Liverpool could move for Michael Owen following defeat to Arsenal

A fitting end to a dreadful few days in the Liverpool reign of Brendan Rodgers stemmed from a superior Arsenal display, carelessness and another error from the once formidable José Reina. But it was strikers in absentia who hogged the limelight. The Liverpool manager admitted he would never have loaned Andy Carroll to West Ham United had he foreseen Friday's non-transfer deadline day and will consider an Anfield return for Michael Owen.

Arsène Wenger appeared mildly irritated as he entered the Anfield press room having been made to wait an age to review Arsenal's first win of the season by Rodgers's inquest into Liverpool's shambolic end to the transfer window. Wenger was lucky he was not kept waiting all night. A rift has opened between the Liverpool manager and the club's owners, Fenway Sports Group, after they refused to offer more than £4m to Fulham for Clint Dempsey 24 hours after Carroll's exit and Rodgers's diplomacy could not disguise it.

Asked if he would have sanctioned Carroll's move knowing what was to come on Friday, Rodgers said only: "No." Asked how confident he was that a replacement was coming in when he allowed Carroll to go, he said: "Very." It was the admission that Owen is under consideration eight years after leaving Anfield and four months after being released by Manchester United that showed the desperation that now prevails.

"Any player that I believe can improve the squad I will look at. No question," added Rodgers. "We have a very small group – 19 players trained [on Saturday], with young players amongst that. I cannot say no." Owen has been offered a two-year contract worth a basic £1.5m a year by Stoke and can sign at any time as a free agent. Didier Drogba is not an option at presentas his contract with Shanghai Shenhua has not been cancelled.

How Arsenal revelled in Anfield's problems. Off the pitch, their supporters chanted "Andy Carroll, he would have scored that" as Jonjo Shelvey squandered a late chance. On it, the summer signings Lukas Podolski and Santi Cazorla scored Arsenal's first league goals of the season while Theo Walcott, a player Rodgers had hoped to sign and will make a renewed attempt for in January, sat on the bench throughout.

Liverpool had their moments and three penalty claims denied by the referee, Howard Webb, but otherwise no complaints at a merited defeat. This may not be the free-flowing, expansive Arsenal side of old but their midfield trio of Abou Diaby, Mikel Arteta and Santi Cazorla dominated their opponents and a third clean sheet of the season supported Wenger's conviction that the potential for vast improvement exists. Rodgers, by contrast, has yet to record a league win as Liverpool manager and this is the club's worst start after three games since 1962.

Whatever the ramifications from Liverpool's non-event of a transfer deadline day, Rodgers started with a potent lineup improved from last Sunday's draw with Manchester City by the return from suspension of Daniel Agger and the full debut of Nuri Sahin. Fabio Borini put efforts high and wide, Agger should have done better with a free header from a Steven Gerrard corner and Raheem Sterling spun and shot against the outside of the post after a knockdown from the Liverpool captain.

Gerrard's attempt at a first-time pass to Luis Suárez deep into Arsenal territory was to have damaging consequences, however. Podolski intercepted it and played a good ball through to Cazorla before sprinting half the length of the pitch for the return. Cazorla, calmness and awareness personified, delivered the return Podolski's effort deserved and the German international buried Arsenal's first league goal under Reina into the far corner of the goal in front of the Kop.

Olivier Giroud then wasted a clear chance to open his Arsenal account before Cazorla put the game beyond Liverpool. Again it was easily avoidable. The Spain international compounded a bad week for Liverpool and Reina – guilty of a poor error against Hearts in midweek – when he exchanged passes with Podolski and tried his luck with a shot hard and low. The ball flew under his compatriot's grasp and in.

Rodgers said: "The goals we conceded had nothing to do with systems or style, or the tactical element. We gave the ball away for the first goal and didn't do well enough to stop the shot. The second goal, we had enough bodies behind the ball to defend the goal. These are the hard yards you have to put in early on but I wouldn't change it for anything."

Liverpool had appealed loud but in vain for second half penalties when Per Mertesacker wrestled with Suárez and when the ball hit Thomas Vermaelen's arm, but rarely threatened a recovery. It was, in the grand scheme of things, the least of Rodgers's concerns.

As he explained: "It is a learning process for the owners as well. They have come in and invested well over £100m and then they have made the change for whatever reason and one of the most iconic figures in the club's history has left. They made the change and made a big commitment to have me here for the longer term.

"I have a group of people I worked well with and the owners have been very up front and honest with me. I have no problem with that. There are obviously one or two things we need to iron out but the owners have been very honest and haven't misled me in any way whatsoever. There are operational things we need to sort out and if we do that, that will help us in the next transfer window.

"I have spoken to people back in America since Friday. They have my thoughts. We move on and will reflect on it next week. The reality is not a lot is done in January but we certainly need help."
He would not expand any further. "It's gone," said Rodgers on the issue of Carroll, who can be recalled by Liverpool in January. The optimism and tranquillity he had hoped to find at Anfield has vanished too.

Man of the match: Abou Diaby (Arsenal)

Source: Andy Hunter, The Guardian on 2 Sep 12

Champion signings inspire Arsenal

Remember the date, but remember the goals, their style, their scorers and their significance too. It is not often Arsenal wait until September for their first strike of the season but a belated opener was not simply a statistical oddity. Lukas Podolski's effort was the first goal scored by one of Arsene Wenger's summer signings and the first since Robin van Persie decamped for Manchester United. Santi Cazorla's second sealed a victory to kick-start Arsenal's campaign with class.

Mentions of the departed Dutchman have been a constant and memories are not wiped overnight, but this was evidence there is life after Van Persie. Podolski's pace and Cazorla's quality are highlights of the new-look Arsenal. The addition of a clinical finisher on the left wing, something of a problem position last season, is one improvement; the arrival of a creator-in-chief to operate in the striker's slipstream another. Given Van Persie's brilliant brace at Anfield last season, the Spaniard's virtuoso display came in fitting surroundings.

And while Arsenal waited until September to get a goal, patience is a virtue Wenger often exhibits. He waited a year to get his man. Cazorla, first targeted last summer, was signed 12 months later and has slotted in seamlessly. "Everybody understood very quickly that Cazorla would not take six months to settle," Wenger said. He had impressed from his first silken touch but, importantly, a side who had prospered in possession against Sunderland and Stoke had an end product.

Goals do not just change games; they alter perceptions, seasons even. The suggestions Arsenal lacked ambition have less credence now. Any side constructed around Cazorla, the diminutive maestro, cannot be called mundane. Wenger's obstinacy and his husbandry may frustrate but he is in the black in 2012 and the fans' bête noire, Abou Diaby, provided a belated vindication of his manager's faith with a performance of unexpected excellence. There were hints of Patrick Vieira when the Frenchman strode purposefully from box to box. The failure to recruit Nuri Sahin, who spurned Arsenal for Liverpool, seemed less of a loss as the Turk endured an awkward debut.

The focus on the luminaries leaving the Emirates Stadium rather obscured the £40 million overhaul Wenger has given his side in the final third. Two of his three newcomers combined for the opener, Cazorla angling a pass in behind Glen Johnson for the advancing Podolski to dispatch his shot crisply. "Podolski is deadly when you give him a chance," said his manager. He has 44 goals for Germany and, now, one for Arsenal. Wenger rarely signs the finished article, but few have arrived at Arsenal with greater pedigree.

But it was a pattern that should concern Liverpool as they were carved open on the counter-attack. Ten minutes later, Diaby combined power and finesse with a forceful run and a deft pass. Olivier Giroud, the third of the costly newcomers, should have scored but sent his shot into the Kop. Still, two out of three ain't bad and with Podolski the provider, Cazorla became a scorer.

It was actually an elaborate one-two with the Spaniard evading Jonjo Shelvey before drilling a shot that Pepe Reina fumbled into his own net. The goalkeeper has completed the wrong sort of hat-trick, erring in three successive games, but focusing on his failings ignores the excellent build-up. "We could have done better with the second goal," Brendan Rodgers said.

While the Northern Irishman detected "some good signs", there was much they could have done better. Susceptible to the counter - attack at one end - Arsenal were able to find space behind Johnson - they were also overpowered in midfield, where Sahin and Joe Allen lack Diaby's imposing physique. Their most profitable avenue was the left flank: Raheem Sterling struck the post and capitalised on some rather nervy defending by both Carl Jenkinson and Per Mertesacker. And yet Arsenal have the immaculate defensive record, three games without conceding, and while stand-in goalkeeper Vito Mannone may not inspire confidence, their defiance was epitomised by the terrific Thomas Vermaelen, reacting quickest when he parried Shelvey's shot to deny Steven Gerrard a tap-in.

Rewind twelve months and Wenger's side conceded eight goals in their third game. That was a historic low for them, officially their worst defensive display for 115 years, and, statistically, this is one for Liverpool. On what would have been Bill Shankly's 99th birthday, Liverpool made it their worst start for half a century since the Scot's first year in the top flight. They can take hope from their conquerors' recent past. A year ago, Arsenal were supposedly in crisis, only to be rallied and rescued by Van Persie. Champions League football was his legacy and, in Cazorla, Arsenal have secured a champion signing.

MAN OF THE MATCH: Abou Diaby - Excellent as Cazorla was, Diaby was a revelation. Injuries meant he did not start a single league game last season but he has begun this campaign brilliantly. "He is a tremendous football player," said Wenger. "Now he looks physically in a good shape. There is more to come from him."

LIVERPOOL VERDICT: One regret may be that the definitive Rodgers player was in the visitors' side; Cazorla would suit the manager's style of play perfectly. A more pressing problem is the lack of forward options. No sooner had Stewart Downing been rebranded a left back than he was introduced on the right wing; none of Liverpool's other substitutes can play in the front three. The spearhead, Suarez, appealed for a series of penalties, and had one very plausible claim but, for the second successive Sunday, he and Fabio Borini were both profligate. In goal, Reina's form must be a cause for concern, though there is no plausible alternative.

