 min Liverpool kick off from right to left as we watch. Arsenal have waited 22 years to win their 14th league title; a win today would bring it tantalisingly close.
“I’m glad to see Zubimendi is playing tonight,” writes Peadar de Búrca. “I got an earful from a Spanish friend who was visiting over Christmas for not pronouncing the ‘Z’ in Zaragoza as ‘Th’. Everytime I introduced her to my friends and told them where she came from, she shot me daggers, much like I used to when my mother would proclaim, ‘I don’t like that Alec Ferguson fella…’
“Funny thing is, she’s a big Coronation Street fan and Roy Barraclough, the scheming landlord from the Rovers Return was always ‘Alex Gilroy’ to her. Ay up cock and happy new year!”
“The Liverpool warmup top,” begins Peter Oh, “looks like the result of opening up a tub of raspberry yoghurt that’s been sitting out too long.”
Flip that’s just reminded me of something. Be back in fridge minutes.
Mikel Arteta’s pre-match thoughts
[Have last night’s results made this an even bigger game?] We can only focus on what we have to do.
Let me ask you a question, Patrick: have you read about Harry Brook? What a shocker. The night before a game!Creating an amazing atmosphere and energy is really helpful. The margins are always small in these games so anything we can add is really important.
Liverpool are very dangerous. The line-up gives you a clear idea of what they want to do; it’s very different to what they did aginast Fulham. We have to make sure we know what to do.
“Arsenal have been annoyingly composed and consistent over the winter holidays and into the new year,” writes Peter Oh, “but I’m an optimist and haven’t given up hope of an imminent ‘Oh Arsenal!’ extended dip in form.
“Preferably starting today.”
Does this email constitute nominative fatalism?
Three-eights of the Spanish midfield
Jonathan O’Malley has written in again to explain the comment that whooshed straight over my big bald head.
Commentating on the Brugge v Arsenal game, Martin Keown reckoned that Arsenal were benefitting from having three quarters of the Spanish midfield with Merino and Zubimendi, which immediately impressed on me the importance of ruthless precision and accidental comedy for those hoping to make it at the business end of the #punditry game.
Niche, but somehow I thought you’d appreciate it. If you’re explaining, etc.
Ed Aarons
Mikel Arteta has challenged his strikers to score more than 20 goals in a season and backed Viktor Gyökeres as the Premier League leaders prepare to face Liverpool.
The Sweden striker is the club’s joint-top scorer in the league with Leandro Trossard on five. No Arsenal player has passed the 20-goal mark in the league since Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang managed 22 in the 2019-20 season, Arteta’s first in charge.
Gyökeres has not scored from open play since the 2-0 win at Burnley at the start of November and Arsenal are on course to set a Premier League record if they win the title. Chelsea’s Frank Lampard in 2004-05 and Manchester City’s Ilkay Gündogan in 2020-21 are tied on 13 as the lowest top scorers in a team crowned champions. Dennis Bergkamp holds that record for Arsenal with 16 in 1997-98.
Arteta was asked whether that was a concern or whether he preferred to spread the goals around the team. “We want the goals to be spread and our strikers to score over 20 goals,” he said. “That’s the idea.”
It’s a gorgeous January night in north London: driving rain, bone-jarring cold, studied-haircut-busting wind. Football as nature intended.
“Arsenal’s bench is insane,” says Jonathan O’Malley. “By my reckoning the bench alone accounts for three eights of the Spanish midfield.”
I’m nodding like a dog at the first sentence. I haven’t a clue what the second means, though that might be because I’m adjusting to being awake at this hour.
“Rob, can I share one of my New Year’s resolutions with you?” writes Charles ANtaki. “ I know you’ll keep it under your hat. I’ve resolved to offer myself to Arsenal Football Club as their new centre-forward. HR will object that there’s little evidence that I can play football at the elite level (quite true; indeed, at any level whatsoever), and I certainly don’t score enough (in fact any) goals. But on those two criteria I’m more or less par with the current incumbent.
