Liverpool beat Luton 4-1 on Wednesday night to move four points clear at the top of the Premier League table. The win came at Anfield in the middle of a tight battle with Man City and Arsenal for the league title. It should be noted that while Liverpool is 4 points ahead of Man City, they have also played one extra match.
Surprisingly, Luton led at half-time through a header from Chiedozie Ogbene in the 12th minute. Liverpool had a number of great chances to level the scoring before the half but missed chance after chance. Luis Diaz in particular had multiple opportunities to score but couldn’t find the back of the net.
With the chance of slipping up their chances in the title race, Liverpool came out in the second half strong. They pressured continuously and almost leveled the game in the opening minutes of the half.
The non-stop pressure finally paid off when captain Virgil van Dijk powered in a corner on the 56th-minute. From there it was all Liverpool, as just a couple of minutes later Cody Gakpo headed in another from close range. Alexis Mac Allister got the assist, firing in a cross from the byline.
After 8 prior failed attempts, Diaz finally got one past the goalkeeper on his 9th shot in the 71st minute. At this point Liverpool were ahead 3-1 and looked to be cruising towards victory.
Harvey Elliott tacked on another goal to complete the 4-1 win in the 90th minutes. By the end of the match it seemed like Liverpool had dominated the whole time.
Liverpool have won three games in a row after a big loss 3-1 at Arsenal last month. They will try to build on this momentum going into their EFL Cup final match against Chelsea next Sunday at Wembley.
The big match which could decide the Premier League title will come against Man City on the 10th of March. With just a few points between the two teams, the winner will likely become a favourite in the race. A tie would keep the playing field level and Liverpool just ahead of the pack.
Luton have not won a league game at Anfield in 15 attempts and are currently in danger of being relegated. They will be hosting Manchester City in the fifth round of the FA Cup on Tuesday.
Arsenal Lose to FC Porto, 1-0
Arsenal had a shocking loss to FC Porto on Wednesday at the Estádio do Dragão, losing 1-0 in the round of 16 first leg of the Champions League. Galeno scored in stoppage time to give Porto the victory, curling one past David Raiya in the 94th minute.
Arsenal have yet to win at the Estadio do Dragao in four attempts, drawing once and now losing on three occasions.
The home side had another very close call just before halftime when Galeno hit a shot off the post that somehow went wide on the rebound. This allowed Arsenal to stay in the game and almost resulted in a draw.
It should be noted that while Arsenal couldn’t get many shots off on goal, they were able to dominate possession. They also managed to get 10 corners compared to just the one from FC Porto.
It was only the second time since the 03/04 season that Arsenal did not have a single shot on target in a Champions League game. The only other time came against Barcelona back in March 2011.
The second leg of the round of 16 will take place at Emirates Stadium on 12 March. Arsenal will need to improve on performance in London next month if they are to have any shot of advancing in the tournament. They have had eight successive last-16 eliminations from the Champions League, a habit they will love to break.
Expect Arsenal to come out with a more offensive set of mind in the next fixture with a big win required to win the series. Bukayo Saka will likely be the key as he normally is in Arsenal’s offense putting up points.
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