HALF-TIME: Liverpool 1-2 Arsenal

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HALF-TIME: Liverpool 1-2 Arsenal

Another sensational half of Premier League FootballTM and there’s aggro on the way off, Henderson giving out to the ref and I think he’s been booked.

There’s doings a-transpiring as Andy Robertson is shown a yellow card at half-time. Photograph: Phil Noble/Reuters

Updated at 12.34 EDT

45+3 min Jones is into this now and he sidewinds into the box, beating one man before being blocked off by another. But Liverpool sustain the attack, Salah knocks back to Alexander-Arnold, and his swinging cross picks out Jota at the back post! But the angle is too acute for a proper shot, so he deflects back into the middle, Ramsdale punches away, and Henderson lashes over the top. This is a very different affair all of a sudden.

45+1 min Arsenal try to douse the building inferno, then Jesus, who helped them escape from a tight situation at left-back just a few seconds ago, is the meat in a Konate-Fabinho sandwich. He stays down, time elapses, and the interval is just a bit closer.

45 min We’ll have four added minutes.

44 min “When this crowd’s sleeping, don’t wake them up,” says Gary Neville, and he’s right. Who knows whether that goal happens without Xhaka’s intervention, but it didn’t help and added needle to a game that, from a Liverpool perspective, was slowly expiring.

GOAL! Liverpool 1-2 Arsenal (Salah 42)

Oh! Oh! Jones, who’s been anonymous, pulls right and plays a gorgeous pass, off one foot onto the other, that sets Jota away. He cuts back, Henderons goes for goal with an open-body sidefooter, and at the far post, Gabriel slides in, diverting the ball against the sliding Salah and in. Did Xhaka’s gormless intervention provoke that? Either way, we got ourselves a ball-game!

Mo Salah pulls a goal back for Liverpool. Game on at Anfield! Photograph: Phil Noble/Reuters

Updated at 12.18 EDT

40 min Liverpool are ticking so of course Granit Xhaka wades in, shoving Alexander-Arnild from behind and raising an arm dangerously close the back of his head. Alexander-Arnold retaliates with a shove from behind, there’s a bit more shoving, and Xhaka’s teammates haul him away and both are booked.

Granit Xhaka receives a very silly yellow card Photograph: Shaun Botterill/Getty Images

Updated at 12.15 EDT

39 min On the touchline, Klopp has a look of bemused amusement on his kipper. Make no mistake, his work these last few years is that of a genius, but he needs a serious reset now.

37 min Jesus wins a free-kick off Jota near the right corner-flag, and Liverpool are frazzled. This is so taste-of-your-own-medicine it’s barely believable, because though Arteta is of course heavily influenced by Pep Guardiola, his side are more similar in style and demeanour to Klopp’s mentality monsters.

36 min “About Van Dijk’s injury,” says Magnús Björgvin Guðmundsson. “He was injured two years ago and then came back to lead Liverpool to two titles, a Champions League final and coming within one point of the league title. Why would the injury hamper him and everyone around him so much now?”

It hampered him them too, I think – his team were just better able to cover it.

35 min After Liverpool’s first chance, Ramdale went down; now, Gabriel goes down, and this looks like a plan: any adverse circumstance, take the heat out of things. Clever, because how does the ref police it?

34 min Holding steps forward like he’s Sammer, discovers that actually, he isn’t, and a ball in behind sends Salah through! But under pressure, he can only poke wide of the near post, and that’s just how this game is going.

32 min Alisson punches the free-kick away, so Arsenal build again. This could be revenge for their 5-q gubbing in February 2014.

31 min Jesus draws him out to the left, nips past him, and Van Dijk misses with his first hack but makes sure with his trailing leg! He’s booked, but what’s resonant is the desperation of it. He knows, they know, we all know.

30 min Far worse Liverpool sides than this have made Anfield a notoriously difficult place to win; Arsenal are laughing at them.

GOAL! Liverpool 0-2 Arsenal (Jesus 28)

Xhaka arcs a ball in behind Alexander-Arnold, who’s dreaming about strawberry fields and marmalade skies; Martinelli is onto it like a hyena, slowing it down as he steps inside before curling a cross that’s so tasty Gabriel Jesus could’ve been excused catching it and eating it. But instead he leaps alone, glances into the far corner, and Arsenal have come to Anfield and are taking Liverpool apart!

Too easy for Arsenal as Jesus rises above the static Liverpool defence to make it two. Photograph: Phil Noble/Reuters

Updated at 12.36 EDT

27 min The thing about building a football team is that chemistry between players is so hard to predict, and Liverpool’s run of transfer successes was, as far as I know, the greatest in the history of the game by far. In such context, I’m not surprised they’ve been unable sustain things.

