ARSENAL twice squandered the lead against Liverpool as they dropped two crucial points in the title race.

Bukayo Saka fired the Gunners into an early lead, tearing Andy Robertson apart before blasting past a helpless Caoimhin Kelleher.

5

5

Advertisement

Virgil van Dijk headed the Reds level before Mikel Merino put his new side back in front with an emphatic bullet header of his own.

But Mo Salah rescued a point for Arne Slot’s men on the counterattack with nine minutes left.

And the stats prove the 2-2 draw was a very fair result.

That is because both sides managed nine shots in the match – with Liverpool edging their attempts on target by four to three.

Liverpool had 55 per cent of the ball with 16 tackles to Arsenal’s 17 and 14 fouls apiece.

Arsenal, however, will regret only managing one corner in the match.

Of course, Gunners players and fans alike were furious they did not get a second right at the end.

Gabriel Jesus clearly knocked the ball off Kostas Tsimikas, who desperately tried to kick it again before it went out of play knowing he had made the last touch.

FOOTBALL FREE BETS AND SIGN UP DEALS

And given Arsenal’s propensity to score from set pieces, they were understandably apoplectic to see the controversial goal-kick decision.

By that time, though, star man Saka had been taken off.

The England winger was an injury doubt but worked hard to get fit – and his return to the starting XI was a welcome bonus for Mikel Arteta.

Saka managed 41 touches in his 85 minutes on the field and completed 15 of his 23 passes.

His two shots – one less than Salah – resulted in the opening goal and he drew two fouls from the men in black.

But Saka did his defensive work, too, succeeding with his one tackle and winning seven of his nine duels.

Interestingly, his heat map showed a similar pattern to team-mate Kai Havertz with much of their action down the right channel.

5

Advertisement

Saka – who celebrated with a cool shrug of his shoulders as he became the youngest Arsenal player to 50 Premier League goals – said: “I try to keep the keepers guessing.

“I think it was a nice finish, I haven’t seen it back yet but it felt nice.

“He has every record Thierry Henry so it’s nice but of course you wanna win the game but I have to be happy with this.

“Everything is Thierry Henry-ish. If you score it’s Thierry Henry, if you assist it’s Thierry Henry.

“I’m feeling good. I felt I could finish the game but the gaffer took me off.”

5

5

The average positions from both sides also made interesting reading.

Saka was the most reserved of the Gunners attackers, with Havertz and Gabriel Martinelli operating further forward.

Leandro Trossard and Merino virtually had the same spot in the left high No8 position alongside Declan Rice, who covered every blade of grass in a typically-industrial performance.

Arsenal’s makeshift back four was made up of Thomas Partey, Ben White, Gabriel and Jurrien Timber – who kept it narrow as an organised unit.

However, by the end of the game after two key injuries, the defence was even more unrecognisable as Partey and White were joined by Jakub Kiwior and youngster Myles Lewis-Skelly.

For Liverpool, though, Salah was the furthest forward – and made the most of the Timber going off to exploit the weakened left side of the Arsenal back line, exposing the space to score the final goal.

Ryan Gravenberch was the deepest-lying midfielder, behind Alexis Mac Allister and Curtis Jones, who completed 41 of his 42 passes in midfield.

Christian Horner doubts that Lando Norris would have made it through Turn 4 without going off track in his battle with Max Verstappen in the first of two Mexican Grand Prix incidents that awarded the Dutchman a 10-second penalty.

Norris made a move on the outside of Verstappen at Turn 4 of lap 10 after closing in with DRS, and the two were side-by-side in the apex. Verstappen was then adjudged to have guided Norris wide into the run-off and onto the grass.

This preceded the second incident that lap, where Norris – who was now ahead at this juncture – was pushed off the road by Verstappen at Turn 7 as the Red Bull driver came into the corner hot.

Horner, using print-outs of GPS traces in a session with the media to illustrate his point, believes that Norris braked much later for the corner versus that of his fastest lap later on in the race.

“First of all, I think it was very harsh to give two 10-second penalties,” Horner said. “I think there’s something more fundamental; I mean, obviously there’s been a reaction to last weekend.

“I think it’s very important for the drivers’ stewards and the drivers to sit down. Because [looking at] the GPS, this is on the run down to Turn 4.

“This is actually Lando versus Lando. In Lando’s fastest lap of the Grand Prix, the point that he’s braking for Turn 4 and then obviously executing the corner.

“On the lap that he has the incident with Max — he is 15 kilometres an hour faster and later on the brakes than his fastest lap of the grand prix.

“He wouldn’t have made the corner, he would have run off track. You can see from his onboard steering. Of course, at this point in the race, he’s got probably 80kg more fuel than at the point that he’s done his fastest lap.

Christian Horner, Red Bull Racing

Photo by: Erwin Jaeggi

“It used to be a reward of the bravest to go around the outside. I think we’re in danger of flipping the overtaking laws upside down, where drivers will just try to get their nose ahead at the at the apex, and then claim that they have to be given room on the exit.

“You can see quite clearly, he’s effectively come off the brakes, gone in super late to try and win that argument, as far as the way these regulations are written, and then at that point, you’re penalised.”