ARSENAL VERDICT: Excellent. Wenger could, and should, make his side even stronger by bringing the substitute Laurent Koscielny back in, either for Jenkinson or Mertesacker. The giant German began poorly, though he redeemed himself with a superbly-timed challenge to dispossess Sterling in the box. Despite the failure to sign Sahin, Wenger outlined a plethora of midfield options. While not a conventional holding player, Mikel Arteta is playing the holding player with elegant efficiency, allowing the more athletic Diaby to bound forward. Of the three summer signings, only the wasteful Giroud is a worry.

Source: Richard Jolly, ESPN Soccernet on 2 Sep 12

A Premier League of ups, downs and outs leaves a legacy of flaws

The Champions League finalists finish sixth in the league, Manchester United lose an eight-point lead and Manchester City lose five away games but end up winners

It was the flaws that made for an engrossing Premier League season. Even Manchester City, on their path to the prize, contrived to lose five away games. The new champions will scarcely be in anguish now but such results emphasised that this, to put it kindly, has been a transitional campaign.

One ought to marvel that Manchester United got so close to retaining the title. Expenditure in the transfer market has increased by comparison with earlier periods under the ownership of the Glazers but the outlay still seems relatively small when set against the scale of the club itself. That policy leaves United with a capable team rather than an enthralling one.

No one, for instance, assumes that either Antonio Valencia or Ashley Young, the wingers employed against Sunderland on Sunday, is going to be ranked with Cristiano Ronaldo, who moved from Old Trafford to the Bernabéu in 2009, when he was 24. There can be no claim that his best years had been in the service of United.

In the weekend win it always looked as if Wayne Rooney alone could settle the outcome, as he did. United are not alone in being a prominent side that is, for the moment, best suited to domestic consumption. The last 16 of the Champions League contained only two English sides. Arsenal were eliminated by Milan then and, while Chelsea will meet Bayern Munich in the final, the Stamford Bridge team have come sixth in the Premier League.

In the case of Arsenal one wonders if a touch of panic might be of assistance. Arsène Wenger seems so patient that trophies are still a remote consideration. Depth, for instance, was needed in attack but the transfer of Lukas Podolski from Cologne was agreed only recently. Had another forward arrived sooner, Arsenal would have enjoyed the option, on occasion, of selecting the excellent Robin van Persie as a schemer instead of a spearhead.

It might, all the same, be perverse to dwell on that sort of issue when half the teams in this season's Premier League have had a better defensive record in away matches than Arsenal. For a club of their standing, references to the injury troubles of Thomas Vermaelen do not amount to a satisfactory explanation. Indeed the side lost 4-0 away to Milan when the Belgian was in the line-up.

Vulnerability at even the mighty clubs has intensified the drama of the Premier League. Instead of being the resourceful, steely side of former days, United could find nothing better to do with an eight-point lead than discard it while losing, for instance, at Wigan Athletic and allowing Everton to recover from 4-2 down to draw at Old Trafford.

Nemanja Vidic suffered a grave injury against Basel in December but one would expect United to cope better at critical times, even if their points tally for the season was still large. Chelsea have suffered a greater fall from grace and, given the switch from the unsuccessful André Villas-Boas to the interim head coach Roberto Di Matteo, the improvisatory tone has been inescapable.

There is a craving at Stamford Bridge to see Fernando Torres flourish but the striker instead seems like the embodiment of the Premier League nowadays. He holds the promise of excellence but it is not fulfilled often enough. So it is, incongruously, that a 34-year-old Didier Drogba can look the principal hope for Chelsea, with agitation at the likelihood that he will leave.

Elsewhere the general state of affairs at Stamford Bridge would be envied. Liverpool have made a modest advance by taking the League Cup after a penalty shoot-out with Cardiff City and getting to an FA Cup final won by Chelsea, but it is too much to ask that Steven Gerrard single-handedly supplies the verve in midfield.

Tottenham Hotspur have come fourth, denying Newcastle United the prospect of Champions League football, but their stadium is not big enough to help generate the levels of income that would enhance the squad markedly. Beyond the current circumstances there is a difficulty in telling what we ought to anticipate from the Premier League in the near future.

Touches of austerity can be spotted, even if City are unacquainted with them. Should the forthcoming financial fair play measures have the profound effect sought by Uefa, we could see a dip in glamour that is more than offset by the rise in competitiveness. As it is, the elite have not seemed quite so aloof even if City will be sure that their era is only beginning.

Source: Kevin McCarra, The Guardian on 15 May 12

Comeback kings Arsenal hope to do same to Milan in Champions League

Arsenal are the new comeback kings after spectacular second-half recoveries against Tottenham and, on Saturday, Liverpool. Robin van Persie scored both the visitors' goals – the second in added time – to snatch a 2-1 win at Anfield after a game in which they had been outplayed for long periods.

The result leaves Arsène Wenger in better heart than he would ever have expected for Tuesday night's mission impossible: overturning a four-goal, first-leg deficit against Milan in the Champions League. "Our job now is to make the impossible possible on Tuesday," the Arsenal manager said. "Maybe we were a bit lucky in beating Liverpool, but we will take results where we can and we have significantly improved our position in the last week. This result gets us away from Liverpool in a substantial way and we have shown in the last two games that we have the quality to produce something special when we need to win matches."

The something special at Anfield was a sensational 92nd-minute winner from Van Persie, a goal of such sublime elegance that it only emphasised Liverpool's deficiencies in the finishing department.

Wenger and Van Persie accepted that Liverpool dominated the game, yet even though Arsenal produced fewer goal attempts, more of them were on target. "We could have been two or three goals down at half-time," Wenger said. "The second half was more level, but we were lucky not to have been killed off by then. Liverpool are a very good side and it just shows how difficult this league is, how hard it is to even claim fourth place, but when you have a quality striker like Robin van Persie in your side you always have a chance. He is up there with the best players in the world at the moment and I am very proud of the way he has become the leader of the team."

Wenger knows he cannot talk in such a manner without being asked questions about Arsenal's ability to keep hold of a player whose contract runs out next season and who is now admired by all the leading teams in Europe, so he was ready with the standard reply. "You can never afford to lose a player of that quality," he said, diplomatically. "Of course we will do anything possible to keep him, I have said that many times already."

The Arsenal manager said his goalkeeper also made the difference against Liverpool, Wojciech Szczesny saving a first-half penalty, and both players echoed Wenger's view that the visitors had ridden their luck.

"We were getting killed in the first half," Szczesny said. "We enjoyed the second half a lot more." Van Persie was even more self-deprecating. "I don't think we deserved it to be honest," he said. "Liverpool played better than we did but we nicked it at the end."

If that verdict does not do justice to the excellence of Arsenal's winning goal, Van Persie was at least willing to pay tribute to the team-mate who supplied the pass. Alex Song had been the provider for Van Persie's previous goal of the season contender against Everton, and the Holland striker said the midfielder's vision was at least as good as his finish. "It was another unbelievable pass from Alex," Van Persie said. "He's a really good player. He can see it and he can do it as well."

Source: Paul Wilson, The Guardian on 3 Mar 12

Arsenal edge out Liverpool with injury-time goal from Robin van Persie

Robin van Persie has waited a long time to score at Liverpool and will remember both of the goals that earned Arsenal the points here. His first is the only goal he has scored with his head this season; his second was a winner in the second minute of added time that will rank as one of the best strikes of his career, even though he makes a habit of unanswerable finishes. This volley was not quite in the Marco van Basten class of spectacular, nor was it as jaw-droppingly sumptuous as the one Van Persie scored against Everton this season, but it was a gloriously instinctive piece of skill that silenced Anfield just when it seemed a ninth home draw of the season was on the cards.

It was almost a carbon copy of his goal against Everton, even down to Alex Song providing the pass, though given the stage for the game and the significance of the victory in the race for fourth place in the Premier League, this was a cause for greater celebration.

Having gone ahead through an own goal and missed another penalty, Liverpool were probably only worth a point, but when Van Persie reached on to Song's long ball forward in stoppage time they were denied even that. There could be no argument against such a decisive score and there was little time left in any case. Van Persie hit the ball as it dropped over his shoulder and surprised Pepe Reina with his speed of thought rather than the power or placement of his shot.

"When you see the ball landing at Van Persie's feet you can always expect something special," Arsène Wenger said. "With a striker of that quality in the side you always have a chance until you are killed off. Our goalkeeper and centre forward made the difference today because we were not in the game in the first half. One-one at the interval flattered us."

Liverpool should have gone in front after 17 minutes of an eventful first half when Luis Suárez won a penalty, tumbling over Wojciech Szczesny's outstretched leg after pushing the ball past the goalkeeper. There was some doubt about the amount of contact – and at least a suggestion that Suárez was looking to go down – but it appeared that a foul had been committed so the referee, Mark Halsey, pointed to the spot. Perhaps significantly, he took no further action against the Arsenal goalkeeper, who could have been dismissed but stayed on the field to save his side twice over from Dirk Kuyt's penalty.

First Szczesny dived to his right to keep out the spot-kick, then flung himself to his left to palm away the follow-up, which Kuyt might have been better to leave to the better-placed Jordan Henderson. "The second was the save of the game," said Arsène Wenger. "I wasn't happy about the referee's decision originally, but I heard television had shown it was a penalty."

Szczesny's good work was wasted six minutes later, when he was beaten by one of his own defenders. Liverpool had put together a good passing move, with Jay Spearing and Stewart Downing launching Henderson down the right wing. The eventual cross was nothing special and, from a good position to intercept, Laurent Koscielny came up with a finish better than any of the home strikers would have managed, smacking the ball past his keeper under no particular pressure.

Following up after Szczesny had pushed out a shot from Henderson, Suárez hit a post as Liverpool enjoyed their best spell, but just as Arsenal seemed to be struggling to contain their opponents they drew level, with a goal of clinical quality produced out of nothing.

