- Date & Time: Sunday, February 4 – at 16:30 GMT
- Venue: Emirates Stadium, London
- Teams: Arsenal vs Liverpool
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Vital clash between title contenders at the Emirates
A real heavyweight meeting awaits in the Premier League between Arsenal and Liverpool and with both sides in the thick of the title race alongside Manchester City, the result could prove to be hugely important as we move towards the run in.
Arsenal
During the Christmas and New Year’s football, Arsenal struggled to grind out the results. They were leading the league as the festive pèriod began, however, they are now playing catch up. Arsenal appear to be finding some sort of fluency again and a home fixture against the league leaders is a big opportunity to close the gap. A convincing home win over Crystal Palace was followed by an away win over Nottingham Forest.
Their dip in form that included a 0-2 home loss against Liverpool, but that time in the FA Cup, after drawing at Anfield in the league before Christmas.
Thomas Partey made a return to full training after three months on the sidelines but was not considered for the win over Forest and has now suffered a fresh setback, meaning he will not be in contention against Liverpool.
Fabio Vieira (groin) and Jurrien Timber (ACL) are still recovering. Takehiro Tomiyasu is still on international duty with Japan. Mohamed Elneny is due to return following Egypt’s elimination from the Africa Cup of Nations. Gabriel Jesus has a knee issue which is being managed, however, he should be available.
Liverpool
Liverpool top the table and have continued to get results in all competitions despite missing key players with injuries and international call-ups. Mohamed Salah’s absence, firstly through his commitments with Egypt and now through a muscle injury sustained at the AFCON, has not been keenly felt thanks to the form of Diogo Jota, Darwin Nunez and Luis Diaz. Now the team travels to London to take on Arsenal, who seem to be back in form after dropping points recently. Liverpool have had two convincing victories in the last week, over Norwich City in the cup and Chelsea in the league.
Wataru Endo (international), Mohamed Salah (muscle), Kostas Tsimikas (collarbone), Stefan Bajcetic (calf), Ben Doak (knee), Joel Matip (knee) or Thiago Alcantara (hip) are all unavailable. Alexis Mac Allister took a bnag to the knee against Chelsea, however, the Argentine should be available. A number of players are fit again, including Trent Alexander- Arnold, however, the form of the likes of Conor Bradley means that Jurgen Klopp has no need to rush players back.
Previous meetings:
07.01.24 Arsenal – Liverpool 0-2 (FA Cup)
09.04.23 Liverpool – Arsenal 2-2
09.10.22 Arsenal – Liverpool 3-2
16.03.22 Arsenal – Liverpool 0-2
20.01.22 Arsenal – Liverpool 0-2 (League Cup)
Prediction
Arsenal look to be back to something like their best form and can ill afford to lose this match. Liverpool keep grinding out results and have some of their injured players returning. Two wins at the Emirates within a month would be a big ask for any side. I predict a score draw.
Emirates Stadium, London
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