Arsenal dropped what could be a huge two points in the race for the Premier League title as Liverpool came from two goals down to draw 2-2 at Anfield on Sunday. Roberto Firmino’s late header rescued a huge point for Liverpool’s top four hopes and also for Manchester City’s title hopes.
Anfield continues to be a sorry hunting ground for the Gunners in recent years, their previous victory there in the Premier League came way back in 2012 and boss Mikel Arteta was in the team that day. The Gunners could be haunted by this result in the final weeks of the campaign because at 2-0 they were in complete control. One player who might feel the most responsible for the dropped points is Granit Xhaka.
The Swiss midfielder needlessly had a snap at Trent Alexander-Arnold late in the first half which seemed to spark the home crowd and players into life. Liverpool then pulled a goal back through Mohamed Salah moments later. This then led to a power shift in the match for the second half as the Reds put the Gunners under constant pressure.
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For most of the first half Arsenal were in complete control, it was as if Anfield was their home. They had energy, flair and fight - everything Liverpool had a few years ago when they won the Premier League title. Whereas the Reds looked a shadow of themselves with a lot of defensive errors and struggling to make a pass when trying to get numbers forward.
The Gunners broke the deadlock inside the opening 10 minutes. The ball fell kindly to Gabriel Martinelli and the Brazilian did brilliantly to poke the ball past compatriot Alisson to find the bottom left corner. Their lead was doubled through a Gabriel Jesus header which seemed to take the game away from Liverpool - fitting for him to score on Easter Sunday too.
The game sparked into life as a contest when Xhaka and Alexander-Arnold had their coming together which saw both players booked by Paul Tierney. The incident sparked both the Liverpool players and fans into life and it led to a goal moments later as Salah netted from close range to halve the deficit just before half-time.
Liverpool came out spurred after the restart and were awarded an early penalty after Diogo Jota was brought down by Rob Holding. Surprisingly, Salah squandered the great opportunity to equalise as his spot-kick went just wide of the post - a huge let off for Arsenal.
The Gunners had to weather the storm for much of the second half and they couldn’t hold out as substitute Roberto Firmino headed home from close range late on.
This then sparked a frantic ending to the match with both teams going for the win. Aaron Ramsdale pulled off a remarkable save to deny Salah a second of the game before denying Ibrahima Konate moments later to make sure his side left Merseyside with a point.
Arsenal will be furious at how they let their two-goal lead slip as they know that this will add more fuel to the fire of their title rivals Manchester City. This stalemate at Anfield has delivered a huge twist in the title race and it could prove to be a crucial one.