Bacary Sagna was allowed all the time he required to arrow in a pinpoint cross from the right that took Martin Skrtel out of the equation and left Van Persie with the relatively straightforward task of staying in front of Jamie Carragher and heading the ball past Reina from the six-yard line for what was his 30th goal of the season.

Suárez was unlucky towards the end of the first half when he turned Thomas Vermaelen inside out only to see Szczesny just reach his shot, then Liverpool hit the woodwork again just before the interval when Kuyt touched on Charlie Adam's cross. Liverpool have been denied by the goal-frame more often than any other Premier League club this season and while some will say that shows the extent of their attacking intent, others would suggest there is room for improvement in their finishing.

Arsenal lost Mikel Arteta with a neck injury at the start of the second half after an accidental collision with Henderson, but continued to hold their own against a Liverpool midfield that lacked Steven Gerrard, injured while playing for England in midweek.

They might have taken the lead on 70 minutes when Theo Walcott's shot took a late deflection off Skrtel to bring a sharp reaction save from Reina, though they could also have gone behind at around the same stage in the game. Kuyt's excellent cross from the right fell to Martin Kelly, at the far post, who finished like a full-back suffering a nosebleed from being too high up the pitch.

To his credit, Kenny Dalglish did not attempt to claim an injustice had taken place or that Liverpool were only beaten by a wonder strike. "The scoreline didn't reflect the game, but that was our own fault," the Liverpool manager said. "We played well and did enough to have won, but we were beaten because we didn't score enough goals when we were dominating the game. The result was the only disappointing thing. The next lesson we need to learn might be how to be ugly and win."

Source: Paul Wilson, The Guardian on 3 Mar 12

Wenger's reaction to the Liverpool 1-2 Arsenal match

on what the victory means…
It was vital for us to win the game. Liverpool had a very good first half and we were not in the game - what was flattering for us was to be 1-1 at half time. The second half was much more level. We had some good chances as well, they had maybe one from Martin Kelly. But they had no clear-cut chances in the second half. They had to win the game, and we know that we have Van Persie who can deliver something special. Overall it was not one of our best games, but we refused to give in and we played as well as we could. Our goalkeeper and centre forward made the difference.

on playing better in the second half…
I don't know why. It is down to the quality of Liverpool [in the first half] and everybody was away the whole week [on international duty]. Song came back on Friday morning, Gervinho and Benayoun as well. Liverpool played with a rhythm and pace above us in the first half and our fluency was not there at all, we gave them too much room. But as long as you are not killed off in the Premier League, you always have a chance as every team has quality strikers to score goals.

on Wojciech Szczesny's performance…
It is good that he had a performance like that, because he had a little bit of a difficult period in January. He has shown his potential and I like that he was brave as well. He had a lot of kicking to do and a lot of coming out to do, and he didn't make a mistake. At 21 years old he is a great talent, he is learning his job but because he is a great talent, he learns quickly.

on Robin van Persie's value…
I must say we will do anything to keep him. I cannot say much more because I have said that many times. I am very proud that he has grown after having seen him arriving here timid, and today being the player and leader he has become. He is playing under big pressure in every game because he knows he has to score. He has shown exceptional development, not only as a player but as a human being. He is up there with the best players in the world.

on Mikel Arteta's injury…
As I sit here now, he is in hospital at the moment and we have no news.

on Abou Diaby…
The bad news of the day is that Diaby is injured and did his hamstring. Benayoun has a small hamstring problem, Gibbs has a problem. We look decimated after the game. I don't know who will be available on Tuesday night. Maybe I will play with six strikers as we have to score goals!

on Liverpool's penalty…
I wasn't happy but then I have been told it was a penalty on television. I haven't seen it yet. [The follow-up save from Kuyt's penalty] was the save of the game from Wojciech.

on trying to catch Tottenham…
I always said the target this season was to be in the top four. Mathematically it is possible, but let's go step by step and see what happens. When you see that Liverpool - who I believe are a very, very good team - are seventh in the league, it shows how difficult it is in this league, how big the battle is for the top four and how each game can change very quickly.

Source: Arsenal.com on 3 Mar 12

3 March 2012: Liverpool 1-2 Arsenal, Anfield

Robin van Persie scored a stunning last-minute volley as Arsenal snatched a crucial victory at Liverpool on Saturday.

The Dutchman powered home his 25th Premier League goal of the campaign as Arsène Wenger’s side became the first team to win at Anfield this season.

The goal was an incredible twist in an unlikely tale. Arsenal were under pressure in the first half and would have gone behind but for Wojciech Szczesny’s wonderful penalty save from Dirk Kuyt.

Laurent Koscielny’s own goal did give the hosts the lead but Arsenal equalised quickly when Van Persie powered home a header from Bacary Sagna’s cross.

Parity did not change the game, Liverpool were still piling on the pressure. At the start of the second half, Arsenal also lost Mikel Arteta and his replacement Abou Diaby to injury. But, this afternoon, Wenger’s side rolled up their sleeves and dug in. They were not at their best but good things happen to enterprising teams who try hard.

Last week’s derby win should have told us everything about Arsenal’s capabilities. Yes, Van Persie's goal was against the tide and 'stolen' but, even when they are under pressure, you should never underestimate Wenger’s men.

This was another massive win for Arsenal.

At his pre-match press conference, the manager had harboured major doubts over the involvement of Van Persie and Thomas Vermaelen after they had played midweek international duty despite feeling the after-effects of Sunday’s win over Tottenham. In the end both started

Alex Song had himself featured for Cameroon in midweek and arrived back so late that his manager had not even seen him when he spoke to the media on Friday. But he started as well.

It meant that this team was the same as the one that had run-in five goals to overwhelm Tottenham last weekend.

However the return of Diaby on the bench was significant. The midfielder had only featured in two games all season.

Last Sunday, while the Arsenal fans were still celebrating that derby win, Steven Gerrard had been lifting the Carling Cup at Wembley.

The Liverpool captain did the same thing just before kick-off this afternoon but he missed the game through injury.

Anfield saw bright sunshine and driving rain just before kick-off. It was kind of fitting given both side’s up-and-down fortunes this term. But the pair came into this game with a warm feeling of success from last weekend.

Liverpool started the better but Arsenal would have the best opportunity in the opening stages.

A long ball over the top caught out the home defence on eight minutes and Walcott’s cross-shot surprised the flat-footed Pepe Reina.

Shortly afterwards, Koscielny slipped under pressure from Luis Suarez and Szczesny had to head the ball clear both from the Uruguayan striker and Stewart Downing’s follow-up.

It was the start of a Liverpool barrage that would only be quelled by some desperate Arsenal defending.

Henderson stole the ball and went hunting forward with Suarez. Only a timely intervention from Kieran Gibbs snuffed out the danger.

Then Sagna hooked the ball clear at the last second as Downing roared through.

Liverpool were cranking up the pressure and that Walcott effort now looked increasingly incongruent.

In the 18th minute, the home side would have the perfect opportunity to take the lead when Szczesny was adjudged to have clipped Suarez on the left of the area.

The keeper was clearly unhappy with the decision but he would redeem himself

First he threw himself to his right to brilliantly block Kuyt’s initial effort. The ball bounced straight back to the Dutchman but Szczesny raced across his line to claw the second effort away.

Surely, the saves of the season for Arsenal.

You felt it might be a crucial moment and immediately Liverpool lapsed into a lull – both on the pitch and off it - for perhaps the first time in the game.

However they would soon be handed the initiative once again. In the 23rd minute, Jordan Henderson found acres of space on the right and sent a low cross to the near post. Koscielny tried to nudge the ball out but he only succeeding in slicing the ball into his own net.

You could not argue that Liverpool deserved their goal. A minute later it was nearly 2-0. Szczesny’s fine save from Henderson flew to Suarez at the far post.

His drive bounced back off the post.

Arsenal were struggling to hold off Liverpool and needed an urgent lift.

It arrived just past the half-hour when Sagna curled in a cross from the right and Van Persie got in front of Jamie Carragher to head home at the near post.

It was a very simple goal but it did not turn the tide.

Liverpool were still on top and might have scored twice before the interval. Five minutes from the whistle, Saurez showed superb skill to dance past three Arsenal defenders before trying to sneak a low shot into the far corner.

Szczesny got down quickly to fingertip the ball behind.

The Polish keeper was Arsenal’s stand-out player of the first half. But he was nearly beaten seconds before the break when Charlie Adam arrowed a low ball across the area and Kuyt’s touch at the near post trickled the ball onto the far upright.

Arsenal cleared the danger and went into the break thankful to be at parity.

The sting was taken out the second half with lengthy stoppage after Downing accidentally collided with Arteta.

The Spaniard came off much the worse and was stretchered off with an oxygen mask strapped to his face. He would end the day in hospital.

Diaby, who had played just 18 minutes of first-team football this season, came on.

The Frenchman force a save with virtually his first touch. Shortly afterwards, Walcott hoisted a hurried effort over the bar.

If anything, the break had affected Liverpool more than Arsenal but they gradually moved through the gears to regain control.

On the hour, Szczesny had claw away Martin Skrtel’s knockdown as Martin Kelly bore down on goal.

In the 69th minute, the full-back should have put his side back in front but he somehow failed to convert Kuyt’s low cross from point-blank range at the far post.

Arsenal were under pressure again but they might have taken the lead when Song fed Gibbs on the left. He found Walcott close the penalty spot. The Englishman’s shot found its way through a crowded area and Reina booted the ball away.

Wenger replaced Yossi Benayoun with Gervinho on the left. It was an attacking change in a game that was becoming increasingly stretched.

Ten minutes from time Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain came on for Diaby and took up an advanced role in central midfield.

By now, the visitors now seemed set on protecting what they had. You could not blame them given the pressure they had been under.

But they were working hard and they fought with guts and character. That allowed a moment of class to steal the points.

As he had so often this season, Song provided a superb assist, lofting a ball into the left-hand channel for the Dutchman.

The angle was acute but Van Persie produced a sidefoot shot that fizzed past Reina at his near post.

The points belonged to Arsenal thanks to another stunning comeback.

