5 Liverpool’s frontline
Starting with the obvious reasons is what I always prefer since it leaves them out before the others, which in turn leaves room for unpredictability for the end. The frontline of Liverpool consists of the might Mane, the fantastic Firmino and the super Salah.
They complement each other better than almost every attacking trio in Europe right now. While Sadio Mane attacks from the left and provides much-needed pace, dribbling and strength, the Egyptian blazes in from the left to provide the scorer’s instincts.
And then there is the Brazilian striker whose withdrawn role is necessary for the two attackers to succeed. It is Firmino’s relentless pressing that allows the other two to be at their ruthless best. And against a not-so-great Arsenal defence, this trio of players might just run havoc.
4 Arsenal are just Arsenal
Wenger’s men are the epitome of inconsistency
This is going to hurt a lot of Arsenal fans, but even they are acquainted with this because it is the truth. One could perhaps rely on Josef Fritzl with their kids, but they could definitely not place their bets on the Gunners not screwing up when it matters the most.
For instance, there always comes a time in the seasons when Arsenal play like the best club in the world, seemingly unbeatable and could actually stop even the Titanic from drowning or the good lord from screwing things up.
And then comes a game where they should be easily winning. Instead, they mess it up in the grandest of fashions. And now they have to face the best-attacking unit in the league—along with Manchester City’s of course—so we can all expect a drubbing because, well, they are Arsenal.
And more so because the club is yet to beat any of the top 5 sides apart from Tottenham Hotspur and actually lost 4-0 at Anfield earlier in the season.
3 Klopp’s Robinhood
Liverpool are known for a lot of things like having a defence worse than that of the Saudi businessman who was cleared of forcing himself on a girl, a terrific attack and their ability to turn to Robinhood. At times, the Merseyside club loses to the weakest of teams and in the very next game thrash one of the top 5 teams in the country.
After joining Liverpool, Klopp’s record against Wenger has been fabulous. His team have scored 14 goals in four matches while winning three of them and drawing the one solitary game. Wenger’s men have also conceded a minimum of three goals on each occasion.
Klopp’s Liverpool, in the latest clash against Wenger’s Arsenal, thrashed them 4-0 at the Anfield. They ran riot against the North Londoners in a fixture that dampened the souls of every Gooner. So what’s not to say that it won’t happen again?
2 Better form
Liverpool are unbeaten in the last 12 games
Arsenal fans, I have good news and I have bad news. Good news is that your club are unbeaten in the last 5 games. The bad news is, Liverpool are on a 12-game unbeaten run. Yeah, I can hear your curses from here.
The Merseyside outfit’s backline has suddenly learned how to defend and as a result, have been able to not lose games. Their win rate is also good as they have won 8 and drawn only 4 times in their last 12 outings.
Arsenal meanwhile, have lost three in their last 12 and won 6 while drawing the rest of them. They also haven’t scored more than a goal in their last four games—which is not something that they could look at for inspiration against a Liverpool side that are scoring freely.
All of this points towards just one thing: a mauling of Arsenal. And then there is…
1 Philippe Coutinho
One fine day, a lion goes out to prey on his food. As he is about to leap on his prey and consume him, he is hit by a sharp object that pierces his leg to give him a lot of pain. He is writhing in agony with no-one to help.
However, now he is also very, very angry and you don’t mess with an angry lion. So this is the story of Philippe Coutinho in an allegorical aspect. After barely missing out on a move to Barcelona, the Brazilian is an angry man and is showing that with the way he is playing.
He is raising hell against his opponents of late and it seems like there is no stopping him. In 11 Premier League games, he has scored 5 goals and has assisted another 5 to help Liverpool maintain a top 4 spot thus far.
So watch out Arsenal, you have a lion that is wounded in the ego and will bite on your pain.
