The unforgettable Arsenal masterclass against Liverpool

Arsenal take on Liverpool this Saturday with the supporters in attendance and those watching on suffering from years of wretched results and misguided hope.

Anfield is a tricky ground for every club in European football, let alone the Premier League, and Arsenal’s torrid away record in the top-flight against the ‘big six’ has rarely been more evident than in their trips to Merseyside.

That memorable 1-0 win at Old Trafford just over 12 months ago was the first at that ground in the league since 2006, and the first away at the ‘big six’ since 2015. You have to go back longer than that to find the last victory at Anfield.

Discounting penalty shootout wins in the EFL Cup, of course.

Remembering the memorable About Diaby masterclass against Liverpool in 2012 – which was the last time Arsenal won at Anfield in the Premier League

But no, the last time an Arsenal side tasted victory away at Liverpool was in September 2012, on the third matchweek of the season. Arsene Wenger’s side had drawn both of their opening two matches 0-0, against Sunderland and Stoke respectively, before taking on Brendan Rodgers’ side on their own patch.

Wenger made three key signings in that summer, investing just over £40m on Olivier Giroud, Lukas Podolski and Santi Cazorla. The trio all started that afternoon, which unbeknownst at the time, would be the start of a nine-year drought at Anfield.

It would also prove to be a significant day for Podolski and Cazorla, as their goals in the 2-0 win were their first ones for the club. The Spaniard was mesmerising in midfield, prompting Wenger to say post-match:

"“[puffs his cheeks out] He is a top player. He plays football like you would like everyone to play. It’s just a pleasure to watch him, I must say. We are very lucky to have him.”"

It was another player who truly stole the show, however; Wenger called his performance ‘massive’, and it would go down as arguably his finest in an Arsenal shirt.

Abou Diaby was on a different planet that day. Looking up ‘masterclass’ in the dictionary would present you not with a definition, but with an image of him in that gorgeous purple and black kit two stepping Steven Gerrard in his own half.

Alongside Mikel Arteta in midfield he owned the pitch. Exceptional determination to win every tackle was merged with the silkiest of two-footed touches to elegantly dance beyond challenges. His slender and lanky frame was the perfect disguise to his technical sophistication, whether it be a split second drop of the shoulder or a weighted touch beyond that only his galloping legs could catch up to.

What was felt like being a coming of age performance for someone who had been beset with injuries since arriving in north London six years prior would never transpire. For whatever reason, his elusive style and languid frame would never be granted the fortune he deserved to express his talents regularly, as injury desecrated his career.

But for one day in particular everything came together. Whatever lasting memory his luckless time as a footballer would leave, it always comes back to this game.

He protected his back four as if his life depended on it, played give and go’s like Arsenal were down to nine men, glided across the turf as if the ball wasn’t there and fed his forward players with pinpoint accuracy.

The comparison will not be made, no matter how many parallels can be drawn. This was the Diaby show, and it will be remembered as such. Supporters cling on to that performance from the Frenchman as one to savour, just as they still feed off the scraps of that win to counteract the bitter taste of humbling defeats in the near decade since. There are no more helpings left.

Arteta will take an Arsenal side he played in on that day to this very stadium aiming to end a nine year curse. How he would yearn for a prime Abou Diaby in midfield to wrestle control against one of the continents finest outfits.