Wenger's men have now won their last four Premier League games - the final three having trailed at some point.

The Frenchman is known for the fluency of his side's football but, when on days when that does not happen, you have to rely sheer, undiluted desire to secure your points.

Arsenal had that in abundance at Anfield this afternoon.

Source: Richard Clarke, Arsenal.com on 3 Mar 12

Liverpool show Arsène Wenger and Arsenal some uncomfortable truths

The player in the bowels of the Emirates Stadium radiated conviction. Arsenal would pick themselves up, he predicted, because Arsène Wenger knew. An unfortunate selection crisis had served to offer a skewed impression of the team, which Liverpool had exploited to ignite their own season.

Do not forget, he added, that Arsenal were the only club who threatened to stop Manchester United towards the end of last season's Premier League. "I certainly don't think that Arsenal are a spent force or anything like that," he said. "I certainly wouldn't be writing off Arsenal."

The fighting talk, though, came in Jamie Carragher's unmistakable tones. The Liverpool captain had ignored the large target and chosen not to put the boot in. Call it professionalism, experience or, whisper it, sympathy. It almost felt too easy to kick Arsenal on Saturday.

As Carragher spoke, Arsenal's traumatised players walked by, eyes fixed on the floor or, trance-like, into the middle distance. They had nothing to say, no reassurances for the supporters, but who could blame them? It would have misjudged the mood to play up the positives, such as the excellence of Wojciech Szczesny and Thomas Vermaelen or the swaggering promise of Emmanuel Frimpong. And with emotions running high, some of them might even have said the wrong things – like how they truly felt about the direction of the club.

Wenger had, as always, appealed for calm and perspective. He lamented, as always, the knee-jerk world of the Premier League, in which "every defeat is absolutely a disgrace and an earthquake". But it said much that he was forced to field questions about whether he could envisage himself quitting. He cannot. The Frenchman offered a reminder that it was only the start of the season yet the coming week has the capacity to derail it for his club. The Champions League play-off second leg at Udinese on Wednesday is fraught with peril. An away goal would surely send Arsenal through but a big problem for Wenger's team so far has been in the final third, where penetration and cutting edge have, strangely, been absent. Then comes Sunday's visit to Old Trafford, where defeat would leave them with one Premier League point from a possible nine and swimming against the tide for the title.

Arsenal finished Saturday's game with 10 men after the ticking time-bomb that was Frimpong went off. Having gone for short sides at the barber's shop for an eye-catching full Premier League debut look, he always looked like leaving his side short after he was booked in the eighth minute for inexplicably getting in Jordan Henderson's face as the Liverpool midfielder went to take a throw-in.

Frimpong's lunge at Lucas Leiva on 70 minutes was ugly enough for a straight red, rather than a second yellow. He was given a standing ovation by the home crowd, who also got behind Samir Nasri, a surprise starter here despite his desire to leave. These are desperate times.

Kenny Dalglish immediately sent on Luis Suárez and Raul Meireles, below, who would be involved in both goals, while Wenger introduced Henri Lansbury for only his second Premier League appearance, for the dismal Andrey Arshavin. Wenger had given Premier League debuts to Carl Jenkinson and Ignasi Miquel, who came on for the injured Laurent Koscielny, while his team that finished included Nicklas Bendtner, another player he is prepared to sell.

The young players gave everything but there was, inevitably, a costly mistake when Miquel's attempted clearance, under pressure from Suárez, who had looked offside in the build-up, ricocheted off Aaron Ramsey for a freakish own-goal. Wenger stood accused of exposing too much inexperience to such a high-pressure game and it was worth considering that Gaël Clichy, Emmanuel Eboué and Denílson, three players he has moved on this summer, would surely have featured if they were still at the club.

"I don't think the decision on the offside depends on our players," Wenger said. "We were a bit young, I agree, and we looked a bit naive in some situations, I agree as well. But we have shown a great spirit and we were really unlucky. We didn't deserve to lose."

Wenger maintains that he will add only players who can improve the quality of his squad yet he appears to have lost confidence in Sébastien Squillaci, who was absent on Saturday because of a mystery calf problem. If top Premier League clubs need four central defenders, then the task to find someone better than Squillaci ought not to be beyond him. Unless he intends to rely on Miquel.

Robin Van Persie missed a glorious chance on 69 minutes but Liverpool should have been in front by then and, after Frimpong's dismissal, they found a way through. "It's always been a complaint about the bench at Liverpool," Carragher said, "but to have the quality we did to come on [Suárez and Meireles] was instrumental in us killing the game. It just shows that substitutes are massive."
Arsenal's need for established reinforcements is glaring.

Source: David Hytner, The Guardian on 21 Aug 11

Arsenal's Arsène Wenger appeals for calm after Liverpool defeat

The Arsenal manager needs to dispel the mounting sense that the club are in for the toughest season of his reign

Appealing for calm, Arsène Wenger said: "We live in circumstances where every defeat is absolutely a disgrace – an earthquake." But there was no mistaking the tremors after Liverpool's 2-0 victory as the Arsenal manager's troubled team face the second leg of a Champions League qualifier against Udinese on Wednesday and a visit to Manchester United at the weekend.

Cesc Fábregas is kissing his new badge in Barcelona, Samir Nasri's move to Manchester City is still expected to go through and the 19-year-old Emmanuel Frimpong joined Alex Song and Gervinho in the suspension pen by spoiling a promising performance in central midfield with some ludicrously aggressive tackling.

With three players banned and six injured, Wenger calls on youth and promise to dispel the mounting sense that Arsenal are in for the toughest season of his 15-year reign. Beauty's glow is no longer visible above their home and Nasri, whose commitment here never wavered, has a new set of reasons to tell his agents to stop haggling over their fees and force through his transfer to City.

Reports in France claimed the Nasri deal had broken down but after a 0-0 draw at Newcastle and a home defeat to Kenny Dalglish's Liverpool, he is unlikely to turn down a £60,000-a-week pay rise and stick around in London while Frimpong learns some self-control and Wenger patches up an ailing squad.

"If we decide to sell him [Nasri] we'll do it and we have to stand up for it, but at the moment I'm glad he's here," Wenger said.

Some order may return with Jack Wilshere, Abou Diaby, Kieran Gibbs, Johan Djourou and Laurent Koscielny, who went off after 15 minutes with back spasms – plus Song, Gervinho and Frimpong – but for now Wenger is left to correct the impression of serious malfunction across his operation. As the transfer window closes, few elite players across Europe will see Arsenal as a coming force, however much Wenger sticks to his mantra of eternal promise.

When Frimpong jumped into Lucas Leiva's leg in front of the referee Martin Atkinson, who had already booked him in the first half, a familiar inability to match actions with consequences was apparent in Wenger's young and stressed XI. When the substitute Henri Lansbury was booked after coming on for Andrey Arshavin, who was dreadful, the young replacement yelled at Atkinson and jabbed his finger aggressively: a level of dissent that could have earned him a second yellow card.

Anxiety is bound to afflict a side who have failed to score in their first two league games for the first time in 42 years, yet there is repeated evidence of some Arsenal players failing to repay the loyalty shown by their manager, who has spent the six trophy-less years since 2005 promising the fans that these are men of real stature.

Liverpool exploited the numerical advantage stemming from Frimpong's dismissal by forcing an Aaron Ramsey own goal and then closing out the game with a Luis Suárez tap-in in the final minutes. Wenger blamed Frimpong's "lack of experience" but also spoke of his "enthusiasm and heart".

An admirer of Michael Essien, his fellow Ghanaian, Frimpong brings thrust and menace to Arsenal's midfield, too long a refuge for players who can decorate but not shape a game. More than once he neglected to track a runner and was shouted at by Thomas Vermaelen for not showing for the ball when Arsenal's best defender was under pressure. But he does offer flashes of hunger and steel: qualities that will be useful to his team only if he can confine his studs to the turf.

With a depleted squad, Wenger was obliged to summon at right-back Carl Jenkinson, who had played nine times for Charlton before earning a move here over the summer. Again, Jenkinson has promise, but many fans now detest that word. They saw Fábregas high-stepping it back to Barcelona, read about Nasri's restlessness and want decisive action in the transfer market to alleviate the sense of regression.

The problem is that Wenger has no great reserve of faith to draw on. After six years without a trophy his senior players have become accustomed to hiding behind the beautiful football excuse and the youngest are being asked to compete with United, City, Chelsea and Liverpool without the bedding-in period that was available to previous generations.

Wenger will demand more from Arshavin (who appears to have lost all interest), Theo Walcott and Ramsey, and would doubtless like Marouane Chamakh to justify his reputation. But imagine the ennui around this stadium when Nicklas Bendtner jogged on ahead of Chamakh for the last 10 minutes as Arsenal's last goal-scoring hope. Wenger can escape another "earthquake" – a further "disgrace", as he puts it – by sliding past Udinese in Italy. Whichever linguistic tricks he tries, though, the Emirates is shaking.

Source: Paul Hayward, The Guardian on 20 Aug 11

Luis Suárez and unlucky Aaron Ramsey give Liverpool win at Arsenal

For the second week in succession, Arsenal had a man sent off and failed to score a goal, but for Arsène Wenger at the moment, it never rains but it pours. Just as a patched-together Arsenal side seemed likely to hold out for another draw, after being held in the goalless opener at Newcastle, a freakish own goal handed Liverpool three points they barely deserved, the unfortunate Aaron Ramsey's match-changing moment a smack in the face for his manager.

Kenny Dalglish will not be complaining about that, though there was more evidence here that, in addition to paying over the odds for Andy Carroll, he may not be able to build a side around the powerfully built centre-forward as quickly as he may have imagined. Liverpool barely looked like breaking the deadlock here until the £35m former Newcastle player was taken off.

By the end, with Arsenal losing their composure, the visitors were able to add insult to injury with a second goal, in the final minute, their two substitutes combining for the second time in their short spell on the pitch to leave Luis Suárez with a tap-in.

