At the end of a mad 90 minutes, 93 to be more precise, Liverpool and Arsenal were inseparable. The two heavy weights battled hard and it took a last minute volley from Joe Allen of all people to rescue a point for the home side.
Liverpool were the ones who started brightly and without Christian Benteke to lead the line, the onus fell on the shoulders of Roberto Firmino, the expensive Hoffenheim signing did show what he is capable of and scored twice, the second one curling away from the grasping hands of Petr Cech.
Liverpool took the lead twice in a pulsating game but league leaders Arsenal pegged the home side back thanks to a couple of brilliant goals, one from Aaron Ramsey and one from Olivier Giroud, who headed into the net from a corner. Both times Simon Mignolet was at fault and certainly should have done better for the first Giroud goal he conceded.
Four goals were scored in the first 25 minutes and it took a bit of magic from the French Arsenal striker to break the deadlock once again. With a ball played into his feet, the striker swivelled and curled a beautiful shot into the back of the net. Arsenal were leading 3-2 in the game and were good value for it but then came the onslaught from Liverpool.
The Reds seemed to wake up after conceding and started bombarding the Arsenal defence, well not really bombard it but had the greater share of possession. Liverpool for all the ball that they had couldn’t really break down a resolute Arsenal defence, the team were happier with countering Liverpool’s attacks and in all probability should have wrapped up the game but the introduction of Benteke changed the game plan for Liverpool.
The Big Belgian plays a big part
It was Benteke’s header in the last minute which caused Arsenal problems before Joe Allen placed his volley beyond the hands of Petr Cech. Cue wild celebrations from Jurgen Klopp but even the German knows that this was a game that Liverpool could have lost.
Liverpool after the first half couldn’t really break down Arsenal and the Gunners did have a few good chances of wrapping the game up. Liverpool also didn’t have their strongest side and drawing against the league leaders isn’t the worst result, though they have done better against Manchester City and Chelsea in away games, this was a great performance by the team, especially considering that most of their centre backs, first choice, were injured.
Dejan Lovren and Martin Skrtel would have started against the Gunners and could have done better in keeping the strike force at bay. There also were starting place berths for Milner and Henderson, both players who hadn’t played full games in a long time.
Normally Liverpool would have folded had they been a goal down but there is a sense of belief amongst the players. Even with time running out, there was a lot of pressure put on the Arsenal team and that eventually led them to crack.
Liverpool abandoned formations for a while and were all-out-attacking the Arsenal team. This performance certainly will be something that Jurgen Klopp can build on and will hope for better performances, especially from the defence. This wasn’t just a point gained for Liverpool; it should be seen as a base to build on.