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The marquee clash in Europe this weekend takes place in London, as Arsenal hosts Liverpool at the Emirates in the Premier League.
Both clubs are among the biggest in England, and would have lofty ambitions of hoisting aloft the Premier League title come May next year.
Arsenal and Liverpool are each in impressive form, and head into the match as two of the form teams at the moment in the EPL, sitting fourth and second respectively and separated by just four points.
The Gunners began a new era this season following the departure of long-term manager Arsene Wenger, and after an indifferent start, seem to have gotten to have gotten the hang of Emery’s methods, as they embarked on a ten-match winning streak across all competitions until the run was halted as Crystal Palace snatched a last-gasp equalizer in their 2-2 draw in the PL last weekend.
Liverpool, on the other hand, have been making steady progress under Klopp, and would genuinely believe that this is their season to finally end their long wait for league glory, as they have been emphatic this season, and are one of three unbeaten teams in the league alongside Chelsea and Man City after ten matches.
Both clubs have the quality to win the tie and would seek to consolidate their position on the table with victory here, and as such fireworks can be expected in the clash. However, The Reds have some advantages which could see them nick the tie. We present three factors which could see Liverpool defeat Arsenal at the Emirates.
#3 Jurgen Klopp’s impressive record against Arsenal
The 51-year-old German tactician made a name for himself in the Bundesliga with Mainz and then Borussia Dortmund, so it came as not much of a surprise when Liverpool unveiled him as their new manager in October 2015.
Klopp inherited a squad that was short on confidence and lacking quality players befitting a club the stature of Liverpool, and after three seasons of careful fine-tuning; he has moulded the team into his ideal squad.
Steady progress has been made at the club, and under Klopp, Liverpool have been transformed from rank outsiders into genuine contenders for the Premier League title.
A major reason for this has been Klopp’s rather impressive record against the big teams in the league, and in this regard, Klopp is particularly great, especially when it comes to Arsenal.
In five fixtures against The Gunners, the German is yet to lose any, pulling three wins and two draws. All matches between both sides have been high scoring since Klopp took the reins, and there have been at least four goals scored in each of the five matches, with both stalemates ending 3-3, while Liverpool have recorded 4-0, 3-4 and 3-1 victories.
Klopp’s record against Arsenal since arriving at Anfield is especially strong, and this could come to the fore once more and see Arsenal defeated on their home turf.
#2 Under Emery, Arsenal have struggled against the big boys
As stated earlier, Arsenal have been unbeaten in their last twelve matches across all competitions, leading to high praise for Unai Emery. However, an oft pointed out criticism has been that the matches were played against lesser opposition who couldn’t really match up to the firepower of The Gunners.
There is some truth to this, as most of the fixtures have been against bottom half Premier League teams, and much inferior Europa League clubs who Arsenal are expected to defeat on their day.
Unai Emery’s reign as Arsenal boss got off to the worst possible start, as Arsenal faced off Manchester City and Chelsea in their first two matches of the new Premier League season.
They lost their opening day fixture 2-0 to Manchester City, and Arsenal were roundly condemned for the way they capitulated against the defending champions, as Manchester City had such a field day and were rarely troubled with Arsenal only getting their first shot of target in the second half.
A week later against Chelsea, there was marked improvements, but they still feel to Chelsea in a 3-2 defeat, before embarking on their impressive winning streak.
Liverpool represents their biggest test since those losses, and on evidence of their performance against the Premier League big boys thus far, Liverpool might be a step too far for them.
#1 Salah seems to have gotten back into top form
Everybody is familiar with Salah’s unbelievable statistics from last season which saw him awarded the PFA, PWA and CAF Player of the Year award, in addition to winning the EPL Golden Boot, and making a podium finish at the UEFA and FIFA awards.
His spectacular rise from nothing made many sceptical about his ability to replicate such form this season, and after struggling to reach the heights of last season at the start of this one, a lot of people were quick to label him a one season wonder.
He went into the last international break with just three goals from eleven matches in all competitions but has returned from the break a rejuvenated player, scoring in each of Liverpool’s three fixtures since then. He got the lone goal in a tight 1-0 victory away to Huddersfield, before getting a brace in the 4-0 romp of Crvena Zvezda in the Champions League and putting up arguably his best performance of the season thus far in the 4-1 Premier League victory over Cardiff City last time out, as he scored a goal and registered an assist each for Saido Mane and Xherdan Shaqiri.
Salah is crucial to everything Liverpool hopes to achieve, and his return to form would be welcome news for ans of the Kop, and Arsenal would be especially wary of the threat posed by the 25-year-old Egyptian, as he has a knack of scoring against them.
Salah has scored three goals in his three appearances against Arsenal, stretching back to getting the final goal in the 6-0 rout while in the colors of Chelsea in 2014 to each of their fixtures last season, and the Egyptian could be the deciding factor in this tie today.
