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Arsenal missed the chance to move eight points clear at the top of the Premier League as Liverpool battled to a goalless draw at the Emirates Stadium.
There was an atmosphere of expectation in north London with Arsenal having the chance to strengthen their bid for a first title in 22 years after Manchester City and Aston Villa dropped points on Wednesday, but things did not follow the script for the Gunners.
After a good start from the home side, Liverpool went close to an opener in the first half as Conor Bradley hit the bar with a lobbed effort after a mix-up between David Raya and William Saliba.
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Conor Bradley hits the bar after Arsenal defensive confusion
Arsenal regained momentum as Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice saw long-range efforts saved by Alisson Becker, but there was no way through a resolute Liverpool defense.
Arne Slot’s side, who extended their unbeaten run in all competitions to 10 games, took control of the match in the second half as Arsenal faded away.
As the home fans’ tension mounted, the Reds dominated possession, with Arsenal barely having a spot-kick, but they were unable to muster a shot on target with three wayward long-range efforts from Dominik Szoboszlai their best chances.
Substitutes Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli tested Alisson in stoppage time, but it proved to be a frustrating, if not critical, evening for Arsenal, who only extended their lead advantage to six points when there was a chance of more.
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Gary Neville fumed over Gabriel Martinelli’s behavior towards injured Bradley
“The title is far from a formality for lackluster Arsenal”
Aerial sports Nick Wright at the Emirates:
“Arsenal are six points ahead. The draw is far from disastrous. But this title is far from a formality if they play as badly as they did in the second half.
“The Gunners almost snatched it with Gabriel’s header at the end. The defender had his head in his hands.
“But it was one of only three Arsenal shots in the second half, all of which came in stoppage time. Arsenal had just 35 percent possession after the break.
“Liverpool barely had to break a sweat defensively and will feel they should have won it themselves, with Frimpong creating a series of dangerous openings and Bradley hitting the bar in the first half.”
“Arsenal players have gone into their shells” – first sign of tension among the Gunners in the title race?
Arsenal’s Piero Hincapie and Liverpool’s Jeremie Frimpong battle for the ball
Aerial sports Roy Keane:
“Arsenal were a bit hesitant. All that talk before the game. The longer the game went on from Arsenal’s point of view, they were probably thinking, ‘We’re going to draw.’
“It’s not the end of the world for them. What worries them is that Liverpool dominated the game so much.
“It’s the way Arsenal didn’t take the initiative. There was a bit of tension in the stadium. It’s going to get worse in the latter part of the season so that will be a worry. Credit goes to Liverpool for the way they dominated possession.
“Liverpool extracted the energy from the stadium perfectly well. Liverpool showed a bit of combativeness and swagger in claiming they are champions, but they just lacked that edge.”
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Roy Keane and former Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge react to Martinelli’s attempt to push Bradley off the pitch, with both experts agreeing it was a “disrespectful” thing to do.
Aerial sports Daniel Sturridge:
“It was strange. Arsenal didn’t seem to have any solutions to break Liverpool.
“Liverpool then took control of the match. Arsenal did not take the initiative.
“It felt like there was tension. It felt like the players were happy. It looked like the Arsenal players had gone into their shells a bit.”
“We came out of a demanding schedule in a position of strength”
Arsenal chief Mikel Arteta from its position at the top of the table after a “demanding” Christmas period:
“We know the margins are very small. I think we have two different halves.
“The first, where we had a lot of dominance, created big situations with players almost inside the penalty area to recover a player, and we didn’t find the right pass to score the goal. And the second half was a little more difficult.
“This match needs magical moments, and at Anfield, [Dominik] Szoboszlai did it, and they won the match, and today it didn’t happen, but [if] you can’t win it, you can’t lose it.
“We had times where we had the right positional advantages to really hurt them, and then when we got into those areas we lacked the quality to select players.
“We’re coming off a very demanding schedule. The last six games we’ve played over this Christmas period, and we’ve come out of it in a very strong position.
“We have to be proud of this position. There are things to improve as always and we continue.
“You want to take every opportunity, but if you did you would be 12 or 15 points ahead. It’s the Premier League and we know how difficult it is.”
Positive slot on Liverpool’s performance
Liverpool chief Arne Slot praised the performance of his team:
“We showed the quality to come here and win. In the first half, they were the team that played the most in our half.
“This resulted in a few moments of crosses but not too many chances. In the second half it was exactly the opposite, where we dominated the ball for almost all 45 minutes of their half.
“The only thing we missed, not for the first time, was the moments around the box.
“You hope to create even more chances, but against an Arsenal team who have good momentum, to put in a performance like this is something I am very positive about.”
