Liverpool player ratings vs Arsenal: 4/10 weak link bailed out by high-flying duo

Liverpool scrambled a 2-2 draw at Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium but it was not enough to see them return to the top of the Premier League table. That honour goes to Manchester City after their narrow win over Southampton on Saturday.

But the Reds have plenty to feel positive about, with Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed Salah both hauling them back into a tough contest after twice falling behind to Bukayo Saka and Mikel Merino.

Here, Express Sport takes you through how each Liverpool player performed in north London…

Liverpool player ratings vs Arsenal (4-2-3-1)

Caoimhin Kelleher – 6

Alisson’s deputy was not particularly busy and there was not much he could have done about the goals from Saka and Merino.

Trent Alexander-Arnold – 8

Pumped some dangerous crosses into the box, including a particularly good one for Alexis Mac Allister shortly before the interval, and kept Gabriel Martinelli largely under wraps. His chipped ball forward to Darwin Nunez played a huge part in Salah’s late equaliser.

Ibrahima Konate – 7

Another strong and assured performance on the Frenchman. His pace and strength were on full display in one shoulder-to-shoulder battle with Martinelli in the first half. Needless to say Konate came out on top.

Virgil van Dijk – 7

Van Dijk rescued a dreadful start, during which he opted not to sprint back and help Andrew Robertson for Saka’s goal and paid the price. From there on, though, his pinged cross-field switches were a joy to watch and he was in the right place at the right time to head Liverpool level.

Andrew Robertson – 4 (Tsimikas, 63)

Beaten all ends up for Saka’s opener, and that was just the start of Robertson being given the runaround. Liverpool’s left-back looked leggy throughout the game and it was no surprise to see him replaced.

Ryan Gravenberch – 6

Liverpool were, on the whole, outplayed in the middle of the park and Gravenberch was unable to exert his usual influence.

Alexis Mac Allister (booked) – 5 (Szoboszlai, 63)

Didn’t affect the game and surrendered possession with a loose touch early on.

Mohamed Salah – 8

Great finish to level things up in a high-pressure moment late in the game. He had other moments, too, including a sharp turn to disarm Jurrien Timber and a 50-yard run on the counter-attack.

Curtis Jones – 6 (Endo, 90+1)

A steep drop-off in performance from last weekend’s win over Chelsea, but that was always going to be a tough act to follow. Jones did not stamp his authority at the Emirates.

Luis Diaz – 6 (Gakpo, 63)

Lovely flick-on at the near post for Van Dijk’s equaliser, but other than that had minimal joy against right-back opponent Thomas Partey. The one time he did get the better of him with a cheeky nutmeg, the chance came to nothing.

Darwin Nunez (booked) – 6

Arsenal played a high line but the Uruguayan was unable to use his pace in behind, right up until the moment Alexander-Arnold unleashed him late in the game. Nunez rolled a precise pass to Salah and Liverpool levelled.

SUBS

Cody Gakpo – 6

Did not fare much better then Diaz after coming on to replace him.

Dominik Szoboszlai – 5

Put in a sloppy cross from a good position. Did not provide much of a spark in general.

Kostas Tsimikas – 7

Good piece of defending to deny Havertz in the box late on.

Wataru Endo – N/A

A late addition.