Dominik Szoboszlai's stunning free kick decided the high-stakes match between Liverpool and Arsenal as the team coached by Arne Slot won 1-0 thanks to the incredible individual play of the Hungarian midfielder. It wasn't the best game of the season, despite all the expectations, and both teams seemed much more concerned about avoiding losing the game against their Premier League rivals and it's not a coincidence it was decided by a late free kick in the 83rd minute at Anfield. Slot can now relax a bit as his side goes to the international break with three wins in the first three Premier League matches, the only side able to do so in the 2025-26 season. Liverpool are currently leading the Premier League table with nine points and with a two-point advantage on Chelsea. Arsenal, on the other hand, saw the debut of new Gunners' number ten Eberechi Eze who played his first minutes with his new club after he joined from Crystal Palace last week.
As mentioned, it wasn't the most riveting match of the weekend as there were only four shots on target overall between the two sides. Both teams wanted to control the game and the ball, depending on the momentum of the match. While Arsenal seemed much more aggressive in the last part of the first half, Liverpool were always in control and didn't concede much, showing an impressive defensive steel that had been absent for most of the beginning of the season. Both sides looked strong and compact in their defensive phases and it was a difficult match for the strikers involved, starting from Liverpool's Mo Salah and Arsenal's Viktor Gyokeres who couldn't really show their qualities as they were stuck between the center backs and fullbacks. Szoboszlai's spark in the second half changed the direction of the last minutes of the game at Anfield, as Arsenal tried to score the equalizer but failed to create the necessary chances. This is a very important win for Liverpool, one of those that make the difference at the end of the season.
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This is it at Anfield! Liverpool win 1-0 against Arsenal thanks to the wonderful free kick scored by Szoboszlai in the second half! Big three points for Arne Slot's team.
Arsenal are pushing but still 1-0 for the home team so far.
Florian Wirtz got injured while he was running back to the defense and it doesn't look good for him as he's replaced by Endo.
That's the sport we all love. Now everything can happen and Arsenal had a big chance with Eze to score the equalizer, but the former Crystal Palace player lost the right moment to shoot and failed his attempt. Five minutes left before the 90th minute.
This match finally sees its first goal of the afternoon as Dominik Szoboszlai scored a stunning free kick from 32 yards. The game can now become way more interesting as Arsenal will do everything to equalize in the last ten minutes of the game.
Two more changes for the home team as both Konate, who looks injured, and Ekitike are replaced by Federico Chiesa and Joe Gomez.
Eberechi Eze makes his debut for Arsenal as he replaces Gabriel Martinelli, while Odegaard also in on the pitch as he replaced Merino. 20 minutes left before the final whistle from now on.
Arne Slot makes his first substitution as Mac Allister is replaced by Curtis Jones.
Liverpool's Hugo Ekitike thought he'd broken the deadlock, but the goal was ruled out due to Cody Gakpo's offside position when Florian Wirtz played the ball. This could shift the momentum but let's see how the next few minutes unfold!
We're back at Anfield for the second half of the match, still no goals and no further changes in the teams. Let's see if we can see some goals in the next 45 minutes.
Nothing else happened and after one minute of added time the first half is now over. We hope to see something more in the next 45 minutes.
Noni Madueke has been Arsenal's standout performer in the first half, creating another scoring opportunity here. His shot was deflected, forcing a corner before Alisson could react. Few minutes later, Riccardo Calafiori had another chance but his shot was deflected again. Arsenal are playing much better in these last minutes of the first half.
So far it wasn't an exciting game between the two teams, as they seem much more concern about their defences and want to avoid as many chances as possible in the first half. Not an exciting match so far, but we know that things can quickly change in this sport.
Arsenal also had their very first chance of the match at the 22nd minute of the first half when Madueke had the first shot on target for the away team after a corner, but Alisson saved it well. Finally some more action here...
