Lost. Clueless. Dominated. Fabinho's game against Arsenal

Sooraj Kamath - Writer 00:51 04/11/2018
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  • Fabinho

    It was an electrifying affair at the Emirates as Arsenal hosted an in-form Liverpool. The game ended at a 1-1 stalemate and remains a fair reflection of the proceedings.

    The Gunners pressed the accelerator from the word go but failed to create clear goalscoring opportunities in the first half. We had our eyes on Reds midfielder Fabinho who was deployed to block any signs of creativity from Arsenal in the neutral third.

    STATISTICS

    Shots: 0

    Goals: 0

    Assists: 0

    Passes (accuracy): 25 (84%)

    Fouls: 3

    Tackles: 3

    Dispossessed: 2

    30-SECOND REPORT

    Never an undisputed starter, Fabinho was handed a golden opportunity to establish himself and with this opportunity came massive responsibility. Granit Xhaka and Lucas Torreira have formed a stable double pivot and the Brazilian was employed to prevent the two from getting comfortable on the ball.

    Arsenal’s midfield ran circles around Fabinho in the first half and the Brazilian looked totally clueless. A yellow card in the 52nd minute for pulling Torreira could have turned into a red at the death after the Brazilian caught Mesut Ozil. But the referee spared him from further misery on a forgettable night.

    Fabinho

    Where it went wrong

    In possession – Fabinho was dismal with the ball at his feet. 21 successful passes from a regista in such an important game is simply unacceptable. His inability to create anything or even circulate possession simply placed extra burden on James Milner who had a good game.

    Every time Fabinho looked to get comfortable on the ball, Xhaka and Torreira suffocated him, forcing him to either play an unsuccessful cross-field ball or just concede possession. The 25-year-old was pressed very well by his opponents and denied him any kind of space.

    Out of possession – Fabinho found himself in the Bermuda triangle in the first half an hour of the game with Xhaka, Ozil and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang forming triangles around him.

    In the second half, most of Arsenal’s attacks were confined to the right, with Hector Bellerin looking sharp. There was very little play through the centre of the pitch and the Brazilian was anonymous.

    VERDICT

    It’s safe to say that Fabinho failed to assert his position in the line-up and has to work on a lot of aspects of his game. He simply failed to win the midfield battle against Xhaka and Torreira – or exert any influence whatsoever.

    In a game of fine margins, Fabinho’s role, if played well, could’ve made a huge difference for Liverpool. The Reds could have taken all three points if he had even competed against Arsenal’s midfield and conjured something for the forwards.

    4/10

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