Liverpool player ratings, winners and losers vs Arsenal as Arne Slot's side frustrated the Gunners, with Ryan Gravenberch among those to impress in a solid team performance
21:55, 08 Jan 2026Updated 22:00, 08 Jan 2026
Ryan Gravenberch of Liverpool holds off a challenge from Martin Odegaard of Arsenal.
Ryan Gravenberch of Liverpool holds off a challenge from Martin Odegaard of Arsenal.(Image: James Gill - Danehouse/Getty Images)
EMIRATES STADIUM, NORTH LONDON // Premier League holder Liverpool held likely champion Arsenal in a cagey game in the capital, with Arne Slot's side performing better than it has for some time.
With Arsenal on top, the first half was goalless, with Liverpool defending well, but Mikel Arteta needed a bit more from Viktor Gyokeres as his number nine. For all that the Gunners were penning the Reds in, they needed a little more to force the ball over the line.
Second half, Liverpool looked more threatening. Jeremie Frimpong showed his speed but not always his composure, while Dominik Szoboszlai went close with a free-kick. It the end, though, neither could make the breakthrough.
READ MORE: Arsenal set to enter Marc Guehi transfer race as Liverpool's worst fears come trueREAD MORE: Arsenal vs Liverpool LIVE: goal and score updates from Premier League clash
Winners
Defensively, Liverpool did well here as a unit, frustrating Arsenal and limited the number of chances that it created. Conor Bradley and Jeremie Frimpong, in particular, were good out-balls at times, and threatened to counter well. In midfield, Liverpool's passing was sharp and it played through the thirds well in moments. The only thing missing was that focal point in attack.
Losers
While no Liverpool player was bad here, there wasn't quite enough quality in the final third for Slot's side to get the ball over the line and force a winner. For Arsenal, for all that there was frustration at not being able to find a way through against Liverpool, it is not a bad point, not least in the context of Manchester City dropping points yesterday at home to Brighton. No one won, but no one lost.
Player ratings
Alisson Becker (7). Good handling with a couple of balls that came his way. Not always 100 per cent accurate with his distribution.
Conor Bradley (7). Good against Fulham a few days ago, he was beaten a couple of times defensively but hit the bar in the first half. His driving runs forward are a real asset to get Liverpool up the pitch, but he couldn't do it often enough to force a goal.
Ibrahima Konate (8). Good on the ball in the main and was able to deal with Viktor Gyokeres fairly easily. Stood up against Gabriel Jesus too.
Virgil van Dijk (8). Strong in possession and helped Liverpool build up at times but needed a bit more from those in front of him in terms of movement and sustained passing sequences.
Milos Kerkez (7). Trusted to go up against Bukayo Saka, who had scored in each of his last three appearances against Liverpool, the left-back did a decent job against the England ace. Going forward, he got into some good positions without capitalizing.
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Ryan Gravenberch (8). Dropping between the center-backs to pick the ball up and progress it from deep, this was a sharp performance from the Reds' number 38. When he dribbled forward with the ball at his feet, he just needed a few more options, with no number nine to play it into.
Alexis Mac Allister (8). Chosen ahead of Curtis Jones in midfield, the South American was snapping into tackles at times. He was up for the fight and offered plenty of quality in possession too.
Jeremie Frimpong* (7). *Brought into the Liverpool team to inject some more pace into its attack, he wasn't given much in the way of chances to run forward to start with. On the few occasions that he did, he looked threatening. Second half, he was the main man in the Reds' attack, getting into lots of good positions. He just needed a bit more composure with the final cross or shot.
Dominik Szoboszlai* (7). *Really direct with his passing and dribbling and showed lots of intensity to help win possession back. A strong and willing runner, he smashed one free-kick well over the bar and put another one narrowly over.
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Cody Gakpo (7). Back to starting on the left flank, the Dutch winger drifted inside a lot. He started brightly but then faded and wasn't involved as much. Gave away a few fouls when he was challenging for headers, which was unnecessary.
Florian Wirtz (7). Playing through the center, the German was never far away from Martin Zubimendi whenever Arsenal had the ball. In terms of creating, however, he was more limited than he would have liked in his impact.