Roberto Firmino’s late header stunned Arsenal as Liverpool stormed back from two goals down to salvage a 2-2 Premier League draw at Anfield.
Goals from Gabriel Martinelli and Gabriel Jesus put the Gunners in command, but Mohamed Salah reduced the deficit late in the first half.
Salah missed a penalty early in the second half, but Firmino came off the bench to rock Arsenal with an equaliser in the 87th minute of a thriller on Merseyside.
Aaron Ramsdale then produced two brilliant saves in injury time as the Gunners held on for a draw that leaves them six points clear of defending champions Manchester City, who have a game in hand.
Liverpool player ratings (4-3-3)
GK: Alisson – 5/10 – Not helped by his flailing defence in the slightest.
RB: Trent Alexander-Arnold – 3/10 – Almost comedically incompetent when defending at times but produced a lovely assist for the equaliser.
CB: Ibrahima Konate – 6/10 – A little over-eager when stepping out of defence but found his timing as the match wore on.
CB: Virgil van Dijk – 3/10 – All of the regal invincibility which once cloaked his performances has emphatically vanished.
LB: Andy Robertson – 3/10 – Got forward well but left a yawning gap at the other end of the pitch.
CM: Jordan Henderson – 4/10 – Spent most of his time hoarsely barking at the referee, delivering a pointing finger for every pass.
CM: Fabinho – 3/10 – Failed to offer any sense of stability at the base of midfield.
CM: Curtis Jones – 5/10 – Struggled to exert his influence on proceedings.
RW: Mohamed Salah – 6/10 – A sharp thorn in Arsenal’s side throughout the contest but passed up a golden chance.
ST: Cody Gakpo – 5/10 – Showed flashes of slick link play.
LW: Diogo Jota – 6/10 – The wriggling nuisance dovetailed well with Robertson when the fullback overlapped.
Substitutes
Thiago Alcantara (60′ for Jones) – 6/10 – Added an extra layer of silk to Liverpool’s midfield.
Darwin Nunez (60′ for Jota) – 4/10 – Squandered a glorious one-on-one.
Roberto Firmino (78′ for Fabinho) – 6/10 – Struck against Arsenal once again.
Manager
Jurgen Klopp – 4/10 – Watched on in bemusement as Liverpool were blitzed in the first 30 minutes thanks in no small part to his dire starting tactics but made impactful changes.
Arsenal player ratings (4-3-3)
GK: Aaron Ramsdale – 8/10 – Unable to do much with Salah’s close-range effort but managed to rebuff a raft of efforts from further out, including two stunning stops in stoppage time.
RB: Ben White – 6/10 – Unsettled when Robertson and Jota ganged up on him but held his own for the most part.
CB: Rob Holding – 4/10 – Ungainly when trying to win the ball back aside from his penalty concession.
CB: Gabriel – 5/10 – Sullied a front-foot performance by inadvertently kicking the ball onto Salah and into Arsenal’s net.
LB: Oleksandr Zinchenko – 6/10 – Brilliant on the ball but the space he vacated when tucking into midfield was repeatedly penetrated by Salah.
CM: Martin Odegaard – 4/10 – DIdn’t play a protagonist’s role in Sunday’s drama.
CM: Thomas Partey – 5/10 – Not entirely cool and calm amid the furious heat of midfield.
CM: Granit Xhaka – 5/10 – Typically sucked into the emotion of the occasion but made a number of crucial clearances.
RW: Bukayo Saka – 7/10 – Arsenal’s starboy wasn’t the brightest point in the team’s attacking constellation but still shone.
ST: Gabriel Jesus – 8/10 – An unrelenting pest in the final third.
LW: Gabriel Martinelli – 8/10 – Produced an obligatory outstanding performance against Liverpool, becoming the latest in a long line of wingers to terrorise Alexander-Arnold.
Substitutes
Leandro Trossard (80′ for Jesus) – 5/10
Jakub Kiwior (80′ for Odegaard) – 5/10
Kieran Tierney (88′ for Zinchenko) – N/A
Manager
Mikel Arteta – 3/10 – While his passive change wasn’t entirely to blame, he certainly contributed to his team’s crumbling.
Player of the match – Gabriel Martinelli (Arsenal)
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