Sighhhh... that was a chess match. A very cagey affair for the most part, with both teams prioritizing a "don’t lose" mentality. Arsenal, however, leaned a bit more into this from the starting lineup. More on that later. This made it crystal clear that the game would be decided by fine margins, and boy did Szoboszlai deliver with that worldie of a free kick from 30-something yards. Some fans are talking about how Raya should’ve saved it. Really, guys? I get it—you can complain about the mistimed tackle in a dangerous area within the final 10 minutes of the game, but saying "Raya should have done better"? Maybe some folks need to watch it again and then again. The shot went in off the post, top corner. A free kick that probably doesn’t go in 7-8 times out of 10 if taken from the same spot under the exact same conditions by the same guy. Sometimes, you just have to tip your hat to the opposition when they produce moments of brilliance and say well done lad(s). That’s what big games are about.
Both managers summed it up nicely. Arne Slot said, “It was such a tight game that if played 10 times, 8 times you’d get a draw, Liverpool win once, and Arsenal win once.”
Mikel Arteta echoed a similar sentiment, saying, “They did it for a period of 15-20 minutes in the second half, and then there were no margins left, so the game was going to be decided by an individual error, which didn’t happen, or a magic moment. Unfortunately, they delivered with Szoboszlai taking an incredible free kick that gave them the game.”
The 5 Things We Need to Talk About
Now, let’s address the not-so-great parts.
Losing at Anfield for the first time in over three seasons is painful, but were we the architects of our own downfall? The answer is NO. There’s absolutely no shame in how we lost, but yeah, still gutted. Now that we’ve got that out of the way, and at the risk of jumping on the hindsight bandwagon, one question I have for Mikel Arteta is: why wait so long to bring on the attacking cavalry? It turned out to be a little too late. To be fair, the midfield trio of Merino, Rice, and Zubimendi did a good job of nullifying the KOP’s attacking threat for most of the game. Mosquera was solid at the heart of the defense alongside Gabriel. My only gripe with Arteta is that he didn’t make those changes sooner, especially as it became clear the Anfield crowd was starting to lift the Liverpool players. You could feel the tide turning just after the 60th minute. Not sure if it was the introduction of Curtis Jones for MacAllister that sparked it, but Liverpool was playing better, and Van Dijk was cutting through our midfield press with some long passes.
Eze showed us what we’d been missing during that short spell, and this isn’t meant to shade Martinelli. For all his industry—tracking back, defending, going forward—he didn’t do enough to make Szoboszlai (a makeshift right-back) uncomfortable that night. Gabby needs to shake the cobwebs off and get back to the 2022/23 Martinelli urgently.
Key Takeaways
This isn't a title decider. Even with the loss at Anfield, we’ve improved our results against Manchester United and Liverpool compared to last season. This season, we’ve got 2 points from both (2 draws), and now we have 3 points from both (1 win, 1 loss). That said, Arteta needs to take the handbrake off a little more. Hey Mikel, you now have the tools! The team barely created much for Gyokeres, and I say that because Eze, Ødegaard, and Ethan were all on the bench, while Madueke was our only outlet. His battle with Kerkez was an interesting one, with the right-back often coming out on top. It’s clear that Noni is better on the right, and our right-hand side was more threatening. Again, we need the 2022/23 Martinelli back urgently. Liverpool may be fearsome going forward with Isak joining on deadline day, but their achilles' heel could be their defense, especially now that Guehi didn’t join. They created fewer chances, were mostly contained at home, and really didn't threaten us that much. They did win, which is what counts the most, but it has to be said, their defense can still be exposed. As for us, bad news with Saliba’s injury (injury gods, please be kind), but Mosquera is looking like a steal at less than £20 million and just 21 years old. If we can keep teams at bay like we have so far this season—just one goal conceded, 6 points from 9, with two of the toughest grounds out of the way—then Arsenal’s defense could very well be the key to winning trophies this season. The million-dollar question is, how do the gunners get the best of Victor Gyokeres, Arteta, over to you!
Squad Depth & Deadline Day Deals
Let’s quickly touch on the deadline day deals. Yes, Liverpool closed the deal for Isak, but does that mean we hand them the league title now? I hope the mentality of the boys is a firm HELL NO! The squad depth is being tested, with Saliba picking up an injury to add to the tally of Havertz, NØrgaard, Saka, and Jesus. For once, the international break may be a blessing in disguise—hopefully, the lads return injury-free and ready to go. Noni, MLS, Rice, and Eze all got England call-ups, while Ødegaard was named in Norway’s squad. Fingers crossed that Saliba doesn’t play during the break... touchwood.
Before we wrap things up, let’s talk about the transfer window. As expected, deadline day saw a lot of departures from the Emirates. Reiss Nelson went to Brentford on loan, having been courted earlier by Fulham and Crystal Palace. I wish we had gotten a straight sale instead of another loan. We need to take a leaf out of Stamford Bridge’s book on how to do this—Nicolas Jackson for over £70 million in total? Really??? Chelsea is having a good laugh to the banks. Zinchenko was also loaned to Nottingham Forest, while Lokonga and Vieira joined the Bundesliga, with Hamburg securing them on loan.
The only significant fee Arsenal made from player sales was for Kiwior at less than £25M total package. Honestly, not good enough for me. But credit where credit’s due: the incomings by Andrea Berta and his team have been nothing short of outstanding. It’s been a solid 7-8/10 transfer window, though I’m still disappointed by the lack of significant return on player sales. But hey, we’re not bean counters, are we? On that note, I'd say that's it from me and the crew at #anaijagunner. Don't forget to comment, like, use the hashtag #anaijagunner, and share the post just to support the channel. Until the next one.... ciao!
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