Jamie Carragher admitted afterwards that being held at home last week had been a downer for everyone at the club and, though this result will provide a tonic, the margin by which Liverpool improved when Suárez and Raul Meireles came on, midway through the second half, was revealing, though allowance ought to be made for the fact they were now playing against 10 men. Yet, for more than an hour, even with Arsenal reduced to fielding a rookie centre-half after Laurent Koscielny limped off after 17 minutes, Carroll's predictability failed to pose them any major problems.

"We just about deserved to win," Dalglish said. "We have a stronger squad than last season and, when you have two substitutes of that quality to bring on, they deserve the chance to make a difference. It wasn't easy, but at least our season is up and running now. It was a better performance than last week and we didn't concede a goal. The new players have had a week to settle in and we are beginning to see what they are capable of."

Wenger was less impressed, not without reason. He lost two more players, and thought the crucial goal should have been disallowed. "With a sending-off and an offside goal, the result was very harsh on us," the Arsenal manager said.

Surprisingly, Wenger turned out not to have been joking when he hinted Samir Nasri might play. The supposedly Manchester City-bound Frenchman not only appeared in midfield, he seemed perfectly happy to do so. People have been saying all summer that Wenger is too careful with his money, yet here he was taking a bold gamble with a chip worth £20m, amid rumours that talks between the clubs have broken down. Dalglish was slightly more cautious in his selection, leaving Suárez on the bench and asking Carroll to play with just Dirk Kuyt's occasional company up front.

That did not immediately look too threatening a combination, though, when Koscielny broke down after a quarter of an hour, Arsenal had to fill in at centre-half with Ignasi Miquel, making his first Premier League appearance, and the balance tipped a little towards the visitors. Certainly, the Arsenal fans initially had cause to be worried when Miquel mistimed his jump and failed to cut out the first Stewart Downing cross he had to deal with, leaving Carroll a free header that Wojciech Szczesny had to dive to save. It turned out not to be a portent of what was to come.

Jordan Henderson also brought a save from the Arsenal goalkeeper, though, with fewer crosses landing on Carroll's forehead than Dalglish must have been hoping, it was perhaps significant that the nearest Liverpool came to taking the lead in the first half was a shot from exactly halfway by Charlie Adam, one that had Szczesny back-pedalling, but that flew a couple of feet too high.

Arsenal came back into the game before the interval and twice came close with direct approaches, one when Pepe Reina dived low to keep out a drive from the impressive Emmanuel Frimpong and then when Nasri left Lucas Leiva chasing in vain with a run through the middle to flash a shot narrowly wide.

The second half, played in a steady downpour, was as drab and depressing as the London weather until several things happened at once, with 20 minutes left.

First, Robin van Persie brought a scrambling save from Reina with Arsenal's first decent attempt since the interval, after a shot from Martin Kelly had shaved a post at the other end. Then the impetuous Frimpong dangerously left a foot in against Lucas to collect a second yellow to add to the one he received for obstructing a throw in the first half. Finally, and not before time, Dalglish replaced the labouring Carroll with Suárez, who at least promised finesse. Together with the other Liverpool substitute, Meireles, Suárez helped conjure a goal in a matter of minutes.

It was not much of a goal, more a comedy of errors in the Arsenal defence that ended with Miquel's attempted clearance striking Ramsey in the chest and looping back over a stranded Szczesny, though the situation came about because Suárez, who had actually strayed fractionally offside, was trying to reach a return pass from Meireles.

Just a few minutes of cleverness and movement brought a greater reward than the previous hour-and-a-bit's attempts to play the ball up to the big fella, a point re-emphasised by Liverpool's second goal. It could have gone either way while Carroll was on the pitch, but, at the end, it was the Arsenal fans moaning bitterly about not seeing value for money.

Source: Paul Wilson, The Guardian on 20 Aug 11

Frugal proves folly for Wenger

It took just a 20-minute cameo from super-sub Luis Suarez to show Arsenal's increasingly disillusioned fans and their under-fire manager exactly what sort of tangible result can be produced when a heavy investment is made.

After watching Suarez's telling contribution as a 71st-minute substitute in leading Liverpool to a 2-0 win, even the prudent Arsene Wenger must surely be willing to admit that, at £22.5 million, the Uruguayan represents the sort of 'value in the market' that he regularly claims is so elusive.

Suarez's absence from the starting line-up had drawn some confused glances around the press box and it could be argued that, had he played, Liverpool may have put the game to bed earlier. But Kenny Dalglish's plan to unleash him on the tired legs of an Arsenal team who had played midweek was executed to perfection. Suarez's pressure on young defender Ignasi Miquel forced the Reds' opener before his coolly slotted second confirmed his was the biggest impact of a Liverpool player at Arsenal since Titi Camara bagged a winning goal at Highbury 11 years ago.

That was the last time Wenger tasted defeat at home to Liverpool in the Premier League, but this loss was significantly more difficult to take, coming as it did at the end of one of the toughest weeks in his managerial career. Victory against Udinese was, it seems, only a temporary respite for the troubled Frenchman, who has defended himself and his team unreservedly, though perhaps undeservedly, over the past few weeks, but whose threadbare squad still leaves Gunners fans wondering why he has nowhere near the strength in depth at Liverpool's disposal.

Kenny Dalglish was able to call on the man named South America's best player at the Copa America last month and an experienced Portugal international from the bench to inject some life into his side. Wenger's 'game-changing' substitutes were a 20-year-old midfielder with just one first-team start under his belt and a striker who has all the self-belief of Muhammed Ali, but none of the conviction. Unsurprisingly, the impact came from Suarez and Raul Meireles, not from Henri Lansbury and Nicklas Bendtner.

In contrast to the lifeless displays of Roy Hodgson's reluctant charges this time last year, Dalglish's 2011 outfit provide a bounty of attacking verve. Certainly, the Scot's post-match assertion that this squad "is better than it was last season" was a classic managerial understatement, though it was quickly tempered by the claim that Liverpool's victory was "a fantastic advert for the Premier League" - an assessment that was fairly wide of the mark.

There were certainly moments to savour - including some acrobatic stops from both Wojciech Sczczesny and Pepe Reina - but on the whole it was a fairly disappointing encounter for those who had been praying for a repeat of the memorable 4-4 draw between the sides two years ago.

Searching for positives when it seems there are few is a skill that Wenger has mastered in recent years, and he paid tribute to the young players he had put his faith in at Emirates Stadium. At one stage, the average age of the Gunners XI was 22.5 and the likes of Carl Jenkinson, Emmanuel Frimpong and Miquel certainly performed admirably on what was a difficult, high-pressure occasion for them.

Unfortunately, though, two of those three teenagers were responsible for the game's key incidents. With Arsenal already struggling to assert themselves, Frimpong was given his marching orders for a deserved second booking. His first was idiotic, earned early on after he prevented Jordan Henderson from taking a throw-in, but he had seemed to make amends with a high-energy display until deciding to scythe down Lucas in full flight. Wenger was honest in his evaluation of the red card: "I think Frimpong is a victim of his inexperience and enthusiasm. He deserved a second yellow card, he should not have gone into that challenge."

Soon after the Gunners were reduced to ten men, it was Miquel making an unwanted contribution. Thrown on for a Premier League debut after Lauren Koscielny hobbled off with a back injury to further Arsenal's defensive injury woes , the 18-year-old Spaniard put in a composed performance but was left ruing his luck after hooking an attempted clearance straight into Aaron Ramsey under pressure from Suarez. The ball looped into the net and Liverpool finally had their deserved opener.

Arsene's youngsters played well, but they were not outstanding and the Gunners attack was bereft of a talisman of the ilk of Suarez, while the impressive Thomas Vermaelen is in desperate need of a top-class partner. While Cesc Fabregas polishes the new Supercopa trophy on his Catalonia mantelpiece and Samir Nasri goes house hunting in leafy Cheshire, Wenger will continue to be quizzed about his lack of spending.

Watching Wenger talk to journalists has become a depressing and rather dull experience; the same answers to the same questions leave one feeling wholly unsatisfied. A lack of 'value in the market' cannot be a legitimate reason forever, but Wenger continues to preach the same sermon.

"You can spend money and have a bad team," was the mantra repeated in the post-match press conference, though he did claim to recognise the fans' worries. "You want the supporters to be happy and when you don't win games you can understand why they are not ... [But] I can't just go out and buy a new centre-back every time one gets injured."

Arsenal's current state remains of grave concern but while pages and pages have and will be written, Liverpool boss Dalglish simply yet rather accurately surmised the club's travails: "Arsene's done an unbelievable job here, but they've had better times than they've had recently." You can say that again, Kenny.

MAN OF THE MATCH: Luis Suarez
Liverpool may have still dominated before he was introduced but Suarez terrorised Arsenal's back-line after coming on. Full of off-the-ball running, his all-action approach could not have been more different to the lumbering striker he replaced. Andy Carroll's performance did little to inspire and Liverpool seem to just flow better when Suarez is involved.

ARSENAL VERDICT
Appeared as though they were the away side for long stretches and could not even beat their opponents' possession stats, usually a given for the Gunners. When Nasri wasn't on song, neither were Arsenal and if the squad wasn't so thin on the ground, Andrei Arshavin would surely be one of the first out the door - another soulless showing from the Russian frustrated the Emirates spectators.

LIVERPOOL VERDICT
New signings Charlie Adam and Stewart Downing were particularly impressive in offering the Reds a creativity in midfield that was rarely seen last season. Adam also showed his defensive abilities in winning a couple of tight tackles and he looks to have settled in quickly. The defence was solid but rarely troubled, really - with Jamie Carragher and Daniel Agger comfortably coping on the few occasions they were tested.

NASRI'S FINAL FAREWELL
There were plenty of boos for the wantaway midfielder when his name was announced prior to kick-off but the fans generally laid off him during the game. When asked about his potential transfer to Manchester City, Wenger said: "I don't know. I always say that I've tried to keep Samir Nasri. He loves the club, he wants to play for the club. At the moment I'm happy that he's here."

