On Saturday evening, Liverpool hosting Arsenal at Anfield in one of the most anticipated Premier League matches of the season.
Arsenal returns to Premier League play on Saturday, following the third and final international break of 2021, when they travel to Anfield to face Liverpool.
Is there a more difficult away match in Europe right now? There has been no tougher test of this team's credentials than what lies ahead since they were humbled away at Manchester City in matchweek three of the season.
Liverpool's 25-game undefeated run came to an end last time out when they were defeated 3-2 by West Ham at the London Stadium, a result that may work against Arsenal as Jurgen Klopp's side will be more motivated than ever to earn three points.
Meanwhile, Mikel Arteta's team has matched their best run during his tenure, aiming to go 11 games without losing in all competitions, a feat they are widely considered outsiders to do.
After the 11 games, Liverpool and Arsenal are separated by just one spot and two points in the table, with Liverpool fourth and Arsenal fifth.
At the end of August, big odds would have been placed on Arsenal overtaking Liverpool in the table.
The Gunners were bottom of the table at that time, having lost all three of their games and surrendering nine times without registering a single goal, while Liverpool had collected seven points from a possible nine and conceded only once.
Fast forward to now, and the Premier League scenario has shifted dramatically; for Liverpool, this is mostly due to a two-game winless streak prior to the international break, which included their first loss of the season last time out.
Arteta stated after his team's victory over Watford that his team has "achieved nothing."
While a team seeking to return to the top six will not have their season determined by outcomes away from title rivals, the atmosphere and narrative can shift quickly.
It shouldn't, but a performance of encouragement and growth will go a long way to persuade those who aren't persuaded Arsenal's current run is sustainable. Even with good spirits, there will be bumps in the way.
Is one of them going to be this one? Whatever happens, it will undoubtedly be a fantastic football match.
Klopp and his squad are far from panicking just yet after all, they are still the league's top scorers, with only Chelsea and Manchester City having superior defensive records than them but there have been a few alarming indicators in recent weeks, which were not present earlier in the season.
Liverpool must quickly get back on track, and the fact that they have already clinched top spot in a difficult Champions League group means they can focus entirely on Saturday's match, rather than having one eye on Porto's visit on Wednesday.
That should give Arsenal confidence for the trip up to Anfield, although they are unlikely to need any more of that given their fine form heading into the international break.
Following Liverpool's defeat at West Ham, the Gunners now have the Premier League's longest current unbeaten run, having taken 20 points from the 24 available since their three losses to begin the season.
Arteta's team now appears to be lot more organized than the one that was humiliated by Man City on matchday three, and this weekend's visit to Anfield will provide them with the perfect opportunity to demonstrate just how far they've gone in that time.
How I Think The Game Will End.
Arsenal fans may not have felt confident traveling to Anfield in recent years due to their terrible record against the Reds, but they are in excellent form this time around and may fancy their chances.
However, this fixture always appears to favour Klopp's Liverpool, and the league's best scorers usually score a few goals against Arsenal as well.
The Gunners have the means to hurt a Liverpool defense that appeared vulnerable before the international break, but I'm backing the hosts to win this weekend, especially since their injury woes don't appear to be as terrible as first thought.
So I say Liverpool 3-2 Arsenal.
Please share your prediction and thought of this game. Thank you.
sorry Liverpool became a hard nut for the gunners...
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I was expecting Liverpool to win the game but not with that kind of goal margin.
Liverpool were really strong for Arsenal to handle. Thanks for reading
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