Liverpool hold Arsenal to dull draw, halt Gunners in title race

Liverpool's Dominik Szoboszlai and Arsenal's Declan Rice fight for the ball

Arsenal and Liverpool shared the spoils in what was the first goalless Premier League H2H since August 2015, ending the Gunners’ seven-match winning run across all competitions and proving the title race is still far from a formality.

This was a match-up between the champions-elect and the title holders, as Mikel Arteta’s side looked to strengthen their stranglehold at the summit after Manchester City’s two dropped points on Wednesday night.

They smelt blood early on here, with Bukayo Saka giving Liverpool’s defence a torrid time down the right. The England forward cut inside off the flank and forced Alisson into a low save for his first sight of goal.

However, that confident start was almost sabotaged when William Saliba’s backpass caught out David Raya, and Conor Bradley almost capitalised with an attempted chip which cannoned off the bar.

Arne Slot’s men stood firm for the remainder of the half, and Milos Kerkez epitomised their defensive resolve with a superb block to deny Saka from inside the box in an admirable rearguard effort.

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Florian Wirtz looked to engineer an opener shortly after the restart when he brilliantly manoeuvred his way into the box, and had a penalty shout turned down after Leandro Trossard stepped across the German’s path.

It was a promising spell for the visitors, and Arsenal’s inauspicious start to the second half was compounded by Piero Hincapie's injury-enforced exit just shy of the hour mark.

Slot’s side were gaining belief, and Jeremie Frimpong was causing problems for Hincapie’s replacement Myles Lewis-Skelly without finding that elusive killer ball to orchestrate a clear-cut opportunity.

Dominik Szoboszlai was at the heart of Liverpool's second-half renaissance with a flurry of long-range efforts and neat intricate passes, as Arsenal's struggles to match their first-half intensity continued.

Szoboszlai came closer still to getting Liverpool off the mark when his free-kick from a central position grazed the roof of the net.

Despite the Hungarian’s efforts, there was nothing to separate the two sides at the Emirates in a gritty performance which will please Slot and the travelling Liverpool supporters making the long journey back to Merseyside.

The Reds are now unbeaten in 10 games across all competitions (W5, D5) to consolidate their position in fourth.

The Gunners could've won it at the death but Gabriel headed wide from a last-gasp corner, moving them six points clear of Manchester City, with Pep Guardiola’s side and Aston Villa still within striking range.

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