The Premier League encounter between Liverpool and Arsenal at Anfield delivered riveting football from start to finish on April 9, Sunday. The Reds were able to make a comeback after being 2-0 down during the first half against the table-toppers Gunners and earned a richly deserved point. But during the halftime show on Sky Sports, Roy Keane was all over the Liverpool defence for their shambolic display.
Keane was very critical of Virgil Van Dijk's positioning inside the box for the second Arsenal goal and said, “ Really poor defending. Liverpool not at it. No intensity. Jesus standing in the middle of the box. Van Dijk's ball watching. There's no pressure on the ball. Far too easy for Arsenal. I bet he can't believe his luck.”
He also added that “Robertson's efforts to get back - you've got to do better than that. Liverpool's defending is like a pub team. They're all over the place. They are a mess.”
At Anfield, it was Gabriel Martinelli, who opened the scoring for Arsenal in the 17th minute. It was a deft touch past the goalkeeper Allison Becker after the ball had ricocheted into Martinelli's path because of a poor first touch by Virgil Van Dijk. In the 28th minute, the Gunners went 2-0 up courtesy of a delightful cross from Martinelli which was headed into the back of the net by an unmarked Gabriel Jesus in the 6-yard box.
Liverpool's stunning comeback began with a Mohammed Salah goal in the 42nd minute. It was a great move from the Reds’ forward line with Diogo Jota pulling back the ball for Jordan Henderson from the left before he side-footed it to his right towards Salah, who smashed it past the goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale.
Salah could have scored his second goal of the evening and levelled the game up for Liverpool in the 54th minute through a penalty that he ended up missing completely. Even then, the Reds kept pressing on and eventually got the equaliser in the 87th minute when Roberto Firmino headed the ball into the goal after Trent Alexander-Arnold produced a superb delivery towards him at the back post.