It wasn't an intense start of the game at Anfield, but Liverpool had a solid chance with Cody Gakpo to score the opening goal of the match, but his effort goes wide. Few moments later, Raya saved a dangerous back pass of Madueke.
Four minutes into the match at Anfield and we already have the first substitution as Arsenal were forced to make one early change as William Saliba looked injured and was replaced by Cristhian Mosquera, who makes his away debut with the team coached by Arteta after playing 26 minutes last week against Leeds.
The match has started! Let's see what will happen today at Anfield..
The two teams are on the pitch, it's almost time to watch one of the best matches of the season. The fans are singing "You'll never walk alone". Great atmosphere and weather in Liverpool.
With only one day left before the end of the summer transfer window, which will end on Monday at 2 p.m. ET, there are still chances to see Liverpool signing Alexander Isak from Newcastle, as the player is still not playing with the team coached by Eddie Howe. The Magpies announced the signing of Nick Woltemade from Stuttgart for around $80 million, who will likely be the replacement of Isak. Talks are expected to resume and enter the deciding phase right after the match against Arsenal.
Let's take a quick look at the lineups. Gabriel Martinelli and Mikel Merino replace Saka and Odegaard, as the Arsenal captain is on the bench after picking up a shoulder injury against Leeds. The new signing of the Gunners, Eberechi Eze, will also start from the bench. For Liverpool, Alexis Mac Allister is back in the team after missing the away match against Newcastle last week.
In 30 minutes the match between Liverpool and Arsenal will kick off, while Manchester City just lost 2-1 to Brighton. After the second defeat in a row of the team coached by Pep Guardiola, the match that will take place at Anfield become even more important, as both teams can now create a six-point gap with the Citizens.
Here's what our own James Benge wrote ahead of today's match:
It may be impossible for any team to slow Mohamed Salah at full tilt, but if anyone has given it a good go in recent years, it is Arsenal. The Egyptian has still cooked up some special moments against his title rivals but when Mikel Arteta's defense has been good against Salah, they have forced him to live off scraps. Their approach is relatively straightforward. Salah is going to drive infield from the right flank on his stronger right foot, so Arsenal will respond, when they can, by sticking a defender at left back who can defend on his right foot. Ideally, he can also cover overlapping attacks or Salah driving down the byline, a true two-footed defender. Takehiro Tomiyasu was the role's progenitor; if his fitness could be relied on, he would probably still be in the Arsenal squad specifically for games like this one. Jurrien Timber, Arsenal's best defensive fullback, did an excellent job for 76 minutes at the Emirates last season. Five minutes later, Salah scored an equalizer that in retrospect might have throttled Arsenal's title momentum.
With a full slate of players to choose from, Mikel Arteta might well have been tempted to shunt Timber across to left back again. Then again, this is Arsenal we're talking about. It has been well over a year without a full slate. No Ben White — north London's stout knight, the sort of player who'd lose a leg and convince his bosses he could play through a flesh wound — means there is only one right back to choose from. That means one of Riccardo Calafiori or Myles Lewis-Skelly will have the task of marshalling Salah.
Lewis-Skelly did so relatively effectively at the back end of last season but like several springtime opponents, he was running into a satiated Salah, one with no more worlds left to conquer in 2024-25. Still, Lewis-Skelly's CV of defensive excellence is remarkable for a player of just 18 years of age; handing a teenager the task of locking down the best attacker in England might just be the most conservative option for Arteta.
Liverpool XI: Alisson; Konate, Van Dijk, Kerkez; Szoboszlai, Mac Allister, Gravenberch; Salah, Wirtz, Gakpo; Ekitike.
Arsenal XI: Raya; Timber, Saliba, Gabriel, Calafiori; Mikel Merino, Zubimendi, Rice; Madueke, Gyokeres, Martinelli.
Good morning from Francesco Porzio! It's the day of Liverpool vs. Arsenal at Anfield, one of the biggest matches of the season will take place today in Liverpool. Let's go into all the details and info on what you need to know ahead of the game.
