Arsenal Silence Toothless Liverpool To Move…

Premier League champions Arsenal moved to the top of the standings after securing a 1-0 win over rivals Liverpool, who failed to register a single shot on target at Anfield.

Premier League
Teams: Liverpool v Arsenal
Result: 0-1
Scorers: Havertz (16′)

Reds coach Andoni Iraola made the surprise decision to start 19-year-old Trey Nyoni over Ryan Gravenberch in midfield, while the Gunners were boosted by the return of Christos Tzolis.

The defending champions made a positive start and got the opening goal in the 15th minute when Declan Rice broke free down the right before sending the ball to the far post, where Kai Havertz was on hand to slot home.

With that goal, Havertz became the all-time leading German scorer in the Premier League with 46 goals, surpassing former Manchester City star Ilkay Gündoğan.

Pushed on by the Anfield crowd, the Reds had a good response after going behind as they dominated possession for most of the first half, although the Gunners’ defence did well to thwart all attacks in and around the 18-yard area.

The Reds should have been level just before the half-time break when Milos Kerkez did well to pick out the run of Alexis Mac Allister, who sent his header over the crossbar with only goalkeeper David Raya to beat in the box.

Iraola’s charges carried that momentum into the second half, but they still lacked the finishing touch in the final third, which prompted the coach to throw on Dominik Szoboszlai in place of Nyoni while the young Rio Ngumoha replaced Cody Gakpo after the hour mark.

However, Arsenal went very close to doubling their lead in the 73rd minute when Tzolis latched on to a cross from Noni Madueke and unleashed a first-time strike that forced Alisson into a superb low save.

The Reds threw everything forward in search of an equalising goal, but they were unable to register a shot on target for the entire 90 minutes as the Gunners held on to claim their first league win at Anfield since 2012.

Next Five Fixtures:

Liverpool: Fenerbahce (A), Crystal Palace (A), Manchester United (H), Club Brugge (A), Everton (A)

Arsenal: Slavia Praha (A), Hull City (H), Newcastle United (A), Borussia Dortmund (H), Manchester City (H)

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