Source: Mark Lomas, ESPN Soccernet on 20 Aug 11

Wenger's reaction to the Arsenal 0-2 Liverpool match

on whether he feels under pressure...
I always feel under pressure but not more than usual.

on being unfortunate...
Yes, I feel the result is very harsh on us. The decider was the sending off and as well the offside goal, it was the decider of the game.

on inexperience...
I think Frimpong was a victim of his lack of experience and of his enthusiasm and heart. He deserved a second yellow card, he should not have gone into that challenge.

on the supporters' chants...
I think the target is to have a good team and good players. You can spend money and have a bad team. You want the supporters to be happy and when you don't win the game you can understand that they are not. But I think we had eight players out today and we still had a good performance. So it is not all doom and gloom, there are positives in the game today.

on absentees...
We have injuries and suspensions as well. We had a few players injured. Why? I am not a doctor. I do not feel we have too many, at the start of the season we have a heavy schedule compared to other teams because we play the qualifier on Wednesday night. That has an impact as well - we have five big games when the team is not completely ready.

on a vital period for the Club...
It will have a big impact, especially Wednesday night, that is a game of big importance for us. After that we play Man United but we play all the big opponents away from home first, apart from Liverpool. The second part of the season we play them all at home.

on his job now...
For now it is important for us to lift the players because they are very disappointed today. We need to give them credit for their attitude and performance today, in the game it is very harsh to lose it the way we need.

on Samir Nasri's future...
I don't know [what will happen]. I always said that I would try to keep Samir Nasri and I have never changed my mind on it because I played him today, to the surprise of everybody. He loves the Club, he wants to play for us, if we decide to sell him we will do it and we have to stand up for it. At the moment I am happy he is here. I don't know if he will play on Wednesday, we will just play the game.

on potential new signings...
We look, you know? But we try to do the right things for the Club. I think Koscielny and Vermaelen are a fantastic pair of centre backs but it's very difficult as well because if you buy another centre back and then someone gets injured I have to buy another one. You cannot do that every time you have an injured player.

on his own future...
There is no chance I would walk away. I will try to give my best for the Club. We live under circumstances where every defeat is an absolutely a disgrace and an earthquake. We are at the start of the season and we are very disappointed that we lost the game. But we are at the start of the season.

Source: Arsenal.com on 20 Aug 11

20 August 2011: Arsenal 0-2 Liverpool, The Emirates

Arsenal went down 2-0 to Liverpool on Saturday lunchtime at Emirates Stadium.

That is the result of this match but it is not the story.

Arsène Wenger came into this game with a couple of debutants due to suspension and injury elsewhere. He brought on another rookie midway through the first half when Laurent Koscielny hobbled off.

And yet the performance was one of pride.

It was bitterly ironic that the epitome of that emotion, Emmanuel Frimpong, saw red 18 minutes from time.

Then, to add insult to injury and ill-fortune, Liverpool took the lead when Ignasi Miquel’s clearance bounced off the chest of Aaron Ramsey and flew in past Wojciech Szczesny.

Luis Suarez added another at the death but, by then, the damage was done.

The record books will suggest this was a solid away win but the applause that greeted the home team as they went off, and the songs from the stands throughout, smacked of something different.

If you can have pride in defeat then this was it. Arsenal lost the game - and we know what will follow that - but they have not lost their spirit.

At his pre-match press conference, Wenger had been bullish about including Samir Nasri this afternoon.
“Samir is in the squad,” said the manager. “If I decide to play him he will play. When you are professional you play until the last day.”

In the end, the Frenchman started just behind Robin van Persie.

The absence of Kieran Gibbs meant Bacary Sagna filled in at left-back. There were full debuts for Jenkinson at right-back and Frimpong in central midfield.

Van Persie returned from suspension and took the armband for the first time as a full-time captain. Andrey Arshavin was recalled.

Liverpool surprisingly left Suarez on the bench but their attack had the sizeable figure of Andy Carroll at its spearhead. All the summer acquisitions - Jose Enrique, Stewart Downing and Charlie Adam - started the game.

This was the first of three massive games for Arsenal in nine days. Trips to Udinese and Manchester United completed that tough, tough triumvirate. It might have been only the second week of the season but it was one of the most important.

Arsenal started the game like they were well aware of that. They were pacy and positive, making in-roads down the right flank especially.

Little clear-cut was created but the attitude was spot on. However Liverpool had levelled matters by the time Koscielny was injured.

In the 13th minute, under no pressure, the French defender held his back and nudged the ball out of play. He went down on his haunches and hobbled off.

Miquel come off the bench to make his Premier League debut.

The substitution changed the tide. Arsenal were now on the back foot and, midway through the half, only Szczesny stopped them going behind. Downing’s cross was met by Carroll at the far post and the Pole flung himself to his left to paw the ball aside.

A few minutes later Dirk Kuyt’s cutback was nodded goalward by Henderson but Szczesny saved on the line.

Arsenal were under pressure and Adam tried to catch out Szczesny with a pot-shot from range. The keeper studiously shepherded it over the bar.

To this point, Frimpong, along with Thomas Vermaelen, had been Arsenal’s stand-out player. On the half-hour, it was his effort that heralded their resurgence.

Arshavin’s free-kick came to nothing and the 19-year-old strode forward before letting fly. It was a low, curling effort that looked to be headed towards the corner only for Pepe Reina to thrust out his right hand at the last moment.

Nine minutes before the break, Nasri picked up the ball deep in his own half, outpaced Lucas Leiva, jinked inside the last defender and fired. His shot was a whisker wide.

Downing thundered another effort wide but as the game reached half-time the equilibrium had returned. Walcott broke clear and went right towards Van Persie when Arshavin, on the left, was the better option.

Arsenal were cheered off at the break. An already young side had got younger during the first half through no fault of their own - and they were wearing the shirt with pride. To their credit, the crowd realised that and were pitching in help.

But both still had a job to do.

In the opening stages of a rain-soaked second half, Carroll cut the ball back to Martin Kelly and his rasping drive hit the outside of the near post.

It might have been the conditions, it might have been match, it might have been the opponents, it might have the whole situation. But the third quarter of this encounter was played in an incredible atmosphere.

The pace was frenetic and action intense. The only real chance came when Arshavin muscled off Kelly and cut the ball back for Van Persie six yards out. Reina made a messy save at the near post.

Frimpong had been carrying a booking since the eighth minute but, most of the time, it had barely seemed a burden. In the 70th minute it came back to haunt him. He flicked out a leg, clipped Lucas in a 50:50 and referee Atkinson brandished another booking.

The youngster held his head in his hands as he went off. Apart from that highly significant set-back, it had been a magnificent debut.

Liverpool sensed weakness and brought on Suarez. Wenger tried to shore up the midfield by replacing Henri Lansbury for Arshavin.

It would be easy to say it did not work because that is just when the visitors scored. However the strike had little to do with Liverpool.

Raul Meireles tried to find Suarez on the right of the area but Miquel intercepted and cleared. However Ramsey was on the way back to help. The ball bounced off the chest of the Welshman, looped over Szczesny and found the net.

The Arsenal fans sensed the injustice once more and found their voice.

But their side was a goal and a man down. There was no way back.

Suarez slotted home a simple second on full-time and at the whistle it was hard to know what to feel.

But the points went to Liverpool.

Source: Richard Clarke, Arsenal.com on 20 Aug 11

Eboué's foul may come to define an era of missed chances at Arsenal

The opportunities for Arsène Wenger to win silverware may not come so readily in the seasons ahead

Arsenal act as if they have their heart set on failure. They pursue it relentlessly and, on Sunday, achieved disappointment just when it seemed that a win over Liverpool was inescapable. With his last dregs of energy Emmanuel Eboué reached Lucas Leiva to ensure the foul was committed a moment before the midfielder would have left the penalty area. Dirk Kuyt's spot kick then secured the 1-1 draw.

The aftermath was predictable, with Arsène Wenger disputing the award of the penalty and the amount of stoppa ge time. It made him appear self-deluding when the grave flaws had all lain within the Arsenal line-up. This is a manager who is not at risk of the sack, but the standard he once set has slipped.

There are fans who believe the eccentric fallibility epitomised by Eboué's actions now clings to Arsenal. Birmingham City's winner over them in the League Cup final was a comparable absurdity.

Of late, the side has been experimenting with drabness, as in the goalless draws at home to Blackburn Rovers and Sunderland.

Such days should be less tolerable than ever for Arsenal and it is the mighty efforts of Wenger himself in earlier times that make disappointment so intense. At present there is no vivacity and spectators are disgruntled while their side are being outscored by the league leaders, Manchester United. Neutrals are deflated, too, since any element of drama about the outcome of the title race is diminishing.

A thorough upgrade of the Arsenal squad ought to have taken place. As it is, the prolonged injury to one centre-half, Thomas Vermaelen, has done terrible harm and there is no convincing goalkeeper on the premises. Given those circumstances, Wenger could almost congratulate himself on doing rather well, but Arsenal have the means to buy footballers of a greater calibre. While discussion of the club's finances can become complex, it is always a key talent for a manager to extract funds from the board.

Expensive as the construction of the Emirates was, the ensuing revenue is so vast that even Chelsea's owner Roman Abramovich may be consumed by envy. The income this season would have been greater still had the side not come second in their Champions League group and so put themselves in the path of Barcelona.

It is unlikely for the moment that anyone will be commissioning a contemporary version of the old "Arsène Knows" banner. Perhaps the manager has grown wary of money since spending rather a lot for, say, José Antonio Reyes and, on the present scene, Andrey Arshavin. The current Arsenal line-up, which have taken full points from just 10 of their 17 home games, fails to encourage any faith that a low-profile approach will set them above all rivals.

Robin van Persie has 17 goals for the season but injuries have restricted him to 13 starts in the league and neither Maroaune Chamakh nor Nicklas Bendtner appears a credible alternative. Wenger's penchant for coming up with inspired signings at modest cost has been on the wane. Some fans draw unfavourable comparisons with United, who have found bargains in Javier Hernández and, as he matures, Rafael da Silva.