25 min Better from Liverpool, Alexander-Arnold oozing through midfield and coaxing a fine ball into the middle where Holding does superbly to head behind, despite a shove from Gakpo. The corner comes to nothing, but I doubt we’ve seen the last of the scoring for this half.

24 min “Totally concur with the problems with the kit,” says Andy Tuohy. “There is no excuse. The colour temperature is very close too. Standing still, just about ok. Moving extremely hard to differentiate. I’d be happy to offer my services. For a fee of course.”

On the other hand, here’s how to do things properly.

23 min White gives it away and immediately endeavours to resolve the situation, scything through Jota; he’s booked.

22 min “Failure has many fathers,” reckons Kári Tulinius, “and one of Liverpool’s is Virgil van Dijk. He’s still a brilliant defender, but his positioning has sometimes been just tiny bit off this season, which leads to errors like the one for the goal. Though it might be that everyone else in defence is positioned slightly wrong, but either way Liverpool can’t rely on him mopping everything up anymore.”

Ultimately, a cruciate injury at his age and you won’t be the same player, especially if you’re reliant on your pace, and I’m sure that’s to do with his wonky positioning. His ability to cover space covered a multitude of faults in those around him, but he can’t manage that anymore.

20 min Ramsdale goes down and like that episode of Jossy’s Giants where Jossy is late for a match having got married, the players all gather round the manager for an “impromptu” team talk.

Mikel Arteta chats to his team in a no-way organised r=team talk. Photograph: David Price/Arsenal FC/Getty Images

Updated at 11.59 EDT

19 min Liverpool are seriously struggling here, but have a look! Fabinho lofts a gorgeous pass in behind White, Robertson marches onto it as we’ve seen him do so many times before, and lashes a shot towards the far corner … but is skips just wide!

17 min Here come Arsenal again, Jesus pulling right as Martinelli moves inside. The ball is fizzed right to Saka, who curves a terrific cross to the far post, Jesus hurtling after it having called it on. He can’t quite arrive in time to get over it, so his shot, from a narrow angle, is high and wide, but this is a boys and men situation, the boys far too organised and ebullient for the men to cope.

16 min “The Thiago signing is certainly the most visible part of Liverpool’s malfunctioning midfield engine,” says Niall Mullen. “But other decisions have hurt them just as much. Among all of the young or back-up midfielders there isn’t a single fit or hard-running example. Keita, Ox, Jones, Carvalho, Elliott all have their qualities but none of them is covering the hard yards. With Mané going and Firmino ageing/becoming a bit part player the running from the front is gone too. Obviously Henderson and Fabinho are off the pace for different reasons while Van Dijk, Trent and Robertson all look goosed. Hard to see how signing Bellingham won’t immediately fix all of these issues in an instant.”

Ha! Bellingham is the nearest I’ve seen to Bryan Robson – a one-man team – since Bryan Robson – but I agree that the issues are more significant than can be solved by him. Ultimately, Klopp turned very good players into world-beaters, and that’s not an easy thing to sustain or replicate.

14 min Bukayo Saka will get the plaudits for his work in creating that goal, but he was facilitated – as he has been so often this season – by a clever pass from White. Their partnership is a huge part of what makes Arsenal so good, and you’ve got to credit Arteta for converting White into a full-back, sidelining Tomiyasu – a player he bought and who did well – in the process.

Ben White clears under pressure from Diogo Jota. Photograph: Jon Super/AP

Updated at 11.52 EDT

12 min Arsenal are swarming Liverpool now, too fast, lithe and confident. Martinelli, now back on the left, lays back for Zinchenko on the corner of the box, who sweeps a shot wide, and for now, the home side can only hope to hang in there.

11 min “Been looking forward to this match all weekend ,” says Mattbut as a colour blind person it’s completely unwatchable. I don’t understand how this keeps happening – both teams look identical on my TV. Given up trying to watch it already.”

Ach, I’m sorry to hear that. I’ve a colourblind mate in the away end – hello Baz! – who I trust is still watching – but yep, no reason this shouldn’t be considered.

9 min Arsenal have something to hold onto, and Liverpool are in big trouble.

GOAL! Liverpool 0-1 Arsenal (Martinelli 8)

What a glorious mess this is! White plays a signature pass into Saka, who’s not yet been involved, and he makes a fine first movement and explodes infield, then a false touch from Van Dijk diverts the ball into the path of Martinelli – suddenly in the middle. With defenders converging, he takes an artist’s first touch, then pokes past Alisson and what a start that is for the title pretenders!

Gabriel Martinelli celebrates. Ruthless from the visitors. Photograph: Phil Noble/ReutersGabriel Martinelli pokes it home to give Arsenal the lead. Photograph: Paul Greenwood/Shutterstock

Updated at 11.45 EDT