Aubameyang crucial if Arsenal are to breach Liverpool's defence

Sooraj Kamath - Writer 12:06 03/11/2018
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  • Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang

    A rampant Liverpool enter the Emirates on Saturday hoping to snatch all three points from Unai Emery’s men. The Gunners have performed well so far but the complications in defence need to be sorted out.

    Nevertheless, this big fixture hosts some incredible match-ups that can make or break for either teams. We take a look at some of them.

    Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang vs Joe Gomez

    Aubameyang has not been at his best goal-scoring form of late.

    Aubameyang has not been at his best goal-scoring form of late.

    Joe Gomez and Virgil van Dijk have combined to become an imperious centre-back pairing, conceding a mere three goals in the last seven games, with two of them coming against top quality opposition in Tottenham and Chelsea.

    Gomez’s recovery runs have been dashing and the youngster has shown strength and composure against the likes of strong, if not lightning-quick strikers such as Harry Kane, Glenn Murray and Olivier Giroud. The Englishman has otherwise kept quick forwards such as Demarai Gray and Raheem Sterling in check.

    This will be an interesting battle as Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is one of the paciest forwards in the league. The Gabon international shows great strength and times his runs brilliantly. Whether as a substitute or as a starter, in the last seven games Aubameyang has been deployed as a winger who constantly cuts inside to create space, threads passes and makes brilliant runs into the box.

    Gomez can be caught napping sometimes as seen in the same fixture a year ago, when Alexis Samchez got past the hapless Liverpool man to score Arsenal’s opener, eventually finishing the game at 3-3.

    The young England international – whose game is improving week on week – will have to be on his toes throughout the game and be perpetually aware of Aubameyang’s presence and threat.

    Xherdain Shaqiri vs Lucas Torreira

    xherdan-shaqiri

    The ‘Alpine Messi’ against ‘garra charrua’ is another intriguing battle. Xherdan Shaqiri has been a bargain buy for Liverpool, providingtwo assists and a goal in just two starts and four sub appearances in the Premier League.

    He has been the most creative midfielder for Liverpool this season, while his defensive contributions are often overlooked. Against Red Star Belgrade in the Champions League, his tackle started the move which led to the opening goal. His work-rate and a constant desire to find a team-mate in space is something any manager would want from his player.

    In the other corner, Lucas Torreira has provided stability to an Arsenal midfield that lacked an out-and-out holding midfielder since the departure of Patrick Vieira. It was evident that Granit Xhaka struggled in the same role last season where he lunged into tackles, frequently giving away fouls and picking up yellow cards. But now his role has become free-roaming and he doesn’t need to tend to defensive duties due to a terrier-like presence in Torreira.  Arsenal midfield now looks more organised and disciplined than last season, with Torreira at the heart of it.

    If the Uruguayan is able to shut Shaqiri out, Liverpool’s major creative outlet will be blocked. Arsenal can subsequently shut out Liverpool completely in the final third. But Arsenal’s backline has been quite unreliable this season and they need to complement Torreira if they are to completely nullify Liverpool’s attack.

    Sadio Mane vs Stephan Lichtsteiner

    sadio-mane

    The Senegalese speedster and the veteran Swiss come up against each other for first time. Given Stephan Lichtsteiner’s age and Sadio Mane’s pace, this match-up appears to in actual fact be a mismatch ,but the former Juventus man has faced skilful and quick wingers in Lorenzo Insigne, Marco Reus, Cristiano Ronaldo among many others not so long ago. The Swiss international is an intelligent player with immense work rate but lacks experience in the Premier League and this duel will be a treat to the eye.

    Mane has been hit and miss this season. The Liverpool winger can dwell too long on the ball, releasing the ball late, and constantly runs into positions where he is unable to find a team-mate. Some composure and better decision making has to be shown in order to cause the veteran Swiss any problems on the left.

    Despite some questionable moments, Mane has been the most influential player in Liverpool’s attack – scoring six goals in nine Premier League games – and will hope to exhibit the same on Saturday.

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