Liverpool vs Arsenal: How the team’s weakness could be their strength

Arsenal’s Quick Starts and Structured Defence Can be Tweaked

Quite a lot needs to fall into place on Saturday. Of this there is no shying away from.

The idea that Arsenal can replicate their bombastic starts to matches at Anfield, grab the early goal they desire and then invite waves of attacks from a forward line boasting the best player in the world and a defence that is home to the most creative player in the division is not a simple, nor a wise, solution.

When glancing at where Liverpool are at their weakest, however, it is in the spaces to exploit behind their lines and the struggles their midfield has against low blocks. Fabinho, for all his brilliance, can take too many touches when he has time and space.

Arsenal have taken the lead twice in the past two Premier League matches at Anfield and won neither. Not even drawn. With a newfound aggression in how they start, getting their noses in front places the match into a game state that does not suit Liverpool.

They can score at any time, lead all the statistics for collective xG/90, xA/90 as well as individually, and have the best player in the world – has that been mentioned yet?

Were it to transpire that Arsenal maintain their record of early goals, as much as the team need to iron out the negativity they show once doing so – this falls on the manager, inexperience and the rushing of play once going in front – the defensive steel they’ve shown could play into their advantage.

It’s one thing dropping off and showing no ambition on the ball for 70 or so minutes when you’re effectively waiting for Liverpool to score, and it’s another seeking to exploit that very game state in a way that directly attacks the few weaknesses Klopp’s side have.

West Ham did this masterfully. Scoring after four minutes, the two midfielders in Tomas Soucek and Declan Rice were outstanding in protecting their back four, and with the Reds’ full-back pushing high and wide, once the ball was turned over they broke with blistering pace in getting the ball from back to front as quickly as possible.

Arsenal currently have what could be described as an inferiority complex; this subconscious fear having gone in front. Finding a way to channel that into an effective gameplan may bizarrely turn their most notable weakness into a strength away at Anfield.

Arteta is moulding this team to his liking but they are some way off dominating matches from start to finish, even less so against Klopp’s Liverpool. Channeling where they are now as a team into a strategy might, somewhat bizarrely, work in their favour.