Mikel Arteta's Arsenal find themselves in a familiar position after nine matches in this season's Premier League. The Gunners defeated an in-form Liverpool team managed by new head coach Andoni Iraola at Anfield on Sunday to move three points clear of Manchester City at the top of the table after they lost to the impressive Brighton on Saturday. Prior to the Arsenal match, the Reds had been on a four match winning streak, including that penalty shootout against Chelsea in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday night and hadn't lost to the Gunners since 2012 when goals from Lukas Podolski and Santi Cazorla took the points back to London. Up against the meanest defence in the Premier League on Sunday though was a different prospect entirely and despite looking threatening going forward, meaningful chances at goal for the home side were few. Coming into the match, Arsenal had conceded a league best 24 shots on target across all their league games this season, ranking 1st in that category and had conceded only 5 goals from those shots ranking 1st in that category too. The 1-0 home win in last season's fixture came late on with a Dominik Szoboloskai free kick stunner in the 83rd minute when the game looked to be heading for a draw but this season the Gunners prevailed to take all three points and a historic 300th away victory in the Premier League.
Havertz
A positive start to the game from the champions resulted in a few chances early on as the fit again Christos Tzolis proved a handful, getting beyond the Liverpool defence only to see his cross getting cut out. Declan Rice looked lively also and attempted a shot from 25 yards but watched it sail over the bar. Not long after that it was Arsenal who took the lead when a slick move on 16 minutes involving firstly Odergaard then Rice who delivered an inch perfect pass to the incoming Kai Havertz at the far post who converted with ease to give the Gunners an early lead. That goal had some personal significance for Havertz also as he became the all time leading German goalscorer in the history of the Premier League.
Sustained pressure
A sustained period of Liverpool pressure then for the next 25 minutes failed to produce an equaliser although on 21 minutes, Jurrien Timber did have a handful of Isak's shirt prompting the home team to appeal for a penalty which VAR waved away. For the latter period of the first half Liverpool enjoyed strong possession figures with Florian Wirtz going close to equalising. He arrowed a free kick from outside the box which beat everyone, but smashed off the cross bar and away to safety. Alexis Mac Allister met a cross from the left wing but watched as his header shot over the bar. The second half restarted with Liverpool coming out strongly yet again although Arsenal kept their shape and looked well organised. Myles Lewis Skelly replaced Guimaraes in the 62nd minute to bolster the midfield and in the 73rd minute Arsenal had a great chance to double their lead when Tzolis forced a flying save from Alisson in the Liverpool goal. Despite heavy periods of possession from Liverpool, David Raya in the Arsenal goal never had a serious save to make and overall, as it was as mentioned on Sky Sports, it was a controlled defensive display by the Champions and a precious three points in the title race. It was also a measure of just how good the Arsenal defence actually is under pressure that they contained the Liverpool strike force, Ezri Konsa has been a rock at the heart of the defence along with Gabriel and with William Saliba rumoured to be back after the international break, Arsenal look set to continue their meanness in defence.
Arteta
A delighted Mikel Arteta spoke to the media after the game and was asked about whether it was better to win at Anfield as a player or as a manager,
"Now, it feels better as a manager because it's been such a long time without having this feeling here that we really needed it. We're extremely proud of what the team, the players, everybody has done. Especially in the condition that we arrived to this game, where we were after the defeat against Fleetwood, it looks like the end of the world. It looks like, yeah, what are we doing? Then you have to pick yourself up, understand that this is the beautiful part of this game. That's when you believe that you have done everything and deserve to win the game clearly, then you are out of a cup and then four days later you have to come to Anfield against this manager, against this team, that they are in a really good moment and compete, perform and earn the right to win the game in the manner that we've done".
BIG PERFORMANCE. BIG WIN. pic.twitter.com/BDgF853Q3D
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) November 1, 2026
Up Next
Next up for Arsenal is a midweek visit to the Fortuna Arena to take on Slavia Prague in the Champions League. The Gunners are unbeaten in this years competition and sit in 7th place in the table with 7 points, two behind the leaders on nine points and a win against the Sešívaní will ensure Arsenal take a huge step towards the top 8 and the knockout stages. They return to the Emirates on Saturday to face newly promoted Hull City in the Premier League.
