Former Manchester United defender Gary Neville admitted he “spotted signs” that Arsenal appeared listless in the opening stages against Liverpool – as the Gunners conceded twice in the space of a minute during the first half.
Coming into the clash at Anfield, the visitors trailed the hosts by some 15 points after an underwhelming tilt at the title this season. Having been installed by many observers as the favorites for the top flight crown, it was Arne Slot’s men instead ran away with the championship – winning the Premier League with four games to spare.
To further compound the misery of the North London outfit, they crashed out of the Champions League at the semi-final stage at the hands of PSG in midweek. Having arrived in L4 after their final chance of silverware slipped from their grasps, the Gunners then had to perform a guard of honor for the newly-crowned English champions ahead of kick-off at Anfield.
Following on from this, the Gunners started the game in lethargic fashion, with Liverpool dominating proceedings in the opening stages amid a carnival atmosphere inside the stadium. Having secured the league title in their most recent home fixture against Spurs, Kopites appeared eager to serenade their triumphant heroes during the first half.
The cauldron of noise seemed to affect Arsenal during the first half too, as they conceded the opener courtesy of a Cody Gakpo header at the Anfield Road end. The Netherlands forward nodded home his 18th goal in all competitions this term, following a sumptuous cross from Andy Robertson down the left-hand side of the field.
Rolling back the years with his inch-perfect lofted pass, the Scotsman put the chance on a plate for his teammate – with David Raya stranded in his goal as the header sailed past him. Stupefied by this well-worked opener, the Gunners looked all at sea following the re-start too – as Liverpool quickly regained possession.
From there, the Reds notched again through Luis Diaz, who finished off a sweeping move with a tap-in following a touch-and-go between Mohamed Salah and Dominik Szoboszlai. Incredibly, these two strikes came within just 87 seconds of each other – as Liverpool showed the ruthless streak of champions at Anfield.
(Image: James Gill – Danehouse/Getty Images)
However, one man that was left less than impressed with what he had witnessed was former Manchester United full-back Neville, who criticized the Arsenal players after conceding twice in the space of a minute. Questioning their application and focus during a first half to forget, he made no secret of his disapproval on the Sky Sports commentary.
The Old Trafford legend opined in the gantry: “I mentioned it early on. There were signs that Arsenal just wasn’t right. The alertness, the sharpness just wasn’t there. The first goal cost them and it’s cost them again. It’s put arsenal to sleep.
Heading into the game, Gunners boss Arteta had confirmed that his players would perform the traditional guard of honor for the champions at Anfield. He congratulated Liverpool, saying: “They deserve that.
“They have been the better team, the most consistent. They fully deserve it and that’s sport. When somebody is better, you have to applaud.”
“I understand that it’s a team that’s being more consistent, and it has a lot of ingredients that you need to win it. But it’s very painful, yeah.
“I take the opportunity as well to congratulate Liverpool and what they’ve done, the management they’ve done, how consistent they’ve been. I think they fully deserve to win.
“They were the better team, they had so many attributes, they had a consistent squad available. And we’re going to try again. But up to that moment next season, now we’re going to have to finish the season very strong.”
