Arsenal‘s anger was once again directed at the referee. This time the fans whistled at Anthony Taylor, who, in their view, mistakenly stopped a challenge in the penalty area in the 90th minute that might have led to the winning goal against Liverpool FC. Striker Gabriel Jesus received a yellow card after the final whistle for complaining. In the interviews, Mikel Arteta refused to comment on the referee – and still talked as angrily as if the match was still going on. His appearance reinforced the impression of the game: Arsenal seemed very tense at the moment.
Despite taking the lead twice against Liverpool, the Londoners couldn’t get more than a 2-2 (2-1) draw in the Premier League’s top meeting on Sunday. Championship rivals Manchester City benefited from the draw, taking over the lead in the table and are now one point ahead of Liverpool. The long-term rivals have moved away from the top after nine match days. Third-placed Arsenal are already five points behind before the complicated away games at Newcastle United and Chelsea FC. Arteta admitted that they did not want to have such a starting position after the first quarter of the season.
The players always present themselves with commitment on the pitch. However, they lack looseness and sovereignty. If you will, the team’s performances resemble the coach’s rhetoric. Arteta seems to want to force the league title after two narrowly missed attempts this season – and that hasn’t worked so well so far.
The symptoms became evident again in the duel with Liverpool. Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk immediately equalized the euphorically celebrated opening goal by Bukayo Saka (9th minute) (18th minute). And when Arsenal cleverly defended the lead restored by Mikel Merino (43′) in the second half, Arteta waved his players forward, which promptly went wrong: a loss of the ball was followed by a Liverpool counter-attack, which Mohamed Salah converted (81′).
Arteta said he was “very disappointed” not to have won the game, but at the same time proud because he “probably couldn’t even imagine” the situation his team was in at the moment. The coach was probably referring to Arsenal’s absence list; he had to do without regular players Martin Odegaard and Riccardo Calafiori.
Arsenal suffered three sending-offs in their first eight games
Arsenal is not only being dogged by supposed bad luck with injuries this season, the team is also weakening itself. Central defender William Saliba was suspended against Liverpool. In the first eight league games, Arteta’s team received three dismissals, two of them when they were in the lead, and the team failed to maintain their lead over time.
Even the previously ridiculed and now excellent atmosphere at the club’s home games doesn’t seem to be any help at the moment. The fans hardly give a break in their support – and the players seem to be guided by it. In any case, against Liverpool they once again set a pace that was impossible to sustain. Before the final phase, Jurriën Timber had to leave the pitch with cramps. His representative, 18-year-old Myles Lewis-Skelly, made the crucial positional error before the equalizer.
Even the highly emotional Arteta now seems to be a little worried about Arsenal’s emotionality. He recently decreed that the red cards had to stop.
