It was magical’ – Liverpool fans react to 1-0 win over Arsenal | OneFootball

Szoboszlai stuns Arsenal as Liverpool grind out statement win at Anfield

Context and significance

Liverpool banked more than three points against Arsenal; they banked credibility. In a contest short on fluency but rich in competitive edge, Liverpool found resilience first and quality last to claim a 1–0 victory at Anfield. For a team still stitching together patterns under new demands, this felt like an adult performance: endure the arm-wrestle, cash in when it mattered, and keep a clean sheet while doing it.

Game pattern and key duels

Arsenal’s selection told its story. With creative leaders not fit to start, Mikel Arteta leaned into structure, height and restarts. Two compact lines, a focus on long throws and corners, and an emphasis on territory over combinations set the tone. It asked Liverpool to solve problems without losing their heads. The hosts complied.

Ibrahima Konaté rediscovered his authority in the one-v-ones, stepping in against Viktor Gyökeres and Gabriel Martinelli with timing and strength. Virgil van Dijk organised and competed, while Kostas Tsimikas accepted the trade-off of conceding corners to prevent crosses. Behind them, Alisson brought the calm, saving firmly from range and scooping loose balls when Arsenal tried to crowd the six-yard box.

The first half belonged to the set-piece narrative. Arsenal stacked corners and free-kicks, Liverpool blocked and cleared with bodies rather than offering Alisson sight lines. Going forward, Liverpool were more sporadic—Cody Gakpo tested from distance, Mohamed Salah flashed deliveries across the box—and Florian Wirtz initially struggled to influence the game, receiving in traffic and finding little time on the ball.

Szoboszlai decides from distance

The shift arrived after the interval. Liverpool played higher, circulated quicker and finally connected midfield to front. Wirtz grew into the game, drifting into pockets and threading progressive passes. Gakpo forced David Raya into a tidy stop, Salah’s outside-of-the-boot cross demanded a double grab, and the crowd’s volume rose with each wave.

Then the moment. From a free-kick well beyond usual shooting range, Dominik Szoboszlai took ownership. The strike was a study in technique—power through the valve, late dip, postage-stamp precision off the upright, Raya at full stretch with no chance. In a match framed by dead balls, Liverpool produced the best of them. It also rewarded Szoboszlai’s wider contribution from right-back, where his engine, diagonals and aggression knitted the side together without compromising defensive discipline.

Game management closed it out. Joe Gomez arrived to make a yard-box intervention and win key headers, Wataru Endō absorbed a tactical booking on halfway, and Liverpool’s line stayed intact under seven minutes of stoppage time. Arsenal introduced Martin Ødegaard and other attacking options to tilt the balance, but the late possession lacked incision.

What it means for Liverpool and Arsenal

For Liverpool, this was a template rather than a finished article. The right side, with Szoboszlai stepping in at full-back, offered control and thrust. The centre held—Konaté’s reset to form was significant—and the goalkeeper looked untouchable again. There is still integration work to do in midfield, where physicality ebbed and flowed and Wirtz alternated between anonymity and elegance, but the second-half spacing suggested a path forward that does not isolate Salah.

For Arsenal, the plan was understandable given absences, yet the risk-averse posture invited jeopardy. Their set-piece edge can punish most sides, but once behind they lacked variety between the lines and did not commit numbers consistently enough to unpick a settled block. The late switches added a sheen of threat without changing the substance.

Zoom out and the headline is simple: Liverpool beat a direct rival on a day when their attacking rhythm was intermittent. That matters. Clean sheets restore belief, iconic strikes change atmospheres, and hard wins harden habits. If Szoboszlai’s free-kick is what circulates on social feeds, the dressing room will remember the structure that made it decisive.