CHRIS SUTTON: Granit Xhaka’s act of STUPIDITY was what brought Anfield to life and sparked Liverpool’s revival… now Arsenal’s trip to the Etihad this month is looking like a Premier League title decider
Jurgen Klopp used to describe his Liverpool players as ‘mentality monsters’. But for the first 40 minutes of this match, they were more like ‘meek mice’.
Liverpool were asleep, 2-0 down and doing nothing to encourage any noise from their supporters.
Then Granit Xhaka woke them up. Stupidly so. By barging into Trent Alexander-Arnold and then squaring up to him, he riled up the Anfield crowd.
Their animosity was infectious and it brought this Liverpool team to life.
They were suddenly fuelled by fury and emerged for the second half totally up for it — all thanks to that one moment of misjudgment from Xhaka.
Granit Xhaka inadvertently riled up the Anfield fans after clashing with Trent Alexander-Arnold
Mikel Arteta will be furious about Xhaka’s stupid actions which turned the game at Liverpool
Meanwhile, Jurgen Klopp needs to get his Reds showing that kind of fight from the beginning
Mikel Arteta will be furious about that, I’m sure. It was totally unnecessary from Xhaka to give Liverpool a reason to stop playing so passively.
That said, it is worrying for Klopp that it took something like this to get his team going. Should they not be displaying this angry attitude from the start of games?
That is a big reason why they are where they are, eighth in the Premier League and at risk of missing out on Europe.
The Liverpool that we saw in the second half on Sunday is the one that Klopp has been desperate to see. Why it’s been missing is a mystery.
They need to show this mentality from the first whistle.
Etihad clash looking like a title decider
This was a Premier League classic in every sense, one which will be revisited if Manchester City go on to be crowned champions.
After this result, the temptation might be to say the title is back in City’s hands.
If Pep Guardiola’s side can win their game in hand and beat Arsenal at home, then they can end this month at the top of the table.
But Arsenal have to remember it’s in their hands, too. Arteta’s team can go to the Etihad Stadium and emerge victorious to distance themselves from their chasers.
That clash on April 26 already has the makings of a title decider.
Arsenal’s trip to Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City this month looks like being the title decider
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