Premier League: Liverpool 3-1 Arsenal - 5 Talking Points and Tactical Analysis

#3 The Gunners misfire in the final third

Arsenal were left to rue their missed chances

As the 2019-20 season dawned, there was a general consensus that Arsenal boasted one of the most fearsome attacking tridents in the league. To put things into perspective, the already effervescent Aubameyang and Lacazette were set to complemented by Pepe, a winger who conjured incredible numbers last term, second only in terms of assists and goals to a certain Lionel Messi.

Yet, when the chances presented itself at Anfield, the Gunners were guilty of fluffing their lines.

The visitors failed to take advantage of a mistake by Adrian early in the first half when the Spaniard gifted Aubameyang an opportunity to open the scoring. Though the Gabonese had to bring the ball down considerably before pulling the trigger, one expected the current Golden Boot holder to hit the target, if not make the net bulge.

After all, the goal was gaping at that juncture with Adrian somewhere in the vicinity of the penalty spot.

A little later in the half, Pepe pounced on a rare Jordan Henderson error to run clear of the Englishman. The Ivorian then superbly danced past the challenge of Robertson before going eyeball to eyeball with the Liverpool keeper. However, Pepe, in an attempt to beat the goalkeeper to his right, only mustered a tame shot straight at Adrian.

At that point, the game was still level and had Arsenal taken the lead, the match could’ve assumed a different path altogether.

But, frustratingly for the North London outfit, their most potent weapons misfired, ultimately leading to their downfall.