Liverpool beat Arsenal 2-0 on Sunday afternoon to reach the fourth round of the FA Cup.
The Reds will be without Wataru Endo and Mohamed Salah, who play for the national team. Jurgen Klopp’s side are without Virgil van Dijk and other players due to illness.
Arsenal had more of an opening but Trent Alexander-Arnold managed to raise the bar for the Reds in the first half. Liverpool took the lead in the 10th minute of normal time when Jakub Kivior headed home an Alexander-Arnold free-kick.
Victory was sealed in extra time when Luis Diaz palmed away Aaron Ramsdale’s header after a quick counter-attack.
Below you can see how the national media and the ECHO covered the match at the Emirates. “Arsenal had a good chance to win the game. They wasted everything. Liverpool, who despite their recklessness have usurped top spot in the Premier League, further unleashed the fighting spirit that has characterized their rise and launched a devastating two-goal attack in the second half. “Their win, despite the absence of Africa Cup of Nations talisman Mo Salah, took them to a fourth-round draw and gave them a huge confidence boost.
The momentum of a season that once felt like it belonged to Arsenal has shifted north to Merseyside.”
“7,500 Liverpool fans left the Emirates cheering, chanting ‘I’m so happy Jurgen is in red.’ Klopp backed up his usual praise with three hat-tricks and his trademark was evident in this FA Cup third-round win. He was full of it. “Klopp responded to Arsenal’s threat in the first half. If Mikel Arteta’s side had been able to call on a true striker and finisher like Ivan Toni instead of relying on the light and out-of-position Kai Havertz, they would have comfortably led at half-time.
The German striker missed three good opportunities. “Top managers like Klopp act boldly. He focused on Liverpool’s approach at half-time, telling Alisson to sometimes go further rather than always playing at the back. He told Darwin Nunes to move left, sit on the ball and cut inside Ben White. Luis Diaz singled to right and Harvey Elliott singled. Liverpool received a storm from Diaz-Jota-Nims when Diogo Jota was introduced in the 14th minute of the second half.
“Klopp invented it. What shaped this game was the game management, the belief in his team and the culture that Klopp instilled. Instead of finishing the game before extra time (they won 1-0 thanks to a Jakub Kivior own goal), Liverpool simply attacked. Nunes flew in from the left, Jota turned the ball over and Díaz almost went into the back of the net. “It was a day when Arsenal played 90 minutes but didn’t score. All this has greatly upset Mikel Arteta and the home support. “But a sting in the tail will bring them down, which will create anxiety among the full-time players and create the feeling that the club is in a mini-crisis.
“Liverpool were very pleased. This FA Cup tie was even more important given Arsenal’s form – three defeats out of five in the Premier League. The need to regain momentum became greater. Liverpool, at the top of the table, were confident of winning the Carabao Cup. They face Fulham in the semi-final first leg at Anfield on Wednesday. “It was Liverpool who weathered the Arsenal storm.
In other words, it was Liverpool who saw Arsenal continue to fail to show the necessary ruthlessness in front of goal. It’s an increasingly worrying trend for Arteta. Then Jurgen Klopp’s team punched them.”
Dozens of disgruntled Arsenal fans were preparing for kick-off with a 2-0 lead against Liverpool when they headed for the exits as team-mates could be heard singing the song from the terrace during the dismissal.
