Arsenal are in the odd position of laying between title challenger and top four consolidator – no better time for a trip to Anfield, then!
Jurgen Klopp’s team have been ineffective since the beginning of the year, as teams have found a simple formula to beat them; frustrate and counter. Leicester displayed this perfectly last Monday as they sat deep and launched balls into the channels for the pacy strikers to chase.
Arsenal, of course, will likely do no such thing. We are likely to see a more defensive team, set up for the counter attack. To do this, the classic Xhaka-Coquelin double pivot has proved solid, if indisciplined, while the front four needs to be a mixture of players keen to run at their defender and player killer passes.
I would leave Alex Iwobi out of this one – he’s been ineffective and not as direct as usual. It’s the perfect game for Lucas Perez to start in, and I’d be tempted to keep Theo Walcott on the other flank.
Liverpool, meanwhile, present a strikerless attacking threat with tricky attacking midfielders galore. Preventing space in between the lines will be crucial here, as will aggressive closing down in Arsenal’s final third. Otherwise, we could well see a repeat of the opening day where Klopp’s men tore through Arsenal in devastating fashion.
