Arsenal u23 unbeaten run comes to an end at Anfield | OneFootball

The Arsenal u23s’ unbeaten Premier League 2 run finally came to an end on Saturday, as they were well beaten by Liverpool at Anfield.

Liverpool u23s vs Arsenal u23s at Anfield (Photo via LiverpoolFC.co.uk)

Ever since their opening-day defeat to West Ham United, Kevin Betsy’s Arsenal u23s had been on an impressive unbeaten run. They’d gone eight games without losing, including victories over Tottenham Hotspur, Chelsea, and Manchester United.

In a way, it was a shame the international break had to come at all, with the likes of Folarin Balogun, Mika Biereth, Charlie Patino and others heading off with their countries and disrupting momentum.

Unfortunately, the u23s didn’t return to action in the same form on Saturday, playing at Anfield.

Arsenal did have a couple of good opportunities in the first half, forcing a double save from Harvey Davies as both Omari Hutchinson and Salah-Eddine Oulad M’hand went close, but they couldn’t find the breakthrough.

Liverpool then took the lead soon after half-time, with Mateusz Musialowski scoring against an Arsenal side at Anfield for the second time this year. Musialowski also netted for the Liverpool u18s against Arsenal in the FA Youth Cup in April.

Paul Glatzel had assisted Liverpool’s first goal on Saturday, and he ended up scoring the second four minutes later. James Norris made the score 3-0 just after the hour mark, and that effectively killed the match.

Tim Akinola has had a strong resurgence in form over the last couple of months, but he was at fault as he was dispossessed for Liverpool’s third goal.

Akinola neither went on international duty nor played in the academy matches over the break, so perhaps he was just one of those to have his momentum thrown off.

The u23s will hope to get their Premier League 2 title challenge back on track with a home win over Everton on Friday, October 22nd at 19:00 BST at Meadow Park.

Arsenal u23 lineup vs Liverpool

Okonkwo; Swanson, Rekik, Ogungbo; Alebiosu, Akinola, S. Oulad M’hand, Lopez; Hutchinson, Biereth, Balogun

Substitutes

Patino (for Swanson, 56), Olayinka (for Akinola, 72), Monlouis (for Rekik, 84), Ejeheri, Ideho