Manchester United legend Roy Keane criticised the performance of Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice in the goalless Premier League draw with Liverpool at the Emirates on Thursday (January 9).
The Gunners were dominated on possession (47%) but failed to convert any of their four shots on target, with the Reds managing none at the other end, as a stalemate ensued.
Starting on the left side of a three-man midfield, Rice laid out two key passes, one cross, 43/47 passes - including 26/30 in the opposition box - and 1/5 long balls (as per Sofa score at the time of writing).
"Rice was a bit sloppy," Keane told Sky Sports (via Football London) about the midfielder's performance. "Lewis-Skelly didn't even look ready to come onto the pitch. If Liverpool had a bit more about them, it would have been worse for Arsenal."
Commenting on how the game panned out, Keane praised the Gunners' defensive solidity but found them wanting against a team missing key players:
"The table doesn't lie with the amount the games Arsenal have won. They were good defensively, but they looked as though they lacked a bit of belief tonight, which is bizarre when you look at a team that is absolutely flying.
"At the top of the table, Liverpool are coming who are missing some important players. Just flex your muscles and send a message to the other teams that you're going to go onto the next level.
The draw took Mikel Arteta's side back to six points above second-placed Manchester City after 21 games. Meanwhile, the Reds have drawn three straight league games for the first time in more than a decade even as their unbeaten run stretches to 11 outings across competitions.
"We've come out of a demanding schedule in a really strong position" - Arsenal boss on Liverpool draw
Arsenal head coach Mikel Arteta
Arsenal head coach Mikel Arteta
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta is happy that his side emerged from the busy festive period with a significant advantage in the standings as they seek their first league title since 2004.
However, the Spaniard bemoaned the lack of quality at the attacking end to grab all three points against Liverpool, having lost the reverse fixture 1-0 at Anfield, thanks to Dominik Szoboszlai's wonder strike.
"This game needs some magic moments, and at Anfield, (Dominik) Szoboszlai did it, and they won the game, and today it didn't happen, but you cannot win it, you cannot lose it," Arteta told Sky Sports (as per the BBC).
"We have some moments where we have the right positional advantages to really hurt them, and then when we got into these areas, we lacked quality to pick the players."
He continued:
"We've come from a very demanding schedule. The last six games that we've played in this Christmas period, and we've come out of that in a really strong position."
The Gunners next travel to Portsmouth on Sunday (January 11) for their FA Cup opener, having lost in this round last season to Manchester United at home on penalties.