When Brendan Rodgers decided to
cover the walls of his new office with photographs of Liverpool’s
glorious past, he probably did not expect to be making history here
quite so soon himself.
But
the club’s worst league start in 50 years is one he has to live with
after seeing his side lose this encounter in a manner that suggests the
road ahead is going to be a difficult one for the Northern Irishman.
If
the transfer window was supposed to have been bad business for both
Liverpool and Arsenal, only one side appeared to have taken a
significant step backwards on Sunday.
Deadly duo: Lukas Podolski (right) and Santi Cazorla inspired Arsenal to victory over Liverpool at Anfield
Match facts
Liverpool: Reina, Johnson, Skrtel, Agger, Jose Enrique, Gerrard, Allen, Sahin (Shelvey 67), Borini (Downing 55), Suarez, Sterling. Subs not used: Jones, Henderson, Coates, Carragher, Kelly.
Booked: Skrtel, Shelvey.
Arsenal: Mannone, Jenkinson, Mertesacker, Vermaelen (Koscielny 90+1), Gibbs, Diaby, Arteta, Oxlade Chamberlain (Ramsey 73), Cazorla, Podolski (Andre Santos 82), Giroud. Subs not used: Martinez, Walcott, Coquelin, Gervinho.
Booked: Arteta, Mertesacker.
Scorers: Podolski 31, Cazorla 68.
Referee: Howard Webb.
Attendance: 44,932.
While Arsenal were able to celebrate
their first league goals of the season from their two most exciting
acquisitions of the summer, Liverpool could only mourn the departure of
the one player they could have used when Lukas Podolski opened the
scoring and the sensational Santi Cazorla doubled the advantage for the
visitors.
What on earth is Andy Carroll doing on loan at West Ham? It looked like a
ludicrous decision here at Anfield, and one Rodgers was quick to point
out he would not have made had he realised the striker he had identified
to replace England’s most expensive footballer was not going to sign.
Rodgers was extremely dignified in the way he fielded the questions
after the match, declining the invitation to criticise his American
employers for not recruiting an American - Clint Dempsey - now
representing Tottenham.
But he would have been perfectly justified in doing so given the
situation with which he was confronted during this contest. He had not
one striker on his bench, with Stewart Downing eventually sent on - a
winger he wants to move to left back - to deliver crosses to a towering
forward who wasn’t there.
Breaking the deadlock: Podolski (left) opens the scoring by firing past Reds goalkeeper Pepe Reina (right)
Relief: Germany forward Podolski celebrates his first goal for Arsenal - and the Gunners' first of the season
Rodgers said all he could say. That he would continue to work hard with
what he has until such time as he can add reinforcements. But it is a
desperate enough situation to consider a free agent like Michael Owen
and he did not rule out a move for Didier Drogba either.
On Sunday night Drogba’s advisers denied that the former Chelsea striker
was available, insisting he has signed a hugely lucrative
two-and-a-half-year contract with Shanghai Shenhua. But Rodgers has seen
the reports claiming otherwise and said he would at least be asking
the question.
He needs to do something and the international break does at least give
him a bit of time before he takes his team to Sunderland on September
15.
That seals it: Cazorla shoots and scores past Pepe Reina in the Liverpool goal
On target: Cazorla opened his goal-scoring account for Arsenal with a second-half blast at Anfield
Provider turns scorer: Cazorla (centre left) celebrates with Podolski after scoring Arsenal's second goal
Arsene Wenger has had his own frustrations to contend with over the
summer and one decent performance against a lacklustre Liverpool side is
unlikely to remove all fears about the future.
But this was a game with plenty of positives for the Arsenal manager,
and not just because those two new signings secured three precious
points.
If Alex Song was a huge loss, Abou Diaby proved he can fill that void
with a magnificent display in central midfield alongside a similarly
impressive Mikel Arteta.
Lonely place: Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers (right) watches his side's defeat
Dejected: (left-right) Liverpool's Steven Gerrard, Jonjo Shelvey, Martin Skrtel and Daniel Agger
Just look at his face: Liverpool striker Luis Suarez can't hide his frustration on a bad afternoon for his side
Diaby has shone in the past, of course, inviting comparisons with
Patrick Vieira before a series of serious injuries halted his progress.
If he can remain fit he can become a hugely influential player for this
Arsenal side.
Rodgers experienced no such satisfaction. Fabio Borini was poor and Nuri
Sahin - a player Wenger was desperate to sign - did not make the kind
of impact he would have hoped for on his Liverpool debut. There was
another decent contribution from Joe Allen, but little else to offer
Liverpool’s new manager any comfort.
It was Arsenal who made the more uncomfortable start, with Per
Mertesacker and Carl Jenkinson passing with such inaccuracy that
Liverpool must have thought they had 13 players.
Missed chance: Suarez blasts over the Arsenal crossbar under pressure from Thomas Vermalen (bottom right)
Debut to forget: Nuri Sahin (right) joined Liverpool over Arsenal last week but may be regretting his choice now
On the ball: Sahin plays a pass at Anfield
But one loose pass from Steven Gerrard and some poor defending from Glen Johnson and suddenly Arsenal had scored.
Gary Neville was critical of both England players at half-time, putting
his role as assistant to Roy Hodgson to one side to deliver a scathing
assessment on television. And his criticism was justified, Johnson’s
failure to track the run of Podolski enabling Cazorla to deliver a
perfect diagonal pass which the German met with a marvellous finish.
It was Arsenal’s first goal in 211 minutes of Barclays Premier League
football and one that Liverpool had no real answer to. There was a
moment when Raheem Sterling unleashed a shot that caught the outside of a
post, and Rodgers thought his side could have had a penalty when
Mertesacker wrestled with the ineffective Luis Suarez, but not much
else.
They were nothing like as incisive as Podolski and Cazorla, a second
one-two between the pair bringing a second goal in the 69th minute. It
was Cazorla who ignited and then completed the move, the pair passing
through a static Liverpool defence again before Pepe Reina let the
Spaniard’s shot bounce off his elbow and cross the line. It was a
mistake Reina will not enjoy seeing again.
By then Downing was already on the field, and he was followed from the
bench by Jonjo Shelvey. In fairness to Shelvey, he forced Vito Mannone
to make a couple of reasonable saves. But it was not Shelvey and Downing
who Rodgers needed on Sunday. It was someone capable of scoring a goal;
someone who cost the club £35million but is now at Upton Park.
