Arsenal positioned to defend Premier League title after win at Liverpool
Arsenal beat Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday in the Premier League and sit three points clear at the top of the table; they are five points ahead of Brighton in third. The victory reinforced the view that the champions are enjoying a season in which their superiority over most rivals is pronounced.
Liverpool produced a 20-minute spell before half-time when they pressed Arsenal intensely and Anfield generated the sort of atmosphere associated with the club’s peak under Jürgen Klopp, but Arsenal regrouped at half-time and controlled the second half with relative comfort. For the second league match running Arsenal prevented Liverpool from registering a shot on target, and the Gunners have already converted seven half-time draws into full-time wins this season.
An aggressive press from opponents has proved capable of unsettling Arsenal — as it did at Brighton, where Pascal Gross and Charalampos Kostoulas took difficult opportunities — and at Anfield there were contentious moments such as the no-call after Jurriën Timber tugged Alexander Isak’s shirt and Alexis Mac Allister later putting a free header over. The VAR decision at Anfield, in particular, left Liverpool without what many will regard as a clear penalty opportunity.
Individual performances and squad management underpinned Arsenal’s result: Ezri Konsa was singled out for an outstanding display and the substitutes the club introduced maintained the team’s balance. Managerial policy has emphasised squad depth over adding a single marquee signing — a stance that made summer links to Vinícius Júnior unexpected — and on Sunday Arsenal brought on Myles Lewis-Skelly, Piero Hincapié, Viktor Gyökeres and Mikel Merino to safeguard their lead.
That greater depth allows more rotation to limit fatigue and provide cover for injuries, although it did not prevent a Carabao Cup exit at Fleetwood last week; the Lancashire coast presented conditions few top-flight fixtures will match. The availability of capable replacements across positions, however, remains a central feature of Arsenal’s campaign so far.
At this stage last season Arsenal occupied a similar position, being four points clear of second-placed Bournemouth after nine games, yet a spring wobble halted their momentum; this season they have the experience of having won the title, which should reduce the insecurity associated with three successive second-place finishes. The team’s resilience has produced their first win at Anfield since 2012 and a victory at Nottingham Forest following two goalless draws at the City Ground, demonstrating an ability to secure results at venues where they have previously dropped points.
Manchester City remain second in the table but face the prospect of a major points deduction, and after seven straight wins City have since lost successive league games to Aston Villa and Brighton, exposing vulnerabilities such as a high defensive line. Liverpool, managed by Andoni Iraola, are nine points adrift and have not yet fully clicked; Chelsea sit a point better off but remain a work in progress, while Brighton are probably the best of the rest yet lack the depth to be considered genuine title challengers. Sunday’s outcome reinforced the assessment present in the league that Arsenal are, by some margin, the strongest side based on their depth, cohesion and variety of goalscoring situations.
If Arsenal accumulate a substantial lead by Easter, that cushion could materially assist their campaign in Europe, which remains the one major prize the club has yet to secure.