LIVERPOOL and Arsenal are gearing up for a heavyweight clash in what could be one of the games of the season.
Both Arne Slot‘s champions and Mikel Arteta‘s challengers have maintained 100 per cent starts to the season after massive spending sprees this summer.
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The Reds have had a frantic start to the season following a 4-2 win over Bournemouth and 3-2 win over Newcastle.
Meanwhile, the Gunners laboured to a 1-0 win over Manchester United before showing off their new guns in a 5-0 demolition of Leeds.
But Super Sunday’s clash at Anfield is already gearing up to be a pivotal clash in the race for the title come May.
Arsenal have been hit with a major injury blow with Bukayo Saka sidelined until after the international break and club captain Martin Odegaard a doubt for the clash.
However, the absence of Arsenal’s talisman is likely to pave the way for new £68million signing Eberechi Eze to make his full Gunners debut.
SunSport’s tactical guru Dean Scoggins has stepped into this week’s edition of our Tactics Exposed show to take a look at how Slot could mastermind a way of stopping the England international.
How do Liverpool stop Eze?
Put simply, it will be very difficult challenge.
Eze is a brilliant player with the ball at his feet, and from a tactical perspective Liverpool could have a real problem this weekend.
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Looking at their struggles against ten-man Newcastle, Arteta will likely try to invite Liverpool to press high against his team, knowing his team can then spring a counter-attack.
So what does that mean for Eze? Well for starters we expect him to start on the left wing, with Noni Madueke taking up the vacant spot on the right flank due to Saka’s absence.
The midfield three – Odegaard, Declan Rice and Martin Zubimendi – and Viktor Gyokeres up front speaks for itself.
When Liverpool have been attacking this season, they have pushed their midfielders high, which has created problems in transition without the usual pairing of Ryan Gravenberch and Alexis Mac Allister.
Dominik Szoboszlai was deployed as a makeshift right-back against Liverpool, and should that be the case again Eze could have a lot of joy getting in behind when the Hungarian steps into midfield.
Of course, Eze will need to track back to cover the full-back when they bomb forwards, but the transition balance issue will give Arsenal chances, particularly if they lose the ball in the centre.
Has Zubimendi improved Arsenal?
But how about another new signing for Arsenal in Zubimendi? Well the Spaniard is one of the signings of the summer.
Arteta is often accused of getting the balance wrong in a defensive posture, as opposed to Slot’s front-heavy balance.
Zubimendi has come in to replace Thomas Partey in midfield, and one thing he has been incredibly impressive with is his reading of the game.
Arsenal’s transfer deals
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- Eberechi Eze – from Crystal Palace – £67.5m
- Viktor Gyökeres – from Sporting Lisbon – £64m
- Noni Madueke – from Chelsea – £52m
- Martin Zubimendi – from Real Sociedad – £51m
- Christian Norgaard – from Brentford – £15m
- Cristhian Mosquera – from Valencia – £13m
- Kepa Arrizabalaga – from Chelsea – £5m
TOTAL – £267.5m
OUT
- Nuno Taveres – to Lazio – £4.4m
- Marquinhos – to Cruzeiro – £2.6m
- Jorginho – to Flamengo – free
- Kieran Tierney – to Celtic – free
- Takehiro Tomiyasu – released
- Thomas Partey – released
TOTAL – £7m
Against Leeds he was excellent at being in the right spot at the right time to win the ball back before immediately popping the ball back into the attacking third.
That allowed the Gunners to keep the pressure on while nullifying the threat from transitions.
Of course Liverpool will be a different kettle of fish, but winning the transition battle is likely to be the key to taking home the three points.
Has Florian Wirtz upset Liverpool’s balance?
Florian Wirtz is already proving to be a major talking point for Liverpool this season. Unfortunately it has been for all the wrong reasons.
A British transfer record fee of £117m brings certain expectations with it.
There is no doubt the former Bayer Leverkusen man is a top player, but he has had a frustrating start to life in England.
He has struggled with the step up in physicality from the Bundesliga.
Wirtz also needs time to learn his interchanges and movements with team-mates.
Cody Gakpo is unsure when to rotate his space with Wirtz, while Mohamed Salah has been left isolated on the right flank.
Wirtz playing as an orthodox No10 has upset the balance and is crowding the area that the likes of Gakpo, Salah and Hugo Ekitike like to drop into.
This often sees the players end up on the same line going forward.
There are some good plays being made by Wirtz and Co. but it has thus far been an inconsistent solution.
Given some time it should improve, but against one of the best defences in the league it may prove to be a problem.
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