Man City Seizes Title Opportunity as Arsenal Fails to Demonstrate Killer Instinct against Liverpool

Arsenal blew a two-goal lead against Liverpool at Anfield, dropping two points, which could prove decisive in their race against Manchester City to win the Premier League title.

During their match at Anfield, Arsenal let slip a two-goal lead, resulting in a 2-2 draw against Liverpool. This outcome could be detrimental to their hopes of winning the Premier League title, as they now face stiff competition from Manchester City. Initially, Gabriel Martinelli and Gabriel Jesus' first-half goals put Arsenal in a commanding position, with an eight-point lead in sight. However, Mohamed Salah managed to score for Liverpool before half-time, and despite missing a second-half penalty, Roberto Firmino's header in the 87th minute secured a draw for the home team. Arsenal was fortunate to avoid a loss, as goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale made two remarkable saves in stoppage time to deny Liverpool's Salah and Konate.

1. Arsenal let it slip and open the door for Manchester City

Arsenal's failure to secure a win at Anfield has undoubtedly resulted in two lost points rather than one gained. The consequences of this outcome remain unclear, but it could have a significant impact on the team's title ambitions in the coming weeks. If Arsenal had managed to hold onto their lead and win at Anfield, they would have retained control of their title race against Manchester City. However, City is now in the same position as the Gunners, and they will become champions if they win all their remaining nine games. Despite being six points behind Arsenal with a game in hand, City's ruthless efficiency in closing out seasons from this stage could be the deciding factor, especially if they win their upcoming match against Arsenal at the Etihad.Arsenal's inability to convert their dominance in the first half into a win will be a significant concern for Manager Mikel Arteta. Winning titles require teams to hold their nerve and preserve their lead when under pressure, something that Arsenal failed to do at Anfield. With Manchester City having the capability to win all their remaining games, the Gunners are aware of the high cost of the draw against Liverpool. Their challenge is now simple - avoid losing at City later this month. However, this will be easier said than done, and their margin for error has significantly reduced as they dropped two crucial points at Anfield.

2. Salah's struggles from penalty spot worsen

Mohamed Salah is losing his touch from the penalty spot for Liverpool. The forward's miss against Arsenal was the second time he has failed to score from 12 yards in the space of a month and he has missed the target completely on both occasions. Against Bournemouth last month, the Egypt international sent his spot kick high and wide as Liverpool slid to a shock defeat against the relegation-threatened side. And with the chance to equalise against Arsenal, after Liverpool had fallen 2-0 down in the first half, Salah guided his penalty wide of goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale's right-hand post to give the Premier League leaders a huge let-off.Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp clearly expected Salah to score, judging by his celebration on the touchline before reality dawned on him that Salah had missed. Although he didn't have a flawless penalty record for Liverpool in the Premier League, Salah has been one of the division's most reliable spot-kick takers in recent years. Prior to missing against Arsenal, he had scored 18 and missed just 3 of his 21 penalties, but before his miss against Bournemouth, he had only wasted two Premier League spot kicks in six years. But two misses in a month have taken the shine of Salah's record and, if Liverpool get another penalty this season, it might be time to give somebody else a shot from the spot.

3. Arsenal's cynical time-wasting was counterproductive to title hopes

Arsenal's game management at Anfield crossed the line into cynical time-wasting, but it backfired against Mikel Arteta's team. From goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale taking longer than required with his goal-kicks to players going down following slight, if any, contact in challenges with their opponents, Arsenal did everything possible to run down the clock and halt the rhythm of the game, to the extent that the game had a total of 10 minutes stoppage time added to the 90 minutes. Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli were two of the biggest culprits, but while the objective was clearly to take the sting out of the game and deny Liverpool the chance to build momentum, Arsenal's tactics actually had the opposite effect by firing up the crowd and Jurgen Klopp's players.Referee Paul Tierney failed to address the repeated attempts to delay the game by calling for physio treatment during the match. By the time he booked Bukayo Saka for taking too long to take a corner in the 84th minute, it was already too late to regain control of the situation. Arsenal is a team with immense ability, and wasting time in such a blatant manner is unnecessary. As the season approaches its end, games are becoming increasingly tense, and such cynical approaches could work against the team, leading to the loss of crucial points if not addressed.

Best and worst performers

Best: Aaron Ramsdale, Arsenal

The Arsenal goalkeeper made some crucial saves in the second half as Liverpool chased an equaliser. Ramsdale's presence and personality have been huge factors for the Gunners this season.e

Best: Gabriel Martinelli, Arsenal

Scored the crucial opener to settle Arsenal's nerves and tormented the Liverpool defence all afternoon with his pace and direct running.

Best: Martin Odegaard, Arsenal

A class act in midfield for Arsenal. When the game began to be stretched, the Gunners captain brought sense and calmness to their game.

Mo Salah's missed penalty, wasn't great for the Liverpool forward, but there were worse performances on the day.

Worst: Virgil van Dijk, Liverpool

Liverpool were a mess at the back throughout the game and Van Dijk contributed to that with his woeful positional sense. And he also did nothing to stop Gabriel Jesus heading Arsenal into a two-goal lead.

Worst: Granit Xhaka, Arsenal

The Arsenal midfielder reverted back to the hothead who caused so many problems for his team in the past. Lost his head and lucky to avoid a red card following a clash with Trent Alexander-Arnold.

Worst: Diogo Jota, Liverpool

Still finding his fitness after a lengthy injury layoff and the Liverpool forward struggled to get involved against the league leaders.

After the match: What the managers and players said

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta on the game: "Wow. Very intense game. The game was under control but after that we concede a really sloppy goal and the game shifted momentum. We started well in the first few minutes [of the second half] but then lost control. It became a very transitional game, very chaotic. Liverpool could score three or four. It is true we could have scored two or three so maybe at the end the score is fair."

Arteta on Liverpool coming back: "

Arteta on Liverpool coming back: "We lost control and started to give a lot of balls away. The game became open. We needed resilience, we needed our keeper in the last moment. I think a draw is a fair result. The crowd got going. The goal gave them some hope. At 2-0 we had the game in our hands. That was our chance to kill the game. Then we made a mistake. We had to show our resilience and our luck at times."

Arteta on what the draw means for the title race:

Arteta on what the draw means for the title race: "Move on. Convince them to keep playing like we did in the first 30 minutes."

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp on the result:

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp on the result: "A bit typical for us this season. An open game, completely open, they score with the first situation and the second one. Our reaction was good. It was a spectacular game in the end. How we didn't win it with those late chances I don't know."

h4 style="text-align: center;">Klopp on whether he's happy with the draw or not:

Klopp on whether he's happy with the draw or not: "I'm caught in-between. I have no problems with drawing. Arsenal were good but they could and should have lost this game. The point for them is better.":