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Everything to Know about Arsenal vs. Liverpool: Schedule, How to Watch
The first-place Reds face their toughest test of the young season against the Gunners in a heavyweight bout between two of the Premier League's best.
The race for the Premier League title this season was supposed to come down to Manchester City and Arsenal, as it has for the previous two years.
Liverpool apparently didn’t get the memo.
The Reds were supposed to take a step back for the inevitable growing pains that would come with a new manager (Arne Slot) replacing an all-time great (Jurgen Klopp). Slot and his players apparently didn’t get that memo, either.
Going into Sunday’s pivotal Week 9 match against Arsenal, Slott’s squad have won 11 out of their 12 matches, including a perfect start to their Champion’s League campaign. That’s a first in the 132-history of the club. Liverpool boasts the best defense in the Premier League and plenty of offensive firepower in Mohammed Salah and Luis Diaz, each with five goals on the season.
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The big knock against Liverpool had been that it had yet to face a worthy rival – and no, a 3-0 victory over a spiraling Manchester United squad doesn’t count. The criticism should be put to bed after a 2-1 win last Sunday over the resurgent and formidable Chelsea.
Their biggest test of the season to date, however, comes this Sunday.
Third-place Arsenal has been persevering under the crush of injuries to several key players. The Gunners, however, are coming off an ugly 2-0 loss to AFC Bournemouth last weekend, a result partially explained by the disadvantage of playing with 10 men after William Saliba was given a red card just 30 minutes into the match.
Manager Mikel Arteta has been doing a yeoman job keeping his club in striking distance considering the piling injuries – including to star midfielder and captain Martin Odegaard.
Arsenal can still field more than enough skill in the starting XI to win any match, particularly at home. A passionate fanbase makes Emirates Stadium a particularly tough pitch for visiting teams.
The real winner, though, will be the fans of great soccer who tune in to watch.
Where and When to Watch Arsenal vs. Liverpool
The match kicks off Sunday, October 27 at 12:30 p.m. Eastern Time at Emirates Stadium, in London, and will be broadcast exclusively on Peacock.
Arsenal News: Calafiori Is Latest Addition to Growing Injury List for Gunners
Arteta has a nightmare scenario of being without two more of his key defenders for Sunday’s match. Italian national Riccardo Calafiori injured his knee during Tuesday’s Champions League tilt with Shakhtar Donetsk, an injury that may keep him out of the lineup for weeks. The devastating loss comes on top of the one-game suspension that Saliba earned last Sunday and the continuing absence of injured full-back Jurrien Timber.
Liverpool News: Touted Transfer Chiesa May Already Be on the Outs
There hasn’t been much controversy this season on a club that’s firing on all cylinders, but reports have surfaced this week that this summer’s lone major transfer acquisition is already on the outs with Slot. Frederico Chiesa seemed like a bargain on a 12.5-million-pound deal that brought the Italian over from Juventus, but a combination of nagging injuries and inability to break into the starting lineup reportedly has the club considering sending the midfielder back to Serie A on loan during the January transfer window.
Who Are the Liverpool and Arsenal Stars to Watch
Arsenal: Though it may have been technically credited as an own goal, speedy Brazilian international Gabriel Martinelli was responsible for the winning score in Arsenal’s 1-0 victory over Shakhtar Donetsk Tuesday by launching the blistering shot that careened off the post and off the opposing goalkeeper. The 23-year-old has been a scourge of Liverpool with five goals scored in 10 games. The Gunners could sure use some of that magic on Sunday.
The big hope for the Gunners is that striker Bukayo Saka, the team’s best offensive weapon, will be able to take the pitch after injuring his hamstring two weeks ago. The 23-year-old English star leads the Premier League with seven assists.
Goalkeeper David Raya doesn’t get enough credit as one of the best at his position in the world. The 2024 Golden Glove winner, for most cleans sheets in the Premier League, has three of them in the first eight games of the young season.
Liverpool: Thirty-two-year-old Mohamed Salah continues to beat Father Time as handily as he does opposing goalkeepers. The Egyptian forward’s goal against Chelsea last Sunday was the 162nd of his storied career, good for ninth place all-time in Premier League history. He has five goals and five assists to pace Liverpool in what might be his final season with the club.
Salah and Diaz understandably get much of the attention, but the defense, led by captain Virgil van Dijk, deserves the credit for Liverpool’s historic start. The Dutchman has completed a staggering 70 of his 74 passes this young season, thriving with greater attacking responsibility in Slot’s system.
With Diogo Jota injured, super-sub Darwin Nunez appears ready to fill the scoring void. The 25-year-old Uruguayan played a strong game against Chelsea last weekend and scored the winning goal in a 1-0 victory over Germany’s RB Leipzig Wednesday, which continued Liverpool’s unbeaten run in the Champions League.
