Home   >   MOTDs   >   MOTD: Liverpool 2-2 Arsenal

MOTD: Liverpool 2-2 Arsenal

By on December 21, 2014

Liverpool had over £70 million to restock after selling Luis Suarez in the summer, and it seems at least roughly £47m of that was well spent on two players, Adam Lallana and Lazar Markovic, both of whom dominated the midfield today and along with Philipe Coutinho and Raheem Sterling carved the majority of Liverpool’s twenty-seven shots on the night. But this money spent alone was not enough, at least tonight. Those twenty-seven shots were not enough, and only two of them Liverpool converted, while Arsenal managed the same number of goals from only seven. Arsenal’s creative midfielders weren’t as effective as that of Liverpool, but the critical difference was that Arsenal had a forward in Olivier Giroud. Liverpool started without a recognized front man on the pitch, and largely due to how they spent the rest of their money.

They spent what they thought was a bargain of £17 million on Mario Balotelli, and sometimes risks will work out, but not this one. Balotelli was sidelined today after receiving a one match ban for posting inappropriate content to social media, and is still yet to score for Liverpool from ten appearances in the league anyways. It turns out they would have been certainly better off waiting until a better option came along in January and using that £17 million to help fund the forward. After today, Brendan Rodgers will almost certainly, and absolutely should, be in the market for another forward anyways this January.

For all their failure to finish today, Liverpool looked most dangerous and clinical once Fabio Borini and Rickie Lambert were brought on. Had Wojciech Szczesny not kept Arsenal in the game, and Borini gotten himself stupidly sent off, Liverpool easily could have gotten the three points in the latter stages of the game once they had a natural finisher on the pitch. Now, though, Borini’s red card may well end his Liverpool career with many expecting him to leave the club in January. And while the 23-year-old isn’t of the calibre that the Reds want, it seems odd that they would get rid of forwards, no matter whom they are, when today they proved they desperately need an on form front man.

Giroud only had three shots the entire match but when his big chance came was able to finish it, critically. His goal came early in the second half, and while giving Arsenal the lead more importantly knocked the wind out of Liverpool’s sails. The entire match Arsenal, very uncharacteristically of them, saw only thirty-six percent of possession and were very poor on the ball, particularly in the first half. Santi Cazorla ended up one of their few sparks on attack, assisting their second goal, and a rock as well in defense.

That is not to say Arsenal did very well of denying Liverpool chances. Eleven minutes in Adam Lallana sliced a fifteen yard volley inches over the crossbar, and was given an incredible amount of freedom to work in the middle, which eventually paid dividends as the first half came to a close. Liverpool capitalized as Arsenal gave the ball away while trying to play out of the back, and soon got the ball to Coutinho on the edge of the box. The Brazilian created space for a shot with a little twist of the hips and fired a low one into across goal into bottom left corner.

It was deserved, but given the fact that the half was nearly over Liverpool switched off. Just enough so that Arsenal goal equalize in the minute of first half stoppage time, in fact, with Mathieu Debuchy heading home following ping pong in the Liverpool box.

Still, despite the setback Liverpool were still level and in control. Early in the second period Coutinho came close just over, before Lucas Leiva half arrowed Markovic’s cut-back just over with a half-volley from the edge of the box. Sixty-one minutes in Sterling got in on goal, and while Szczesny forced him wide left Sterling managed to get a cross into Steven Gerrard, who sent a diving header just over with a open goal. But Liverpool couldn’t score, yet Giroud did just four minutes later with Arsenal’s first big chance of the half

On the break, Kieran Gibbs’ low diagonal ball into the box found the feet of Giroud, who squared it back to Cazorla on the left side of the box. Cazorla took the ball to the byline, and then cut it back to Giroud, who saw his low finish find the back of the net through the legs of Bradley Jones. Arsenal were suddenly up 2-1. Of course, they then were on the back foot defending their lead for the rest of the game.

Borini came on and with just four minutes to go forced Szczesny into an incredible save to tip over his flicked header from Glen Johnson’s cross. Szczesny had to make multiple more saves both to his left and right, but as Borini got himself sent off with a second yellow, Liverpool could only find their equalizer via a set piece. With Arsenal’s zonal marking, seven minutes into the stoppage time which was largely due to Martin Skrtel’s head injury in the middle of the second half, Skrtel himself rose up unmarked to slam an absolutely bulleted header into the bottom right corner of the net from a corner. Liverpool got the draw, and were almost lucky in eventually finding the goal for their second game, but still could have done better, if they could have finished their chances. In January it seems they need a forward to finish the chances their midfield created, even if that involves simply being there in the box to poke home a rebound or there in the box to provide a target. It is what they lacked today. Arsenal, meanwhile, got the result due to clinical finishing, but might be a bit disappointed in the conservative defensive way they approached the game. In the end, though, as they got the result they should be happy.
Man of the Match: Santi Cazorla

About Alex Morgan

Alex Morgan, founder of Football Every Day, lives and breaths football from the West Coast of the United States in California. Aside from founding Football Every Day in January of 2013, Alex has also launched his own journalism career and hopes to help others do the same with FBED. He covers the San Jose Earthquakes as a beat reporter for QuakesTalk.com and his work has also been featured in the BBC's Match of the Day Magazine.