Liverpool saw a 600 game run come to an end at Arsenal as they failed to have a shot on target for the first time in 16 years with their two centre forwards missing
Liverpool were without Alexander Isak and Hugo Ekitike – their two focal points in attack – for the trip to Arsenal and without them they failed to have a shot on target.
To hammer home how rare it is for the Reds to fail to register a single effort on target, you’d have to go back to a 1-0 loss at Wigan in 2010 to find the last time it happened. That was some 600 games and 16 years ago, but the unwanted stat was back at the Emirates.
That defeat to the Latics came as Rafa Benitez’s reign was drawing to a close. On this occasion, despite failing to trouble David Raya, there was a far more upbeat feel about the result, even if it poses questions about the attack minus their centre forwards.
Isak is a long-term absentee following an injury he picked up at Tottenham recently. Ekitike was a late withdrawal as he too battle an injury problem and without the duo it was left to Cody Gakpo to lead the line.
He had Jeremie Frimpong, who enjoyed one of his more lively games for the club, looking dangerous down the right, and Florian Wirtz either side of him. But the trio, aided by the likes of Dominik Szoboszlai, couldn’t hit the target once.
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The closest they came was when Conor Bradley struck the bar as he tried to seize on a brief mix-up that had Raya out of position. Otherwise the Arsenal goalkeeper didn’t have to make a meaningful save in a game that ended goalless, albeit the visiting outfit were good value for their point.
Isak is yet to properly fire since his British-record move from Newcastle in the summer but Ekitike has looked particularly sharp. The Frenchman has been the most effective of the summer recruits and has scored 11 times – the only player to hit double figures in a frontline that has not yet fired.
Arne Slot conceded post-match that, for all their possession, they should’ve found themselves with more chances to win the game. He said: “But from all that ball possession, and that’s not something new for someone who follows Liverpool, you’re hoping for more chance creation. We were a lot of times very close, [but] shots and decision-making in the end, hit the bar in the first half. Just not enough to score a goal.”
Gakpo, who has the most goals for the Reds outside of Ekitike, has been more effective when playing out wide, rarely asked to lead the line. Beyond him, there was no one that the team could look to as a central point of the attack.
There has been talk of the Merseyside outfit trying to bring in even more quality, hence their interest in Antoine Semenyo before his move to Manchester City, but Thursday may have highlighted the need for more depth at centre forward. That said, finding players capable of playing that role who are content to accept a squad role are few and far between.
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