Wenger has had coups in former times and there is an irony that the manager's feats made possible the creation of the Emirates, only for him to struggle to take full advantage of the expanded income it generates. Stan Kroenke increased his stake to over 62% this month and while the American is not the sort to encourage a crude spree, it will be essential for him to tap the potential of the club to the full if his investment is to grow steeply.

This might have been a splendid year for Arsenal, but triumph now would call for renewed vigour on their part and a slump by United. Neither eventuality is anticipated. Should this campaign drift even further away from Wenger's control it may be recalled as the last grand opportunity to be missed by Arsenal in this period.

Improvement should be anticipated at Chelsea and Manchester City. By the same token, we are still to find out just what new owners can achieve at Liverpool when their first full season gets underway.

Arsenal could find that Eboué's foul on Lucas lingers in the memory as the epitome of opportunities wasted that may not come to them so readily in the seasons ahead.

Source: Kevin McCarra, The Guardian on 18 Apr 11

Arsène Wenger fumes after Arsenal blow their title chances

Arsène Wenger has refused to give up on Arsenal winning the Premier League title despite their hopes of ousting Manchester United from top spot suffering a dramatic and seemingly devastating blow in Sunday's 1-1 draw with Liverpool. Wenger's team looked set for victory following Robin van Persie's penalty in the eighth minute of stoppage time, only for the visitors to equalise through a penalty of their own four minutes later. Arsenal are six points behind United with only six fixtures to play.

Wenger was left enraged at the referee, Andre Marriner, for pointing to the spot after Emmanuel Eboué appeared to push Lucas Leiva in the 101st minute of the contest. He denied the full-back had fouled the Brazilian and following Dirk Kuyt's conversion – which proved to be the last kick of the game – confronted Marriner on the pitch demanding to know why he had gone over the stipulated eight minutes of added time, a lengthy period that largely culminated from the treatment Jamie Carragher had to receive for a second-half head injury which required the defender to leave the pitch on a stretcher and wearing an oxygen mask.

Wenger also became embroiled in a heated exchange with Kenny Dalglish, the Liverpool manager, regarding the awarding of the second penalty. Both men refused to expand on what they had said to each other but reports suggest Dalglish swore at his counterpart.

"We conceded a penalty after 11 minutes and the extra time was only eight minutes, I don't know where this additional time came from," said Wenger. "The referee has not explained anything to me but I know it was no penalty. Lucas played in an intelligent way. He stopped his [Eboué] runs, Eboué wanted to go to the ball and he stopped him and referee said nothing. What can you do about it?"

Wenger said last week that the "title would be over" for Arsenal if they failed to beat Liverpool and Tottenham, who they face at White Hart Lane on Wednesday. He refused to endorse that view here despite what has now proved to be Arsenal's seventh draw in 15 league games and their third draw in a row at home. "This looks like a defeat but we will keep giving everything until the last game of the season and see if it is our year. The hope is always there, to keep hope alive we have to win our next game."

But that may prove difficult as Wenger admits his players will travel to White Hart Lane in two days' time in a state of "disappointment" and, he conceded, looking jaded both physically and mentally. Their performance here certainly appeared to be that of a team running out of vigour after a season which, at one stage, appeared as if it could result in a quadruple of trophies but now looks like it will be the sixth in succession in which the club has failed to land any silverware.

The hosts created few chances against a team that was missing its captain, Steven Gerrard, through injury, and had to substitute three more players during the contest due to strains – Carragher, Andy Carroll and Fabío Aurélio, the last of which led to the introduction at left-back of 17-year-old Jack Robinson for only his second appearance for Liverpool's first-team. Carragher, who accidentally clashed heads with Liverpool's other teenage full-back Liverpool's teenage full-back John Flanagan, recovered consciousness soon after being replaced and was well enough to congratulate his team-mates after the final whistle, while Carroll was taken off as a precaution after jarring his knee early on in the second half early on in the second-period. Aurelio, however, has damaged his hamstring and could now miss the rest of the season.

Playing a patched-up side, Playing a patched-up side Arsenal appeared to have secured all three points when Jay Spearing tripped Cesc Fábregas in the area and Van Persie drove in the resulting spot kick past Liverpool's goalkeeper José Reina for his 19th goal of the season. But Liverpool were to have the last word. "I don't think there's any other team that would have shown the attitude and commitment that our team showed today," said Dalglish. "We lost Fabio [Aurerlio] early on, had to put a 17-year-old boy on, lost the captain [Carragher], lost the centre-forward [Carroll], lost the goal eight minutes into injury time and still didn't want to accept we weren't going to get anything from the game. "I can't speak highly enough of the players."

Asked about the penalty decisions, the Scot mischievously added: "Well, I thought one was a penalty and one wasn't. I'll leave you to decide which one was which."

This draw keeps Liverpool in the hunt for a Europa League place but has increased the chances of United winning a 19th league title and, therefore, ousting the Merseysiders as England's most decorated domestic champions. Asked if he felt sad about the potential development, Dalglish said: "I have nothing to feel sad about, as far as I'm concerned Liverpool are still best club in English football, if not world football."

Source: Sachin Nakrani, The Guardian on 18 Apr 11

Arsène Wenger is angry with everyone, but only Arsenal are to blame

Once again the Arsenal manager blamed everybody but himself and his players for some very familiar failings

If this truly was the day that Arsène Wenger's Premier League title dream died for another season, then the abiding images will be of the Arsenal manager towering above the three match officials at full-time, as he berated them for the award of the late penalty that brought his team to their knees.

The ironies were plentiful. Dirk Kuyt's successful penalty for Liverpool saw their bitter rivals, Manchester United, clamp one hand upon a record 19th championship win. In the directors' box, Sir Alex Ferguson might have cursed Arsenal's goal, Robin van Persie's penalty coming in the eighth minute of the time added on for Jamie Carragher's head injury. Yet Fergie-time would come back around for him. Kuyt's goal was timed at 102 minutes.

Up the road at Wembley, Stoke City, a team that Wenger has in the past derided for their "rugby tactics", stuck five goals past Bolton to set up an FA Cup final against Manchester City, another team whose ethics Wenger has questioned. One of them will enjoy a silver-lined finish to the season. Despite what Wenger perceives as Arsenal's superior brand of football, his side will surely not.

Wenger burned with a sense of injustice. For him, there was rage and frustration, a familiar cocktail in what has been a relentlessly trying season and as he lashed out at a variety of targets he projected a certain helplessness too. He lambasted the referee, Andre Marriner, not only for the penalty decision against Emmanuel Eboué but also his time-keeping. Kenny Dalglish got it as well, for having the temerity to set up his Liverpool team in a defensive vein. It was a familiar lament. Why can't visiting teams simply lay themselves open for Arsenal to take apart?

The unpalatable truth was that Arsenal had let themselves down. This was a third successive home draw in the league and with Wenger having outlined the imperative of a victory to keep their title hopes alive, the last thing he wanted was to see his players so flat and so lifeless. All of his creative talents endured afternoons to forget and only the most blinkered of Arsenal fans could have argued that the opening goal had been coming, although Van Persie did blow his team's best chance of the second half in the 85th minute.

Arsenal looked laboured and one-paced and this felt like one battle too far for tired legs. The penalty that Arsenal got for Jay Spearing's nibble at the back of Cesc Fábregas felt like a lifeline out of the blue. Yet it would be dramatically cut off.

Liverpool's comfort for most of the afternoon was depressing from an Arsenal point of view and Wenger's players seemed to run out of ideas. They had flickered in the first half and they will wonder what might have happened if Laurent Koscielny's 16th-minute header had been six inches lower. But one of the damning indictments against them was that in the second half, despite the home team hogging possession, Liverpool had the better chances, through Luis Suárez.

Liverpool finished the game with three teenagers on the pitch - the rookie full-backs John Flanagan and Jack Robinson emerged with honours - and having lost Fabio Aurelio, Carragher and Andy Carroll to injuries of varying severity. When they conceded so late, the game looked up and so it was not surprising to hear Dalglish praise the character of his players.

Arsenal had been charged with breaking down a Liverpool team whose back four and defensive midfielders rarely got ahead of the ball. Dalglish prized the solidity that his protectors provided even when Arsenal broke, for example, in first-half injury-time with four fliers, they were immediately out-numbered. It was a theme of the afternoon. Curiously, for such an attack-minded side, Arsenal struggled to get bodies into the box. Their final ball was repeatedly dreadful.

It had been a momentous week for the club, with Stan Kroenke's takeover and the death of Danny Fiszman. The Arsenal players' black armbands were as much for the visionary director as the victims of the Hillsborough tragedy. Kroenke was in the directors' box; he missed his Denver Nuggets in NBA play-off action for the first time and he might have squirmed with every other Gooner.

And so to Tottenham on Wednesday, the scene of the last rites on Arsenal's challenge last season. It feels as though they have already been read this time.

Source: David Hytner, The Guardian on 17 Apr 11

Arsenal's title hopes fade after Liverpool's late, late equaliser

Arsenal's title hopes did not suffer a quiet death. They have surely expired in the midst of tumult. An often-vapid match became gripping when each side converted a penalty far into the dozen minutes of stoppage time that followed a head injury to Liverpool's captain, Jamie Carragher.

The hosts took the lead four minutes before the close when Robin van Persie slotted home after Jay Spearing had brought down Cesc Fábregas. Arsène Wenger's side then confounded themselves. Luis Suárez's free-kick broke to Lucas Leiva and while he presented no danger the midfielder paused and let Emmanuel Eboué barge into him. Dirk Kuyt struck home the penalty with the last kick of the game. The referee, Andre Marriner had presided over 12 minutes when eight had been due. Further delays had extended a fixture prone to interruption.

