Arsenal clone Anfield aura to reaffirm place in title fight

LONDON – And then there were three. An afternoon that began with Arsenal facing the prospect of the Premier League leaders disappearing from sight ended with a powerful statement of intent suggesting Mikel Arteta's side can challenge Liverpool and Manchester City for the title.

They have now beaten both at the Emirates Stadium this season, victories which add results to the rhetoric Arteta uses to make us all believe. Sunday's 3-1 victory over Liverpool was achieved through force of will more than anything else, a relentless pressure game designed to destabilize Jurgen Klopp's side and knock them out of a rhythm that had brought them at the top of the ranking.

The fact that the decisive error came from a mix-up between the stoic duo Alisson and Virgil van Dijk showed just how shaken Liverpool were here. Bukayo Saka had given the home side a 14th-minute lead, later canceled out by a bizarre Gabriel own goal in first-half injury time. But it was the Reds who imploded with a defensive element that prompted Sky Sports pundit Roy Keane to label Liverpool a “pub team”.

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Van Dijk tried to leave a long forward pass to Alisson with Gabriel Martinelli swarming around him. When Alisson came to take care of it, he kicked it into the air, leaving Martinelli with a loose ball and an open goal to put Arsenal in front. Van Dijk was also slow to engage Leandro Trossard in stoppage time as the Gunners substitute added a third, firing through Alisson's legs as if the Liverpool keeper wasn't there.

Arteta ran down the touchline with uncontrolled joy. The Spanish manager has previously spoken of trying to replicate the type of hostility that Anfield is famous for, creating an environment in which Arsenal's self-belief can grow.

Arsenal went so far as to produce a pre-match video widely shared on social media – including on Arteta's own Instagram account – before kick-off in a bid to sharpen tempers. Sources claim Arteta was an integral part of the production. The end result was a victory that reinforced the belief in their ability to achieve this season's goals.

“It’s the best atmosphere I’ve seen all season,” Arteta said after the match. “We demanded it. We had to go to a different level and relate it again to the demands of this league. I think the players left absolutely everything.

“They put their heart and soul into every ball. I can't be more proud because I know how hard it is to beat this team, how much pain and how much you have to deal with to do what we have done with the ball.

“It was a huge game that was going to dictate where we were and where we were going to be. What the players produced was phenomenal. When they do that, I have to put my energy into it too.

“We are in contact with our employees. We tried to produce a video to tell them how much we need them. [The fans] I got the best out of every player today.”

Arsenal moved to within two points of Liverpool at the top of the table. Although City felt like the biggest winners of the day, given they can now go to the top if they win both their games in hand, Arteta now has the chance to be optimistic about his own prospects.

“We are [in the race], that's for sure,” he said. “We want to continue to be there. We've been very consistent all season, otherwise you're not where we are today.

“We take it game by game, the availability of the team is going to be crucial. We learned that from last season. Let's try to achieve that.”

Arteta played down Saka limping with 11 minutes remaining and the complete absence of Gabriel Jesus as minor issues that would need to be rectified ahead of Sunday's trip to West Ham United. It is in East London that the next test of their determination awaits.

Liverpool lost Ibrahima Konaté to a red card in the 88th minute, receiving a second yellow for a clumsy challenge on Kai Havertz, but they had already let this game slip away due to individual errors and an inability to take control as they enjoyed their best period of play. the match within 20 minutes of halftime. Klopp's side missed Dominik Szoboszlai and Mohamed Salah, struggling to produce the kind of attacking cohesion that has been at the forefront of “Liverpool 2.0”.

They now have to react to a rare setback, only their second league defeat of the season, with Burnley next.

Liverpool have the best defensive record in the division, alongside Arsenal, but the Reds now rank third for errors leading to goals (five) this season. This is a problem that cannot resurface in their game if City are to be pushed back.

“We have to play with our soul on the pitch and see where we end up,” Klopp replied.

Arsenal seem more than ever ready to put up with theirs and see where it takes them.