Horner says the follow-up incident was a more understandable penalty, suggesting that Verstappen was expecting Norris to give up the place and ultimately became frustrated that his championship rival hadn’t done so.

He added that it was important that F1’s rulemakers reiterated the importance of having the inside line, and called upon them to avoid “over-complicating” the racing guidelines.

“I think the Turn 7 incident is different. I think Max was expecting Lando to give up the pace, he’s obviously gone up the inside there, and they’ve both run wide.

“I can understand effectively forcing the car wide there why there would be a penalty applicable to that.

“But I think that was the frustration of potentially Lando not giving back the place from this incident here. So these things, you know, they only escalate.

“I just think maybe we’re over-complicating things. And when you have to revert to an instruction manual of an overtake…

“I mean, the racing principles for years have been, if you have the inside line, you dictate the corner.

“And I think the way the regulations or the guidelines have evolved is encouraging a driver to have his nose ahead at the apex, irrelevant of whether you’re going to make the corner.”

Nice, Lille and Paris St-Germain were the big winners on a weekend full of derbies in France.

Evann Guessand’s goal handed Nice a 2-1 win in the Cote d’Azur derby as second-placed Monaco suffered their first loss of the campaign, while Lille claimed a dramatic 2-0 win at Lens thanks to goals from Jonathan David and Mohamed Bayo in the eighth and 11th minutes of injury time.

But leaders PSG remain three points clear after a 3-0 win at third-placed Marseille, who had Amine Harit sent off in the 20th minute. Joao Neves opened the scoring, before an own goal from Leonardo Balerdi and Bradley Barcola’s effort had the victory sealed by half-time.

Elsewhere, Sporting continued their 100% start to the season in Portugal with a 3-0 victory over Famalicao.

On the back of a midweek goal double in the Europa League, Swedish striker Viktor Gyokeres was again on the scoresheet to take his record this term to 12 in nine league games.

Third-placed Benfica also claimed three points with Muhammed Kerem Akturkoglu’s hat-trick the standout showing in a 5-0 victory over Rio Ave.

In the Netherlands, PSV stretched their lead at the top to eight points with a resounding 6-0 defeat of PEC Zwolle.

Closest challengers Utrecht were cut further adrift after losing 2-0 at home to Feyenoord, while Ajax are third after a routine 1-0 win at home to Willem II.

Continue reading with advertising …

… or with a subscription

Visit motorsport.com as usual with advertising and tracking. You can revoke your consent at any time via the data protection page.¹

Use motorsport.com without any advertising banners, personalized tracking and commercials for a small fee.

Accept and continue

More information about advertising and tracking in our Data protection notice, the List of our partners and in Data protection information center.

Already a subscriber?

Log in here

TEMPLEGATE’S Monday tips are below.

Back a horse by clicking their odds.

THE SUN RACING MEMBERS ENCLOSURE

The only place to get Templegate’s tips first – and at the best prices – is by joining Sun Racing’s brilliant Members Enclosure.

Sign up now for just £1* to be part of racing’s best winning team and get…

Advertisement

• Four free racing tickets, four times a year – worth £300
• Templegate’s daily tips at the BEST prices before anyone else
• Tomorrow’s copy of The Favourite at 9pm today
• Exclusive insights from Andrew Balding and Hayley Turner
• VIP competitions from Racing Breaks each month
• New customer offer with Coral

Become a member today for just £1*

*For the first month then £3 per month thereafter.

SIGN UP NOW

18+ Ts and Cs apply. First month membership £1, then £3 per month unless you cancel at least 7 days before your next billing date. For more information contact help@thesun.co.uk

CRESTA CAT (1.05 Leicester, nap)

It’s going to be pretty testing at the Midlands track and that’s ideal for this four-year-old who went through the mud like a Massey Ferguson to score at Nottingham last week. A 5lb penalty for that success shouldn’t be enough and he likes to go from the front where he’ll take a lot of pegging back.

HOME FREE (3.28 Ayr, nb)

Was impressive when scoring at Uttoxeter earlier this month. He can score again under Harry Skelton.

NO RETREAT (3.05 Redcar, treble)

He should have won at Windsor last time but he jinked near the line and his jockey couldn’t ride him out fully. He’s had a little break since then and can make up for that here.

HOSTILE HOTELIER (12.47 Ayr)

Completes the Lucky 15. He is a decent hurdler but should make for chasing over this longer trip.

Templegate’s tips

FREE BETS – GET THE BEST SIGN UP DEALS AND RACING OFFERS

Commercial content notice: Taking one of the offers featured in this article may result in a payment to The Sun. You should be aware brands pay fees to appear in the highest placements on the page. 18+. T&Cs apply. gambleaware.org.

Remember to gamble responsibly

A responsible gambler is someone who:

• Establishes time and monetary limits before playing
• Only gambles with money they can afford to lose
• Never chases their losses
• Doesn’t gamble if they’re upset, angry or depressed
• Gamcare – www.gamcare.org.uk
• Gamble Aware – www.gambleaware.org

Find our detailed guide on responsible gambling practices here.