There was professionalism from Lucas in gaining the penalty but Eboué had no cause whatsoever to make contact. It was a moment simply to shepherd an opponent towards the corner flag. Arsenal, with no games in hand, are six points adrift of Manchester United in the Premier League. On Wednesday they will be at White Hart Lane, where Tottenham Hotspur heads must swim at the opportunity of leaving their visitors' prospects of winning the title in greater ruin still.

So far as United are concerned, there has been immediate solace in this outcome after defeat to Manchester City in the FA Cup semi-final. The match at the Emirates had largely been tame and, penalties aside, it may be remembered for a collision with a team-mate, John Flanagan, that saw Carragher carried off in the second half. Before the match had ended, it was reported that he had regained consciousness in the dressing room.

Amidst all the uproar, there should be a reasoned voice in the minds of Arsenal's management that tells them they have not been good enough. Openings were scarce here. That is not a new development. The two previous matches at the Emirates, against Sunderland and Blackburn Rovers, had been goalless and this encounter had much in common with those occasions even if the nets did tremble eventually.

Arsenal's forwards have stopped looking likely to pounce in open play and Fàbregas, a valuable scorer in some phases of his Emirates career, is not a threat in that respect for the time being.

Liverpool will still be proud of their resilience. Their celebrations over the equaliser were uninhibited, as if silverware had been clinched. It would be easy to mock that but their actions spoke of a revival in morale under Kenny Dalglish.

On paper this was not a specially imposing line-up. The right-back Flanagan, for instance, is a mere 18 years old. When the left-back, Fábio Aurélio, was hurt his place was filled by Jack Robinson, who is 17. Their presence does not speak of any sort of golden generation, but it does point to competitiveness at Anfield. That is, at the minimum, a starting point for renewal.

Few had pestered Arsenal with talk of the Premier League title. That subject seemed inappropriate for a side who have been beaten three times on their own pitch, although people tend not to appreciate just how they have atoned for such sins in the away matches. Arsenal were at risk early in this fixture when Spearing seemed to have been fouled inside the penalty area by Johan Djourou, after nine minutes. The referee did not see a foul. Where the hosts were concerned, the moment that gripped the home crowd in the first half was Laurent Koscielny's header against the bar from a Van Persie corner in the 16th minute.

The greatest concern for the visitors would, all the same, have been the collision between Carragher and Flanagan that saw a head brace fitted to the Liverpool captain before he was carried off on a stretcher, after prolonged treatment. Sotirios Kyrgiakos took over in defence and Arsenal, in open play, continued to flounder in their efforts to prise open a line-up that was becoming ever more secure, even if Van Persie did shoot against Reina in the 85th minute.

This is not Dalglish's first stint as manager of Liverpool but he does seem fresh. The same cannot be said of Wenger. His efforts on behalf of the club are prodigous and the debt to him can never be renewed, but that still leaves him having to start again. His sides are built for free-flowing football but there is just a trickle of goals for the time being. The centre-forwards, Van Persie, Nicklas Bendtner and Maroaune Chamakh, are not contributing enough. Come the summer, there will have to be an appraisal of this season and, reluctantly, Wenger could have to turn his mind to radical change at the club.

Source: Kevin McCarra, The Guardian on 17 Apr 11

Late penalty drama rocks Gunners

Arsenal saw their Premier League title hopes all but extinguished in a dramatic 1-1 draw with Liverpool.

Dirk Kuyt secured a point for the Reds with a penalty after 10 minutes of injury time - just moments after Robin van Persie's own spot-kick had looked enough for victory.

The Gunners are now six point points behind leaders Manchester United having played the same amount of games.

They had plenty of possession and hit the bar in the first half through Laurent Koscielny, but were unable to make their dominance count until deep into stoppage time when Van Persie crashed home a spot-kick for Jay Spearing's foul on Cesc Fabregas.

However, Liverpool - who had earlier seen captain Jamie Carragher carried off with concussion - snatched a point with the final kick of the match after Emmanuel Eboue had pushed Lucas.

While the match ended in high drama, before kick-off there was a minute's silence in memory of late Arsenal director Danny Fiszman, who passed away following a battle against cancer and also remembering the 96 Liverpool supporters who died 22 years ago this week in the Hillsborough tragedy.

The sale of Fiszman's holding in the Gunners' parent company led to American Stan Kroenke crossing the takeover threshold, but it remains to be seen whether the Denver-based entrepreneur will be able to complete his proposed £730millon buyout.

When the action got under way, Arsenal - unbeaten in 14 matches and yet to lose in 2011 - started well, with Abou Diaby glancing a header wide from Samir Nasri's curling free-kick.

Arsenal were careless in possession far too often, with Liverpool quick to capitalise on the break. The hosts sparked into life, though, after 12 minutes when Theo Walcott stung Pepe Reina with a fierce 25-yard drive which the Reds keeper spilled and van Persie hooked the loose ball back across an open goal, which was headed behind.

From van Persie's right wing corner, Laurent Koscielny got up above the Liverpool defence and in front of Reina to crash a header against the bar.

Liverpool were forced into a change on 21 minutes when full-back Fabio Aurelio limped off with a recurrence of his hamstring problem, replaced by 17-year-old Jack Robinson for a second senior appearance.

Luis Suarez's slip allowed van Persie and Cesc Fabregas to open up the Liverpool defence, but the Arsenal skipper drilled his 20-yard shot wide.

Liverpool were being pegged back, with Walcott firing a low ball in from the right which was booted behind. It continued to be one-way traffic with Liverpool defending deep, but Arsenal could not find a telling pass in the final third. In first-half stoppage time, Eboue's angled drive at the near post was deflected across the face of goal and away.

It was again a bright opening by Liverpool after the restart. Suarez created space for himself at the edge of the Arsenal penalty area, but dragged his shot wide.

There was a scare for the visitors when Andy Carroll went down after twisting his knee and ankle when challenging for a loose ball in the box. After some treatment, though, the £35 million England man was back in the action.

Reds skipper Carragher then appeared to have been knocked unconscious after a clash of heads with John Flanagan, sparking more anxious scenes on the visitors bench as the medical staff from both teams attended.

The former England defender was eventually carried off on a stretcher, his neck in a brace and given oxygen. Sotirios Kyrgiakos came on as a substitute.

With 20 minutes left, Carroll was replaced by Jonjo Shelvey before Arsenal made a double change when Jack Wilshere and Walcott were replaced by Nicklas Bendtner and Andrey Arshavin, the Russian making his 100th appearance for the Gunners.

Wojciech Szczesny got down well to beat away an angled shot from Suarez as Liverpool looked to snatch all three points.

Reina made a decent block when van Persie was played into the left side of the Liverpool area, before at the other end, Suarez spooned his shot high and wide in space at the near post.

Because of the injury to Carragher, there were some eight minutes of stoppage time, and just when that seemed to be running out, Fabregas went tumbling over Jay Spearing's leg and this time, the referee pointed to the spot.

Van Persie stepped up to send Reina the wrong way and seemingly keep Arsenal in the title hunt. However, there was more late drama after Alex Song tripped Lucas right on the edge of the area.

Suarez's free-kick went into the wall, but Eboue then pushed over Lucas to conceded another stoppage-time spot-kick which Kuyt dispatched.

It proved the last action of an amazing end to the game, which leaves Arsenal all but out of the title race and left a dejected Arsene Wenger confronting the officials - and opposite number Kenny Dalglish as they walked off.
After the match, Arsene Wenger said he felt Arsenal were out of luck again after dropping two costly points in their battle to stay in the Premier League title race.

"We conceded a penalty after 11 minutes when the referee said there was eight minutes of injury time. I don't see where those three minutes came from and it was no penalty,'' lamented the Gunners boss, who confronted referee Andre Marriner and his assistants as they left the pitch.

"We have been badly done in the two games here. Against Sunderland we scored a regular goal and were not given a penalty that was 100%, then today we got caught back like that. It is a period where we have not the biggest luck, that's for sure.''

Wenger continued: "We dropped two points. It was a difficult game against a Liverpool team who basically only defended.

"Maybe we are a bit jaded physically. You could see that some players have played 45 minutes and maybe we lack a change of pace, but we tried very hard. The players are very disappointed. Who wouldn't be?

"It is about us winning our games. The hope is always there but, to keep the hope alive, it is up to us to win our games and to win our next game.

We are on a 15-game unbeaten run, but recently we have not taken enough points. Now we must give everything until the last game of the season and see if it is our year or not.''

For Reds boss Kenny Dalglish, there was a sense of satisfaction after a battling display which built on the 3-0 home win over Manchester City as they chase down a Europa League spot.

"I don't think there's any team anywhere that's shown the same attitude and commitment that our team showed there today,'' said the Scot.

"Losing Fabio Aurelio early on, putting a 17-year-old on at left-back, losing our captain, having a right-back at only 18 with his second game, we have lost our centre-forward, we've lost a goal and eight minutes into injury time they still didn't want to accept that we're going to get nothing from the game.

"You can't speak any higher about them than that.''

Andy Carroll limped off after an awkward fall in the second half, but the £35 million striker is expected to recover quickly. Dalglish said: "He just came off as a precaution. He jarred his knee.

"Andy has done fantastically well to get where he is through his rehabilitation when he signed for the club. It was wiser to take him off. We have got a few games left to play and we'd like him available for them. It was just a precaution.''

Dalglish maintained there was no reason to feel down that Liverpool's great rivals United were closing in on a record 19 domestic titles.

"Sadness? In my eyes we are still the best club in English football, if not world football, so I am not very sad at that,'' he said. "The surprise is that they [Liverpool] have not won the title for a long time - that is the surprise. But it's not sadness - it's just a fact of life.

"They never acquired enough points in any season since 1991 to win it. They came close a couple of years ago when Rafa [Benitez] went close, had a fantastic record against the so-called top four, but just couldn't get it over the line.''

Dalglish added: "It will be fantastic to get back there, but you need to hit the standards other teams have set. That is four games - United, [Manchester] City, Arsenal and Chelsea. We only dropped two points and that was today.''

Source: ESPN Soccernet on 17 Apr 11