Bukayo Saka continued his purple stain as he scored twice to give Arsenal a 3-2 win over Liverpool at the Emirates Stadium.
It was a game that had it all, with a missed handball, injuries to key Reds starts and a controversial penalty winner as the high-flying Gunners ensure they remain at the top of the Premier League.
Gabriel Martinelli sacked Arsenal up front against Liverpool after just 58 seconds
While Gabriel Martinelli and Gabriel Jesus were once again at their best, it was Saka who shone as the Englishman continued his excellent form this season.
The 21-year-old forward has now registered three goals and four assists in his last six league games and scored the winner from the spot to beat Liverpool.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp expressed his ‘excitement’ at Arsenal’s in-form trio in his pre-match press conference on Friday.
In response, young Brazilian ace Martinelli thanked the boss for his kind words by scoring the opening goal after just 58 seconds.
Arsenal sliced through the Reds with a blistering counterattack before Martin Odegaard’s perfectly weighted pass found Martinelli, who slid coolly past Alisson.
Despite all of Arsenal’s good attacking play in the run-up to goal, Liverpool’s defense left much to be desired, with Perry Groves being particularly critical of the red line.
Mo Salah’s body language said it all after seeing his side fall behind in the first minute
“There is no closure. Virgil van Dijk is the one playing Martinelli onside, the Liverpool defense was everywhere,” he told talkSPORT.
“It’s way too easy for” Arsenal. Trent [Alexander-Arnold] just let Martinelli go and Van Dijk plays him onside.
“It’s a brilliant finish, but Liverpool’s defense is everywhere. It’s a very good start for Arsenal, but very bad for Liverpool.”
Shaken by the early setback, Liverpool quickly regrouped and looked menacing via Darwin Nunez and Luis Diaz.
Liverpool got their reward in the 34th minute when Alexander-Arnold and Diaz played together in Nunez, who scored a deserved equalizer from eight yards.
It was the summer signing’s first goal in more than two months.
Liverpool’s improvement paid off as Darwin Nunez scored the deserved equalizer
Klopp’s squad went from strength to strength and with the hosts against the ropes, Arteta looked like a man dying for the halftime whistle.
But the Liverpool defense once again became their downfall as Martinelli’s pace on the counter outweighed the limp challenges from both Alexander-Arnold and Jordan Henderson before tapping Saka in from close range on the stroke of half-time.
An exuberant Arsenal raced out of the traps in the second half and immediately went close to Odegaard.
But Arsenal were brought to a halt again eight minutes after the restart when Diogo Jota shoved in substitute Roberto Firmino, who provided a stylish corner finish to level the score.
Liverpool couldn’t cope with Arsenal’s counterattack and Saka put The Gunners back in the spotlight
Roberto Firmino’s goal was his tenth goal in this match – more than any other player
Saka shot away his penalty to win the match for Mikel Arteta’s side
If Liverpool had the better of the first half, there was no doubt that Arsenal controlled the second half.
Mikel Arteta’s men enjoyed the bulk of the property and got close to both Saka and Jesus.
But the Gunners got a helping hand for their winner when Thiago Alcantara interfered with Jesus in the area to give the hosts a penalty.
Chased by his last penalty miss at Euro 2020, Saka bravely stepped up and dispelled the ghost of Wembley by firing low past Alisson to claim his maximum points.
But the Reds will be furious as Thiago’s contact with Jesus in the penalty area was minimal, with the VAR upholding the penalty decision without sending referee Michael Oliver to take a second look.
It will add to their frustration after what appeared to be a particular handball from Gabriel was also not given as a Liverpool penalty in the first half – with the result against Arsenal leaving Liverpool in tenth place and six points behind the top four.
Watch the World Cup with talkSPORT
At talkSPORT we are powered by fans, so join us this winter for the ultimate World Cup fan experience – at the talkSPORT Fanzone.
In a huge indoor hall under the arches of Waterloo in London, we bring you live screenings of every World Cup match.
There will be Q&As with talkSPORT talent, you will be part of our live broadcasts and there will also be plenty of food and drink.
Come and enjoy the best World Cup fan experience in London – and have a pint on us – with tickets to England and Wales group stage matches on sale nowhere!
!function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s){if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod?
n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)};if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;
n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version=’2.0′;n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;
t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)}(window,
document,’script’,’
fbq(‘init’, ‘752905198150451’);
fbq(‘track’, “PageView”);