Liverpool vs Arsenal: Matchday 12 of the 2021/22 Premier League commences on Saturday, with a blockbuster match from Anfield in the evening as Liverpool prepare to face Arsenal in the hopes of getting back on track.
How the teams stand ahead of action
Liverpool’s previous game before the international break ended in a 3-2 loss to fellow top-four opponents West Ham United, which was their first loss of the season. The setback dropped Jurgen Klopp’s team to fourth position in the rankings, four points behind leaders Chelsea, and the margin may increase to seven points by the time the Reds play on Saturday.
Klopp and his team must get back on track as soon as possible if they are to keep pace with the west London heavyweights. They will, however, face a big stumbling barrier in the form of a resurgent Arsenal side, that has turned things around superbly following a poor start to the season.
Indeed, just a few weeks into the current campaign, calls for Mikel Arteta’s head were becoming increasingly common. However, the Spaniard has managed to steer the squad back on track, with Arsenal presently enjoying a ten-game unbeaten run in all competitions. Arsenal are only two points and one position behind Liverpool in the table, and a win at Anfield on Saturday could see them overtake their rivals.
Liverpool came back from a goal down to overcome Arsenal 3-1 in the equivalent fixture last season, with goals from Sadio Mane, Andrew Robertson, and Diogo Jota.
Flashscore match Stats
- Liverpool saw their 20-game unbeaten run in the top flight come to a sudden halt prior to the international break, going down 3-2 to West Ham. That makes welcoming opponents Arsenal to Anfield all the more enticing, with just two points separating them coming into the weekend, and as Liverpool’s last three league defeats have now come against London clubs!
- The Reds currently boast a nine-game unbeaten league home run (W5, D4), albeit having drawn their last two despite taking the lead in both games. The four points dropped in those two matches are as many as they surrendered from winning positions in their previous 23 league games at Anfield. A visit from Arsenal could therefore be the tonic for Liverpool to get back on track, as the Merseysiders have won the last five home league H2Hs, finding the net at least three times on all occasions.
- But Arsenal are one of the league’s most in-form teams at the moment as Mikel Arteta’s youth-oriented strategy finally seems to be uniting fans of the team. Their current eight-game unbeaten streak (W6, D2) is actually the longest of all PL clubs and you have to go back to August to December 2018 to find the last time they embarked on a longer top-flight run without defeat.
- After the hysteria surrounding starting the season with three defeats, the Gunners have catapulted themselves to the cusp of the top four. They’ve kept three consecutive PL clean sheets on their travels and are now on the verge of securing four successive top-flight away shutouts for the first time since May 2005. That’s a big ask here though, as they’ve won only one of the last 12 league H2Hs against Liverpool (D4, L7), keeping one clean sheet in that time.
Players to watch: Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah has seven goal contributions in five home PL games against Arsenal (G5, A2), whose in-form youngster Emile Smith Rowe has seen four of his six PL goals arrive in the first 30 minutes of play.
Hot stat: Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp’s average of 2.18 points per game against Arsenal is the third-highest points per game ratio of all managers who have faced Arsenal 5+ times in the PL.
Liverpool vs Arsenal Bets tips
This fixture is the highest scoring in Premier League history with a total of 169 goals and there’s reason to expect more of the same again at Anfield this weekend. Liverpool has collected just one point from their last two games after surrendering a two-goal lead to Brighton at Anfield and losing 3-2 away to West Ham. This will be a tight clash with Arsenal unbeaten in the EPL since a 5-0 reverse at Man City in August.
– Back over 2.5 match goals
– Back Liverpool to win or draw
– Back both teams to score
Liverpool vs Arsenal Predicted lineups
Liverpool (4-3-3): Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Matip, van Dijk, Robertson; Oxlade-Chamberlain, Fabinho, Thiago; Salah, Jota, Mane
Arsenal (4-2-3-1): Ramsdale; Tomiyasu, White, Gabriel, Tierney; Lokonga, Maitland-Niles; Saka, Odegaard, Smith Rowe; Lacazette
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