If the expulsion of Granit Xhaka was not a real surprise, Arsenal holding on with 10 men at Anfield certainly came as a shock.
Liverpool missed Xhaka’s red card in the 24th minute for a chest-high lunge on Diogo Jota and Arsenal drew 0-0 in the first leg of the English League Cup semi-finals on Thursday.
With star forwards Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane in the African Cup of Nations, Liverpool lacked a lead up front against an already exhausted Arsenal who lost two more players _ Cedric Soares and Bukayo Saka _ to injuries during the match.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta was looking for a reaction after a humiliating loss to second-division Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup third round on Sunday and got it with stubborn defense, with center-backs Ben White and Gabriel in particular. awesome.
“There is so much fighting on this team,” White said. “It is hard enough coming here with 11 men and having one expelled is not easy. Absolutely excellent from everyone ”.
His job was made much more difficult by Xhaka, the impetuous Swiss midfielder who has now received five red cards since joining Arsenal in 2016. No other Premier League player has that many in that span.
Xhaka was chasing after Jota, who was trying to run into a long ball from Andrew Robertson, when he stuck his left leg out and slammed it into the Portuguese international’s chest. Jota would have entered the goal and the referee went straight to the back pocket to show the red card.
It was Xhaka’s second red card of the season – the other was in a 5-0 loss to Manchester City in the Premier League when Arsenal’s defense collapsed. Not this time.
Liverpool, who beat Arsenal 4-0 in the league at Anfield this season and had previously scored 43 goals in 15 games against Jurgen Klopp’s London club, barely called Arsenal goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale until the frenzied final minutes. .
Takumi Minamino blew Liverpool’s biggest chance, finishing his shot over the bar with the goal at his mercy in the 89th minute after Ramsdale hit a cross from the right.
Liverpool could have had 78% of possession, but they managed just one shot on goal, and that came in second-half injury time.
“I think we showed great struggle, determination, attitude, brotherhood,” said Arteta. “We played the game we had to play. It’s not our game, but we had to play it. “
The winner of this semi-final will face Chelsea in the title match at Wembley Stadium next month, and the return leg is at Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium next week.
“It’s a two-legged game and it’s half time,” Klopp said. “I can’t remember when it was 0-0 at halftime, wherever it was, and I thought, ‘We don’t have a chance.’ We will give it a proper opportunity. “
Mane and Salah will be absent again, although Arsenal’s absence list is even longer at the moment heading into Sunday’s North London derby against Tottenham in the league.
Arteta’s midfield looks particularly threadbare, with Xhaka now suspended, Martin Odegaard out for COVID-19, Emile Smith Rowe injured and both Thomas Partey and Mohamed Elneny at the African Cup.
Arteta ended up deploying Saka and Gabriel Martinelli as midfielders for much of the game after Xhaka was sent off.
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