“What puts me ahead is maturity, listening skills and a pleasant demeanour. Admittedly those aren’t on the ‘essential’ side of the job description ledger, but surely they’d be on the ‘desirable’ list? Anyway: mum’s the word for the moment, until I hear back from the club.”
Has he really been that bad? (That’s a genuine question, not a rebuttal – you’ve seen more of Arsenal than I have.) Is he the Stephane Guivarc’h des nos jours? Or did the tactics mafiosi eventually conclude that Guivarc’h played an important role, unrecognised by the ignoramii, at France 98?
Arne Slot’s pre-match thoughts
[On the absence of Hugo Ekitike] Missing players is never nice. It makes it even harder when the other option as a No9 is also not available. Pace is an important weapon, especially against a team who have a lot of the ball and defend so far from their own goal.
[On bringing in Jeremie Frimpong] We’ve brought in a bit of pace with Jeremie. He’s been out for four or five months – not all the time, but mainly – and I decided to use him as a sub against Fulham so that he would could start tonight.
Both [Wirtz and Gakpo] can play as the No9. It will be fluid.
Arsenal are constantly improving, every year, and they are probably in the best moment of the last 5, 10, 15 years.
Andy Hunter
Arne Slot has said it hurts his principles as an attacking coach to hear his Liverpool team described as boring but he could not entirely disagree on current form.
Liverpool have stabilised after a damaging sequence of nine defeats in 12 matches, the club’s worst return in 71 years, with a nine-game unbeaten run but are struggling to produce convincing performances. Successive draws against Fulham and Leeds have prompted further criticism of Slot’s style and resulted in the champions falling 14 points behind the leaders, Arsenal, who they face at the Emirates Stadium on Thursday.
The Liverpool head coach admits being stung by accusations his team’s approach is dull. “I find it really hard to hear but I would not completely disagree,” said Slot, who could be without Hugo Ekitiké for a second successive game. “I would use different words and I would take certain things into account. I want to win as many trophies as I can but I think I am also known for the fact that my teams always try to play attacking football and I can only say they’re trying to do so.
Team news
Bukayo Saka and Leandro Trossard come into the Arsenal side in place of Noni Madueke and Gabriel Martinelli. Those are the only changes from the 3-2 win at Bournemouth.
Liverpool make one change from the draw at Fulham: Jeremie Frimpong comes in for Curtis Jones.
Arsenal (4-3-3) Raya; Timber, Saliba, Gabriel, Hincapie; Odegaard, Zubimendi, Rice; Saka, Gyokeres, Trossard.
Subs: Arrizabalaga, White, Gabriel Jesus, Eze, Martinelli, Norgaard, Madueke, Merino, Lewis-Skelly.
Liverpool (4-2-3-1) Alisson; Bradley, Konate, van Dijk, Kerkez; Gravenberch, Mac Allister; Frimpong, Szoboszlai, Wirtz; Gakpo.
Subs: Mamardashvili, Woodman, Gomez, Chiesa, Jones, Robertson, Nyoni, Ramsay, Ngumoha.
Referee Anthony Taylor (Cheshire).
Preamble
Good evening. Arsenal’s title wins of the modern era have usually involved a landmark game against Liverpool, and we’re just not talking about Michael Thomas. There was the Thierry Henry-inspired comeback at Highbury in 2003-04, the symbolic birth of the Invincibles at Anfield in 2001-02 plus Paul Merson’s winner on the same ground in 1990-91. Even the 4-0 defeat at Anfield in 1997-98 was a triumph of sorts: the reason Arsenal weren’t at the races was that they had won the title against Everton three days earlier, with all the ABV that entails.
Tonight’s game at the Emirates could be equally memorable for Arsenal. A victory over the reigning champions always has symbolic value for the teams hoping to dethrone them, and if Arsenal win tonight they will move eight points clear of Manchester City and Aston Villa at the top. It’s hard to imagine a team as good as Arsenal losing that lead, even with 17 games to go.
Like Shaun Ryder said, it’s a big night in the south.
Kick off 8pm.
#Arsenal #Liverpool #Premier #League #live #Premier #League
