Arsenal were held to a goalless draw against Liverpool in a game where they created little chances, with the first-half being a horror show.
Petr Cech was called into action on a number of occasions to save Arsenal, whilst Philippe Coutinho struck the frame of the goal twice. In the second-half, Arsenal came close when Alexis Sanchez hit the post but ultimately a night to forget for Arsenal.
There was a shock an hour before kick-off with the team news, with Arsenal lining-up without first choice centre-back duo Per Mertesacker and Laurent Koscielny; with suggestions they were absent due to illness and bad back respectively.
Liverpool started the game in an electric fashion and saw Philippe Coutinho clatter the woodwork inside two minutes. Shortly after at the other end, Arsenal found the net when Aaron Ramsey poked home but the offside flag was incorrectly raised.
Francis Coquelin then got the Arsenal defence out of jail with a pinpoint last-ditch challenge, twice, with the reshuffled back-line at sixes and sevens. James Milner then forced a save out of Petr Cech, before Nathaniel Clyne had an effort deflected wide.
Gabriel Paulista then showed brilliant defending to dispossess Coutinho in a dangerous position and Christian Benteke then missed a golden opportunity, with Cech pulling off a point-blank save to keep the match goalless.
Minutes before the break Cech then showed his class once again with another superb stop, tipping Coutinho’s driven effort onto the post; ensuring that the tie would remain level at the break, with Arsenal needing major improvements.
Arsenal looked better in the second-half, giving Liverpool less chances to create, but with an hour gone the hosts were still yet to create a decent opening. That was until Giroud tapped the ball to Alexis Sanchez, who cannoned against the post.
Liverpool then ended Roberto Firmino’s full debut and replaced him with Jordan Ibe, before Arsenal were denied a penalty claim as Giroud was about to pull the trigger; with Simon Mignolet pulling off a diving save.
Arsenal soon replaced Giroud with Theo Walcott as they looked to make their second-half pressure count, with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain also coming on to replace Francis Coquelin. Ramsey then forced a save from Mignolet with a deflected shot, a decent chance for the hosts.
Skrtel then came close to diverting the ball into his own net, before Mignolet was finally booked for time wasting. Liverpool’s tactic of grinding out the result worked though, as they left the Emirates with a 0-0 draw; maintaining their unbeaten record.
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