The last Arsenal XI to beat Liverpool at Anfield: Where are they now?

Arsenal have achieved so much in 2026. The Gunners have reached a first Champions League Final in 20 years and became Premier League champions for the first time in 22 years. So now, on Sunday, can they end their 14-year wait for a first win at Anfield?

Back on 2 September 2012, a whopping 5,172 days ago, both Łukasz Podolski and Santi Cazorla bagged their first goals for the club as Arsène Wenger's team beat Brendan Rodgers' side 2-0.

In the Liverpool lineup that day was names such as Nuri Şahin and Fabio Borini, as well as future Arsenal player Raheem Sterling, and infamously failed Arsenal target Luis Suárez. A lot has changed at both clubs in the subsequent decade and a half, so where are the Gunners' lineup from that day?

GK: Vito Mannone

In the absence of Wojciech Szczęsny, Italian Vito Mannone was donning the gloves that afternoon, one of his 15 Premier League appearances for the club. More recently, he has had spells with clubs in far flung places such as Minnesota United and Esbjerg fB. Now 38 years old, Mannone is a player-coach at Crawley Town in EFL League Two, making eight appearances so far this season.

RB: Carl Jenkinson

Carl Jenkinson retired from professional football in August. The 34 year old had two seasons in Australia with Melbourne City and then Newcastle Jets, finishing his career back in London with Bromley.

CB: Per Mertesacker

After retiring, Per Mertesacker spent eight years as Arsenal's academy director, before leaving the role earlier this year. He has since been appointed managing director for sport by the DFB, set to oversee youth development and academy football across Germany.

CB: Thomas Vermaelen

It is now five seasons since 40 year old Thomas Vermaelen hung up his boots, spending the final three seasons of his playing career at Vissel Kōbe in Japan. He is now working as Belgium's under-20s head coach.

LB: Kieran Gibbs

Kieran Gibbs retired as a 34 year old back in 2023, wrapping up his career at Inter Miami, just before Lionel Messi and friends landed in Fort Lauderdale. He has since founded ONE FC, which is a youth soccer academy in Florida.

CDM: Abou Diaby

Had it not been for that horrific leg break suffered at the Stadium of Light, Abou Diaby would have become one of the best midfielders in Arsenal's history. Instead, across a decade in North London, he made just 180 appearances. Since retiring at the age of just 31, Diaby is now studying management in Doha, aiming to become a business executive; quite the career change.

CM: Mikel Arteta

We don't need to make this section very long? All we have to say really is... we've got Super Mik Arteta, who does indeed know exactly what we need.

CAM: Santi Cazorla

After suffering a gruesome right foot and Achilles tendon injury against Ludogorets in 2016, it was forecast that Santi Cazorla would never play football or perhaps even walk again. Instead, after eight operations and 668 days on the sidelines, he came back and his career had a fairytale ending.

The midfielder was a key figure as his boyhood club Real Oviedo won promotion back to La Liga for the first time in a quarter of a century, hanging up his boots as recently as last summer, after los Azules were relegated back to the Segunda División.

RM: Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain

Five years after this win, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain would make his final appearance for Arsenal at Anfield, before being sold to Liverpool for £35 million a few days later. Still only 33 years old, the Englishman joined Celtic in February on a short-term deal, but impressed Martin O'Neill, thereby earning a longer-term contract with the Scottish champions.

LM: Lukas Podolski

After spells in Italy, Japan and Türkiye, similar to Cazorla, Łukasz Podolski signed for boyhood club in 2021, spending five seasons at Górnik Zabrze. Last year, they won the Polish Cup for the first time since 1972 and finished second in the Ekstraklasa, before Podolski retired at the age of 41.

The German international is though the now club's majority shareholder, buying 86% of the shares, as well as owning four Mangal Döner kebab shops in Köln.

ST: Olivier Giroud

Last, by no means least, Olivier Giroud is still going strong at the age of 40. After a mixed spell with LAFC, he joined LOSC Lille last year, helping them qualify for the Champions League, coming off the bench as les Dogues were beaten 3-0 by Arsenal earlier this month. The striker though has intimated that he will retire next summer.

So, the last Arsenal XI to win at Anfield features a kebab shop owner, a masters student and Germany's national managing director for sport. That needs to change, so will the 3,052 Gooners in the Anfield Road stand on Sunday witness history?

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