Arsenal Vs Liverpool: Time to make a collective and individual statement

Arsenal host Liverpool on Friday night in a huge Premier League fixture. The Gunners have a chance to make a collective and individual statement. They must take it.

Arsenal are a squad riddled with doubt and uncertainty. It is not unfounded. A historical repetition of failure has led many to distrust them, myself included. Spurts of promising form are tempered with questions of consistency; individual success is restricted by the fear of injury. There is always a niggling apprehension and reservation.

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That is why, for Arsene Wenger and his players, it is important when they have the chance to make a statement win, a victory that tells the media, their fans, and their rivals that they are different from their previously flawed iterations. For this current team, that chance comes on Friday night as Liverpool travel to the Emirates stadium.

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First and foremost, on a collective basis, Arsenal can establish themselves as genuine top-four challengers. While Manchester City have already run away with the title, there is still Champions League qualification to work towards, and with competition in the upper echelons of the Premier League as high as it has ever been, that is far from guaranteed. With a win on Friday, the Gunners cam leapfrog Liverpool into fourth ahead of a crucial festive period which leads into an early-January tie against Chelsea. Win and win well, and Arsenal will set themselves up wonderfully.

But more than just a cumulative perspective, individually, there are many members of this team that have questions to face. Alexis Sanchez must prove that he is committed to the club with growing concerns scrutinising Wenger’s decision to keep him in the summer; Mesut Ozil has still not shaken the ‘big-game’ monkey off of his back; Granit Xhaka is yet to command and control a match against a top-tier opposition as he has been asked to, especially given his £35 million price tag.

Perhaps the two individuals with the most to prove, however, are two that have just broken, or re-broken, into the first team this season.

Alexandre Lacazette, signed in the summer for a club-record £47 million fee, is yet to have that starring, breakout, statement game. Although he has scored goals consistently throughout the year and has shown his quality, hinting at a bright future, there is still an element of apprehension regarding his abilities against the big teams. Wenger dropped him against Liverpool and Manchester City. He missed a wonderful chance against Chelsea to win the game, and although he played much better against Spurs and Manchester United, he has still only tallied two goals in the five games. On Friday, he has the chance to change the narrative.

Another is Jack Wilshere. The marauding central midfielder had to wait patiently for his opportunity. Ironically, it was an injury that provided him with his first start of the year. That injury will keep Aaron Ramsey out of Liverpool’s trip to North London. Wilshere is expected to start. Can he perform to the best of his natural ability when the pressure is on against the highest level? If he wants to establish himself in both the Arsenal and England squads in the latter half of this season, then he must start to make his case right here.

Next: Arsenal Vs Liverpool: Predicted starting XI

Liverpool are an excellent team. They are blisteringly dangerous with some wonderful players, especially offensively. This is a real test for Arsenal. But that could be a good thing. This is the chance to prove themselves; this is the chance to make a statement, collectively and individually. Let’s hope that they can.

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