"It began with North London Forever and by the end we felt as though we had been in north London for ever: stuck on an endless loop of William Saliba passing to Jurrien Timber, of Virgil van Dijk pausing as he tried to bait a press that would never come. Long periods of this game were played at literal walking pace."
"Long periods of deliberately sterile football, placeholder text, white noise. A substitutes' bench (Calvin Ramsay, Curtis Jones) that was only really there because manager Arne Slot had to write something on the form. Their second-half possession was 67%, which produced five shots, all by Dominik Szoboszlai, all from distance, all off target. Arsenal, for their part, failed to produce a single shot from the 43rd to the 90th minute."
Full-time arrived to muted handshakes and a faint Tears for Fears on the public address system, creating an oddly subdued atmosphere. The match settled into repetitive patterns, with sequences like William Saliba to Jurrien Timber and Virgil van Dijk provoking a press that never materialised. Much of the game proceeded at walking pace, punctuated by brief tactical engagement and moments such as Conor Bradley's lob and Bukayo Saka's wing turns. Liverpool adopted a containment approach with a threadbare squad, recording 67% second-half possession but producing only five off-target long-range shots by Dominik Szoboszlai. Arsenal extended their lead at the top, yet the spectacle felt sterile and joyless.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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