The long overdue win at Anfield was marred by a goal, a number of other Arsenal chances and what will go down as a famous clean sheet on how the two teams defend at the back post.
There were plenty of other interesting things to look out for on Sunday – Martin Odegaard’s early role and Arsenal’s 20-minute lead midway through the second half both caught the eye – but in the final installment of our video series Between the LinesI examine how Arsenal took great joy in attacking the back post and why Liverpool would never have the same chance at the other end.
As the home side’s defense shrunk in their own half, Arsenal created plenty of opportunities by keeping the man on the far side on the edge of that defensive block. That’s how Kai Havertz scored, he almost scored from Bruno Guimaraes’ effort, and that’s when Noni Madueke almost broke Havertz with another shot. It was also where Christos Tzolis was located when he latched on to Madueke’s cross and forced Alisson into a remarkable save of the game.
Arsenal have no such weakness: a combination of organisation, hunger and (perhaps most importantly) focus meant that Liverpool could never find a replacement at the back post.
Check out the video below for the proper breakdown of defensive tackles in these scenarios, and be sure to subscribe to the YouTube channel for more analysis as the season progresses!