Joe Allen volleyed home a 90th minute equalizer as Liverpool hold the leaders Arsenal 3-3 in an end-to-end, passionate game at Anfield.
Jurgen Klopp again opted for a false 9 system with Firmino up top and a wide 4-4-1-1 or a 4-2-3-1 formation, in a game that produced plenty of goals and would have been ideal to include in your Ladbrokes promo code goals rush bet.
Lallana was playing just behind Firmino; Milner and Ibe were the wider outlets and Henderson and Can were given the responsibility to hold the midfield together. Sakho and Toure were the center-backs for the game with new signing Caulker featuring on the bench.
Now let’s quickly analyze the system which was in place for Liverpool against the Gunners and how Firmino’s movements caused havoc for opposition back-line:
We’ll first take a look at the Brazilian’s movement in and around the back-line of Arsenal. His role is termed as a ‘False 9 floating forward’, he was constantly on the move as his role suggests, he shifted towards the left hand side teeing up with Milner and Moreno which allowed Lallana to run centrally into the box.
He also dropped off in that number 10 role a few times leaving Mertesacker and Koscielny to decide whether to mark the on rushing Lallana or remain tight on the Brazilian.
Now comes the turn of the midfield, where Henderson and Can had a decent game. Henderson’s movement and vision were top drawer and showed no signs of being rusty after having been injured for a while.
The skipper’s sideways movement to protect the full-backs, and when given a chance moving in to an advanced role to support the attack was admirable; work-rate of the highest order from the Englishman.
Can in comparison had a 50-50 kind of game. His movement was better but he sometimes overdid things and some of his passes were sloppy, making his game look a bit dazed.
Ibe had a disappointing game overall; he was easily dominated by Monreal. His movement was very predictable and always taking on the left-back was not a wise option. He failed to deliver any decent ball into the box for players to attack. Henderson supported him on that flank a few times but Arsenal were pretty tight on him and didn’t allow him to put any meaningful crosses into the six-yard area.
Lallana was alright as far as work-rate is concerned but again lack of constant involvement in the game raised few eyebrows. He was tidy when on the ball and his defensive cover was fine overall.
After trailing for the first time in the game, Klopp brought on Benteke for Milner but the team shape remained the same, with only Lallana going to the left hand side and Firmino playing as number 10 behind the Belgian.
This enabled the Reds to be more direct in their play with Benteke’s aerial presence always a worry for the center-backs. But the question mark remained on the big Belgian for his reluctant movement around the penalty area. One instance was Ibe getting to the byline unmarked but had no one to target as Benteke was at the edge of the penalty area. He has to feature more in between center-backs whenever an attack is being ventured. Eventually, he won the header in the box which was turned home by Joe Allen in the 90th minute.
One more Belgian was in the spotlight after the game: Simon Mignolet. He was twice beaten at his near post which was alarming to witness. He was very tentative when balls where put in from set-pieces and he has to command his area more otherwise this problem is going to get worse game by game and should be solved in another way.
All in all, a classic Liverpool vs Arsenal game, with Jurgen Klopp spot on to start with a false 9 and with midfield and defensive pressing system.
Both teams deserved a point after a game which had everything and players giving it their all. Wenger was a bit frustrated on conceding a late equalizer but with hindsight he must be delighted the way his team showed resilience and took a point out of a tough visit to Anfield.
The atmosphere at the iconic Anfield was just miraculous and gave you goose-bumps, and mild snow in the second half brought another level of spice to the game. Many felt (including me) that it was more of a European night than a regular Premier League game.
