The Premier League is beginning to wind down in 2018, but that doesn’t mean we’re done – not by a long shot. We’ve seen some truly incredible matches during the calendar year and we’re more than confident in suggesting that we’ll see the same in 2019, but perhaps we’re being too premature. After all, there’s a whole new set of top flight fixtures for us to feast our eyes upon over the course of the next few days, and we can’t wait to see what happens. One match, in particular, that is capturing the attention of many is Liverpool vs Arsenal at Anfield.

It’s a fixture that is as old as time itself and while that may be an exaggeration, the following statement isn’t: this is the biggest game of the season for both teams so far. The Gunners can’t afford to lose more ground on the race for the top four, whereas Liverpool know that they’re looking over their shoulder towards the likes of Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur. This is the kind of action that we deserve even at such an early point in the campaign, and with what will likely be a lively Merseyside crowd in attendance, we’re expecting something special.

As we’ve alluded to the Reds are on fire right now, and currently lead the chasing pack in the race for the Premier League title. While there’s still an awfully long way to go before this race is over, the whispers have already begun up north. There’s a real sense that this is going to finally be the year in which they capture the elusive Premier League title, after more than two decades of trying. They’ve come close before but with a six point advantage and an unbeaten record after 19 games, you could argue that they’ve never been closer.

Arsenal, on the other hand, are still in something of a ‘transition’ period. Unai Emery has done a great job with this squad but he still has plenty left to learn, and a lot of room left to grow. They’re still reeling from the end of their 22 game unbeaten run and while that’s understandable, they need to get back to basics. There’s a task at hand and while beating Liverpool isn’t exactly going to be an easy task, their 1-1 draw against Klopp’s side earlier on in the campaign leads us to believe that they’ve got what it takes to go one step further.

Liverpool’s last six game stretch has been littered with success, starting off with their dominant 3-1 win over Burnley. They followed that up with a 4-0 demolition of Bournemouth, before edging past Napoli on one of those famous Anfield nights in Europe to ensure their passage into the last sixteen of the UEFA Champions League. They then put on a masterclass against Manchester United before beating a resilient Wolverhampton Wanderers, with their 4-0 win over Newcastle United on Boxing Day serving as proof that they are quite easily the new favourites to lift the title this season.

Arsenal’s latest six game run began with two narrow wins over Huddersfield Town and Qarabag, although the writing appeared to be on the wall from that point on. They finally lost their unbeaten run against Southampton in a dramatic 3-2 defeat, before being knocked out of the League Cup by bitter rivals Tottenham Hotspur. You can’t say they don’t know how to bounce back, though, with a nice 3-1 win against Burnley putting them back on the right track, before a 1-1 draw against Brighton & Hove Albion reminded the world that they’ve still got some pretty serious defensive issues that need to be resolved.

We’ve already touched on the 1-1 result from earlier on in the season, but from a historical perspective, it’s Liverpool who lead the way in the overall head to head standings. They have a 86-78 advantage with 61 draws thrown in there for good measure, with the first meeting between the two teams taking place way back in 1893. The Reds are actually riding a seven game unbeaten run against Arsenal with the Gunners’ last win in the fixture coming back in April 2015, although it isn’t exactly a startling revelation to suggest that a lot has changed since that day.

Liverpool are expected to bring a few new faces into the starting XI, if only to mix things up and keep Arsenal guessing. Fabinho and Naby Keita are expected to feature on some level, which would certainly give them something different. Dominic Solanke and James Milner will both be out of action for this one, although Alberto Moreno’s back problems are no more which means he’s available for selection. All in all, though, Liverpool have an incredibly strong squad to choose from, but you could argue that was always going to be the case given their insane strength in depth this season.

In what will likely be one of the most obvious statements of the week, Arsenal have some defensive issues. Hector Bellerin and Rob Holding are still both out of action, whereas Nacho Monreal isn’t exactly a certainty to return at Anfield. Mustafi is on the verge of returning from a hamstring problem with Koscielny being expected to recover from a foot injury, but will Arsenal fans be happy about that? The two have both been relatively disappointing in the cameos we’ve seen from them this year, although you could forgive Koscielny for that given his long term injury.

Liverpool vs Arsenal Betting Prediction

We honestly believe that Arsenal’s best shot here is going to be turning this game into a shootout, and we aren’t just saying that because we really want to see it. If the Gunners try and sit back and play at their own tempo, then they’ll be eaten alive by a rampant Liverpool. They need to test the back four from the very first whistle, putting the likes of Aubameyang and Lacazette into positions where they can succeed. We actually think it’ll pay off, too, giving the visitors the lead within the first 15 minutes.

Then, however, Liverpool will start to take over, and all kinds of chaos will ensue. We wouldn’t put it past this becoming the highest scoring game of the campaign thus far although if we’re being a bit more realistic, a 4-2 or 3-1 result for the Reds seems to be what is most likely to happen. There certainly wouldn’t be any shame in defeat for Arsenal given the quality of the opposition they’re going up against, but in order to even be in with a chance, they can’t afford to trust themselves at the back. They need to be honest about the tools they have, and the tools they don’t.

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