The first leg of the Carabao Cup concluded in a stalemate as Liverpool were unable to score against a resilient 10-man Arsenal team. There were some noticeable issues amongst the Liverpool team during the game which impacted the overall performance.
1. Liverpool desperately missed Mohammad Salah and Sadio Mane.
Takumi Minamino came in and played on the right, where he was unable to replicate the success the Mohammad Salah has had this season. The best chance of the game in the 90th minute where the ball fell to the Japanese international in front of a gaping empty net but blazed over the bar. Liverpool ended up having only one shot on target against a 10-man Arsenal team.
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2. Liverpool need new signings.
Liverpool were unable to break down an Arsenal team that were a man down for seventy minutes. Jürgen Klopp made his first change at the hour mark, bringing on youngster, Curtis Jones, who is not renowned for his goal scoring. Liverpool will need to invest in their squad in January especially due to the absentees at the moment.
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3. Granit Xhaka continues to be a liability.
The Arsenal midfielder has started off 2022 in typical reckless fashion as he was sent off for the second time this season. The red card came from a Liverpool counter attack where Granit Xhaka lost flight of the ball and ended up kicking Diogo Jota in the stomach. The Swiss midfielder will now miss the return leg at the Emirates and the upcoming North London Derby this weekend.
4. Trent Alexander-Arnold is evidently still recovering from Covid.
This may have been a game too early for the English International. An uncharacteristic amount of misplaced passes and a poor standard of crossing from what we are normally accustomed to from the right back.
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5. Thiago Alcantara is pivotal to this Liverpool midfield.
Only 1 shot on target whilst having a man advantage shows that the midfield struggled to create many openings. With the absence of the Spanish midfielder, 36 year old, James Milner has had to fill in but has been unable to have the same impact as Thiago Alcantara.
Liverpool welcome Brentford to Anfield this weekend and will be looking to have a better result than earlier this season where they drew 3-3 at Griffin Park.