Liverpool vs Arsenal: get tickets for the top-of-the-table cracker
The Premier League will serve one of its hottest dishes of the 2023/24 season this weekend when first-placed Arsenal travel to Anfield to face second-placed Liverpool in the 18th Round of the league campaign.
Both sides enter this tie with the tag of being the only team to truly challenge perennial winners Manchester City for the title since the 2016 season, with either side finishing first or second in each of the last six seasons. And with Pep Guardiola’s ‘greedy’ Cityzens fluffing their lines this season, the Reds and the Gunners are now considered the next favourites to win the title.
There is good reason for this feeling, and this game could be an early title decider in a sense because the winner here is almost guaranteed to spend the Christmas holiday sitting on top of the Premier League tree unless Aston Villa pulls off a miracle by winning big against Sheffield United a day prior.
But while the results elsewhere may matter in the grand scheme of things, there is a game to be won at Anfield, and both sides will be going hard for it as they attempt to make it seven seasons in a row where either Arsenal, Liverpool or Manchester City are top of the Premier League at Christmas.
This shows how consistent both sides are gradually becoming after years of mediocrity. Liverpool went 30 years without winning or consistently challenging for the league title until Jurgen Klopp came and changed their fortunes, finally breaking the curse in 2020. The German has led the Reds to the top of the Christmas league table in three of the last six seasons, although his side has just one title win to show for their effort.
Meanwhile, after years of mediocrity, Mikel Arteta has restored Arsenal’s class by making them title challengers again. The Gunners were one of the most consistent teams in England last term and were close to finally winning the title for the first time since the 2003-04 season. But a poor end to their season saw them lose ground, and Man City eventually became champions at their expense.
They have not allowed their disappointment of last season to deter them, though, and they look like they have kicked into second gear this season with the signing of several top players like Declan Rice, David Raya and Kai Havertz.
Liverpool, meanwhile, has also become a better team this campaign after their disappointment of last season. Klopp’s men finished the season outside the top four, a whopping 22 points behind Man City and 17 points behind Arsenal. In fact, by this time last year, the Gunners were sitting in first place, 16 points ahead of Liverpool, who were occupying the seventh spot after 17 games.
So the fact that both teams are currently separated by one point after 17 games shows great improvement from Liverpool, who also made smart signings this summer to bolster their squad. The Merseyside club signed Dominik Szoboslai, Alexis Mac Allister, Ryan Gravenberch and Wataru Endo last summer and have been better for it.
Having closed the gap at the top thanks to good summer business, Liverpool ticket buyers can expect to see their side dominate Arsenal here as they have done for much of the last few terms, especially at Anfield.
Liverpool vs Arsenal Premier League stats and head-to-head record
In 62 Premier League games between both sides, Liverpool has the upper hand with 25 wins against Arsenal’s 17 wins (D20).
The Reds have scored 107 against the Gunners in 62 PL games. Arsenal have just 77 PL goals against the hosts.
There has been 194 yellow cards and 12 red cards in this fixture in the Premier League, with Liverpool getting 91 yellow and six red cards, while Arsenal have 103 yellow and six red cards.
Liverpool has kept 20 clean sheets against Arsenal in the Premier League. The Gunners have 12 PL clean sheets against Liverpool.
Liverpool are unbeaten in their last ten home league games against the Gunners (W7, D3).
Liverpool vs Arsenal Preview
Liverpool will look to get back to winning ways when they welcome Arsenal to Anfield on Saturday. After climbing to the top of the league table, the Reds missed the chance to keep their place there after being held to a drab draw against fierce enemies Manchester United last time out.
Although it can be argued that Man United set up defensively in the game, as they attempted to avoid another embarrassing defeat at Anfield, Jurgen Klopp’s men only have themselves to blame for dropping points given that they appeared uncoordinated in attack throughout the game. The hosts had 68% ball possession and recorded 34 goal attempts, with eight on target, but they failed to really trouble Andre Onana at the United goal. The United goalie was eager to slow the game down, resulting in United having just one shot on target all game.
The result ended a run of three consecutive Premier League wins and a run of eleven straight wins at home for Liverpool in all competitions. Nevertheless, with the disappointment of that draw behind them, the Reds will now look to win here and reclaim the top spot. A win here will put them two points ahead of Arsenal and seven ahead of defending champions Manchester City, who are presently in the Middle East for the FIFA World Club Cup.
Meanwhile, Arsenal come into this tie in good spirits after overcoming a potential banana skin in their last outing to maintain their incredible push to win the title. The Gunners recorded their 12th win of the season on Sunday, beating Brighton 2-0, courtesy of goals from Gabriel Jesus and Kai Harvetz.
The win was their first PL clean sheet since a 1-0 win over Brentford last month and ensured that the Gunners returned to winning ways after two straight games without a win in all competitions (D1, L1). They would love to make it back-to-back league wins here, but with this game holding at Anfield, even the most optimistic Arsenal fans would not bet on their side winning.
The Gunners have enjoyed some memorable wins over Liverpool in the past, but none came at Anfield, at least not in the last eleven years. Mikel Arteta’s side has not beaten Liverpool away from home since a 2-0 win in September 2012. In fact most of the players that played that day are either retired or close to the end of their careers while the goalscorers that day, Lukas Podolski and Santi Carzola, are approaching 40 years old and playing for relatively unknown clubs.
Injuries and who has a better squad?
Liverpool have been slightly unlucky with injuries recently, having recently lost Joel Matip and Alexis Mac Allister to injuries. The duo joined Diogo Jota, Stefan Bajectic, Thiago Alcantara, Andrew Robertson and Ben Doak on the treatment table.
Meanwhile, Arsenal are recuperating after a flurry of injuries to several first team stars. After a slight injury lay off, Gabriel Jesus returned recently and has been among the goals. However, the Gunners are still without summer signing Jurien Timber, Jorginho, Takehiro Tomiyasu, Fabio Viera, Mohamed Elneny and Thomas Partey.
Comparing both sides starting XI, it might be difficult to pick the team with a better squad on paper, with Liverpool boasting better players in some areas while Arsenal have better players in other areas.
For example, pound-for-pound, Liverpool's Alison Becker is ahead of David Raya, with the Brazilian considered the best goalie in the world on current form. But Arsenal can claim to possess the better midfielders, with Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard currently ahead of the Liverpool duo of Alexis Mac Allister and Domink Szoboszlai.
Elsewhere, Mohamed Salah and Bukayo Saka may be separated by fine margins, while Gabriel Martinelli has a stronger case of being better than Luis Diaz on current form.
But another fact that could place the Gunners’ squad ahead of Liverpool is that Arsenal have recorded the most goals from substitutes in the Premier League this season. Mikel Arteta's side and Brighton are the two teams with the most goals from players who didn't start the game. Still Liverpool are not behind in that list, as the Reds are now the third team on that list following the heroics of Harvey Elliot against Crystal Palace last week.
Where will the battle be won and lost?
Judging by the playing style and available personnel for both teams, the main battle of the game could be in midfield. Both sides are among the top four sides in ball possession stats this season, with Arsenal's average possession of 60.3 the third-best in the league (behind Man City and Brighton), and slightly ahead of Liverpool, who average 60.2 possession per game.
Moreover, Jürgen Klopp's side is missing Alexis Mac Allister, who would have started the game if he was available. So, his absence could be a big hit for Liverpool, especially considering that Watru Endo is still trying to find his feet in the Premier League.
And so if Arsenal can overcome the psychological hurdle Anfield seems to have on them, they are the favourites to win here. But even that is a big if, considering Liverpool's form at home.
