LONDON, ENGLAND - MARCH 01: Martin Odegaard of Arsenal celebrates after scoring the team's third goal during the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Everton FC at Emirates Stadium on March 01, 2023 in London, England. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)
3 reasons why Arsenal may finally end their Anfield curse this weekend
Arsenal face Liverpool this weekend on Sunday, and Mikel Arteta will be hoping his side are able to put the club’s long history of woe at Anfield behind them.
Rather shockingly, the Gunners have not registered a win at Anfield in the Premier League since 2012 – a game in which Arteta himself featured in our starting XI alongside players such as Per Mertesacker, Santi Cazorla and Lukas Podolski.
For a club the size of Arsenal, that record is simply unacceptable, but there is cause for optimism heading into the upcoming fixture this weekend. Here are three reasons why the Gunners can put an end to their Anfield curse on Sunday.
3 reasons why Arsenal can end their Anfield Curse this weekend
🚨 Official: Paul Tierney has been appointed referee for Arsenal’s match away to Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday, with Chris Kavanagh on VAR. #afc pic.twitter.com/Qtl7lI1lq9
— afcstuff (@afcstuff) April 4, 2023
1. Liverpool are fragile
This season saw Liverpool make their worst start to a Premier League campaign in a decade, with the Reds picking up just ten points from their opening eight fixtures. The vast majority of people, myself included, expected Jurgen Klopp’s side to turn it around and comfortably secure a position in the top four at the very least.
However, that has not happened. Instead, Liverpool have continued in a similar vein throughout the season and while there have been several peaks, their season has largely been made up of troughs. This was showcased perfectly when, after demolishing Manchester United 7-0 at home, Klopp’s men withered to a disappointing 1-0 defeat away to Bournemouth less than a week later.
It would be foolish to assume that because of Liverpool’s poor form, this will be an easy game – that is very unlikely to be the case. But, if there is ever a time to feel confident about getting three points at Anfield, it is now.
Continued on the next slide…
#afc</a> <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/04/05/3-reasons-arsenal-may-finally-end-anfield-curse-weekend/"https://t.co/Qtl7lI1lq9">pic.twitter.com/Qtl7lI1lq9
<p>— afcstuff (@afcstuff) <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/04/05/3-reasons-arsenal-may-finally-end-anfield-curse-weekend/"https://twitter.com/afcstuff/status/1643217133067796483?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%22>April 4, 2023</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/04/05/3-reasons-arsenal-may-finally-end-anfield-curse-weekend/"https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></div>
<h2>1. Liverpool are fragile</h2>
<p>This season saw <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/04/05/3-reasons-arsenal-may-finally-end-anfield-curse-weekend/"https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-11302873/The-stats-shame-Liverpool-shambolic-Arsenal-defeat.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Liverpool make their worst start to a Premier League campaign in a decade</a>, with the Reds picking up just ten points from their opening eight fixtures. The vast majority of people, myself included, expected Jurgen Klopp’s side to turn it around and comfortably secure a position in the top four at the very least.</p>
<p>However, that has not happened. Instead, Liverpool have continued in a similar vein throughout the season and while there have been several peaks, their season has largely been made up of troughs. This was showcased perfectly when, after demolishing Manchester United 7-0 at home, Klopp’s men withered to a disappointing 1-0 defeat away to Bournemouth less than a week later.</p>
<p>It would be foolish to assume that because of Liverpool’s poor form, this will be an easy game – that is very unlikely to be the case. But, if there is ever a time to feel confident about getting three points at Anfield, it is now.</p>
<p><em>Continued on the next slide…</em></p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/04/05/3-reasons-arsenal-may-finally-end-anfield-curse-weekend/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> Reason #2 </a>
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<img decoding="async" class="size-full wp-image-133286" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/04/05/3-reasons-arsenal-may-finally-end-anfield-curse-weekend/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_1067,w_1600/https%3A%2F%2Fpaininthearsenal.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2017%2F07%2F1250351605.jpeg" alt="" width="1600" height="1067" srcset="https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1250351605.jpeg 1600w, https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1250351605-768x512.jpeg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1600px) 100vw, 1600px"><p class="wp-caption-text">Mikel Arteta’s side have continued to overcome adversity this season. (Photo by GLYN KIRK/AFP via Getty Images)</p>
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<h2>2. A new mindset</h2>
<p>Another reason to feel confident is the new <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/04/05/3-reasons-arsenal-may-finally-end-anfield-curse-weekend/"https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/03/02/arsenal-4-0-everton-a-victory-showcasing-a-champions-mentality/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">‘champions mentality’</a> Arteta has instilled into his side. In years gone by, Arsenal have been guilty on more than one occasion of allowing the atmosphere at Anfield to get the better of them. More often than not, we have also travelled to Liverpool as massive underdogs and have perhaps displayed somewhat of an inferiority complex in the past as a result.</p>
<p>Whether we do get the win on Sunday or not, one thing I am sure of is that neither will occur this time out. There have been several displays of a strong mentality from the players this season and for the most part, they have bounced back from every setback suffered almost instantly.</p>
<p>Granit Xhaka, <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/04/05/3-reasons-arsenal-may-finally-end-anfield-curse-weekend/"https://www.football.london/arsenal-fc/news/xhaka-liverpool-warning-arsenal-title-26618499" target="_blank" rel="noopener">speaking</a> ahead of the match, has confirmed that the squad are going into the match with the correct mindset.</p>
<blockquote><p>“It does not matter how their season is going – they are always a dangerous team and, at Anfield, a very difficult team to play. But we have confidence enough to win there as well. This is what we will try to do. That’s why we are going there so let’s see if we can bring the three points back.”</p></blockquote>
<p>Confidence is key at Anfield and for the first time in a long time, we appear to have an abundance of it before this fixture.</p>
<p><em>Continued on the next slide…</em></p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/04/05/3-reasons-arsenal-may-finally-end-anfield-curse-weekend/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> Reason #3 </a>
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<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-133329" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/04/05/3-reasons-arsenal-may-finally-end-anfield-curse-weekend/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_2133,w_3200/https%3A%2F%2Fpaininthearsenal.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2017%2F07%2F1250345889.jpeg" alt="" width="3200" height="2133" srcset="https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1250345889.jpeg 3200w, https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1250345889-768x512.jpeg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 3200px) 100vw, 3200px"><p class="wp-caption-text">Gabriel Jesu is back among the goals. (Photo by GLYN KIRK/AFP via Getty Images)</p>
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<h2>3. Goals galore</h2>
<p>Finally, there is our ability to put the ball in the back of the net. The last encounter between the two sides was incredibly open, with chances for both teams and ended 3-2 in our favour. If a similar scenario were to play out again, the game could well be decided by which team’s attack finishes more of their respective opportunities in front of goal.</p>
<p>On current form, the Arsenal attack stands a very good chance of coming out on top. Since their 7-0 thrashing of Manchester United, Liverpool have scored just one goal in four games. Whereas, in our last four fixtures, we have scored a whopping 12 goals – that’s an average of three per game.</p>
<p>In Gabriel Martinelli, Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Jesus, Leandro Trossard and Martin Odegaard, we possess five of the most in-form players in the league right now and the Liverpool defence will be terrified of our attack.</p>
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<p>Firepower is, of course, no guarantee of a victory, but it is yet another reason why Arsenal could end their Anfield curse this weekend.</p><!—pageview_candidate—>">
