Arsenal 1 Liverpool 1: match report
Read a full match report of the Premier League game between Arsenal and Liverpool at Emirates Stadium on Sunday April 17.
Robin van Persie looked to have clinched Arsenal a valuable three points with an injury-time penalty, but Emmanuel Eboue then rashly challenged Lucas Leiva to present Dirk Kuyt with the chance to equalise with the last kick of the game.
Both Arsene Wenger and Eboue were left angrily remonstrating with referee Andre Marriner as they left the pitch. Arsenal are now six points adrift of Manchester United at the top of the Premier League table with only six matches of the season remaining.
The goalless draw was not without potentially damaging consequences for Liverpool, for whom two key players had their contributions restricted by injury.
Andy Carroll jarred his leg as he stretched for a second-half pass and, while he did initially attempt to play on, it appeared that his knee was giving him significant discomfort.
Jamie Carragher was also stretchered off in a neck brace after an accidental clash of heads with his team-mate John Flanagan.
Encouraging, Liverpool had confirmed by the end of the match that Carragher was fully conscious and speaking to club staff in the dressing-room.
With Wojciech Szczesny, Johan Djourou and Theo Walcott all returning to the Arsenal starting line-up following recent injury, the question was whether it would be too little and too late for Arsene Wenger’s team. Those players were clearly missed during costly draws against Sunderland, West Brom and Blackburn and, although it will take time for them to recover full match fitness, an improvement was initially obvious. Walcott caused Fabio Aurelio immediate problems with the pace and timing of his runs, while also providing an early test of Pepe Reina.
Aurelio eventually hobbled off after 21 minutes, leaving teenage full-backs Jack Robinson and John Flanagan to deal admirably with the respective threat of Walcott and Samir Nasri.
Indeed, just as in the recent home games against Sunderland and Blackburn, Arsenal found themselves struggling to break down opponents who got players behind the ball and focussed on restricting their passing from midfield.
Cesc Fabregas was particularly quiet, with his only first-half sight of goal arriving after an exchange of passes with Van Persie.
The closest Arsenal came during an uneventful first-half was from a set-piece when Laurent Koscielny headed Van Persie’s corner against the crossbar.
Liverpool were content to stifle Arsenal’s pressure and look for their chances on the counter-attack. Luis Suarez tested Szczesny with a free-kick while Jay Spearing might have won a penalty after a slightly clumsy challenge from Djourou.
The general pattern continued early in the second-half, although the match was halted for two significant periods to deal with the injuries both to Carroll and, most worryingly, Carragher.
As the time ticked down, Wenger made positive substitutions, bringing on Andrei Arshavin and Nicklas Bendtner. There were chances at both ends, with Van Persie and Suarez having shots well saved by Reina and Szczesny before the controversial finale.
Boos rang out on the final whistle; an unhappy soundtrack for a watching Stan Kroenke at the end of what was his first Arsenal game since assuming majority control of the club.
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