The Reaction: Reds claim hard-fought draw at Emirates

[MUSIC] And it finishes Neal Neal at big points for Liverpool here at the Emirates tonight. A lot of Claudettes are positive to take from Liverpool. The only blemish we can see at the end is the horrible sight of Connor Bradley being stretching off with what looked like a knee injury. Sometimes they can be worse than our first fear. We hope that's right. Gabrielle heading wide from a corner right on the end, which had our tatter on his knees. But Liverpool were full value. Defensively we were outstanding. Every single one of the players, we could have won the game in the end today. Claudette Bradley had wonderful efforts hit the crossbar in the first half after. Neal Neal was at home goal by Celeba. And then Liverpool had two penalty shouts, one on Frippong in the first half. But the one on Flully and Beats in the second half was massive. Me and Phil Thompson think it was. The big chance though, Frippong cleaned through on goal. Why didn't he shoot? He tried to pass the had a good game otherwise. But the Bradley injury is a concern. Finished, Astal Mill, Liverpool Neal. Steve Hunter wrapping up Liverpool's goal, a straw with Astal Dan at the Emirates in the Premier League. We'll be getting the thoughts of Anna Slot on the reaction. I'm Rob Jones and I was joined in the studio by Jason McAteer and Phil Thompson. Nigel Speckman was at the stadium for us and we've got contributions. From our fans panel of Abigail, Rudkin, Courtney Neary and Louis Vogel from the official Liverpool supporters club in Philadelphia. Jason, there are good points and bad points. Was that the former? Yeah, just listen to what you said there, the three draws on the spin. Two were felt like the feats I must admit. But this kind of felt like a win to be honest. I know it went, it went maximum points, but just the way we were rolled off before the game. And no one gave us a chance and obviously missing a TK. And we didn't quite know how it was going to line up and then, you know, what a performance and I mentioned to you that night when we were watching the game, you know, they were good at West Ham, they were good at talking to good away performances. And then tonight they got into the groove, they were at it, they wanted it, they moved the ball with a purpose, almost got rewarded with kind of, Bradley and the bar in the first half. It was so unfortunate after a really good build-up play. I think that really settled them down and then second half I thought was an outstanding away performance. I thought they give Arsenal absolutely nothing can thoroughly deserve. They totally deserve the points and on another night, we could have nicked it. Credit, credit, it's you. You know, the boys had took a lot of criticism and I thought tonight against a very good team. I thought we were absolutely excellent. We had to sort of withstand the press. We played against Arsenal, everybody's fancies for the title. And we were absolutely, I thought we were fantastic. We obviously stayed in the game, I said, times in the first half. And I thought the second half performance was, we dominated it. They were lost. We were very clever. We kept leaving the ball with their two centre backs, which they didn't know what to do with it. When they come there in a halfway line, everything about it was working, it was players. I can't think of one player who has had it an off night. I thought it was top class and they've had a lot of criticism, a lot of players and they all stood up there tonight against a very good team. A lot of positives to take. I remember Graham Taylor, weren't saying that it's always the end of the game that people walk away from the ground talking about, which is the one negative is poor Connor Bradley looked in serious pain at the end. Yeah, we obviously wish him well, don't we, and we hope we hope it's nothing too serious. It didn't look great. Really, I've got to mention, it was really disappointed with Martin Ali as a fellow professional. It's disappointed. Yeah, I mean, I'm trying to hold my words in here, but Tom, I was right, I thought it was just disgusting away after it was really poor from a fellow professional. You could tell, listen, we both played the game. You've been of getting involved in the game in a long time. You can tell when a player's at it, when a player's playing for time, when a player's just play acting and stuff. You could tell straight away, Connor, he lost his foot and there was no need for him to go down unless he was hurt, he was really hurt, and then the man in which Martin Ali showed no compassion towards a fellow professional who could be seriously injured, it was disgusting to be honest. It was all at him, just kneeling to his back, and then he tries to drag him, somebody who's seriously hurt, and then no, we can always go, you know it, Jason's right, you know when you're a player, and when you've done something wrong, and we've been, Jason's at a bad injury, I've had bad injuries, you know, honestly, and Robin, I was thinking, no, when he's tried to push him back on his foot, you clown, you absolutely, his own players should have gone, what are you doing? What are you doing? You dragged him away before it happened. It's the arm, isn't it? It's kind of, where it doesn't look good for me, and Tomo's right, you know, we both had serious injuries. When you go down your arm, it seems to go up, it's like he's crying out for help, and his arm goes straight up, and you can just tell, there's absolutely no need for him to do what he's done tonight, and it'd be nice to know if some of the players, his own players have a word with him to be fair, because it was just. I'm worried about e-book, because I think e-book was gone, look, I hope you have a word to do in that one, I'm thinking, no, I'll go with this one. You look at it, it's not an even fight. At a shame as well, because that right-hand side had looked really good, and actually it was Conor who came closest to scoring the decisive goal with that effort that came back off the crossbar. Yeah, I thought it was fair to first, and then obviously it turns out it was Conor, but he could have hit it with his left, couldn't he? I think he could have gone his way. He could have gone his way, wasn't it, where he's left, but you think the goal's open, so take it on, just have a goal, just try and lift it in. And then he's tried to sort of get it on, which then, but I still thought he'd make great connection. I actually, during the commentary, actually thought it was in, and he clipped it so well, because I think if he doesn't get as much pay attention, the keeper actually gets a touch to it. Yeah, it was more. Yeah, you're right, because he's took that extra touch to come back onto his right. He's kicked the keeper, enough time to make them yards up and Tomo's right. I don't think he could have done anything else, but he comes back off the bar. But this, and that right hand side was fantastic, and Tomo, you know, Tomo touched on it before. The whole team, there's no one I can point to finger out who didn't give an honest performance tonight, who dug in when they needed to, who didn't shy away from the challenge. But if we're going to highlight a few of the real positives, Frimpon tonight, I thought it was outstanding. We highlighted that area of the pitch, didn't we? We knew it could be a threat because of the pace. We were worried because of obviously no echatee, getting in behind and where was that pace going to come from. I always felt Frimpon was going to play. He picked him in the team yesterday in the preview show. I just thought he'd be a good get-out, plus there was no Cala Fiori tonight, so it was an opportunity for him to shine, and he did, he did, he really, really did. He just didn't have the confidence to do when he went through that side of that position. Yeah. And you go on, go on, son, it's your night. You've played really well, go on, take it, and then even his passes is poor, and you think just go, put your foot through it, and nobody's going to criticize it. Maybe you've got two other plays, what's going to have to be a really good ball, and he was just absolutely frightened of life, are they? The other one as well, when he's through down the middle, and he heads it, but he can't get a set, and he heads it up near, rather than forward, he'd have been in on goal. Such a threat pace, certainly in the modern game, I mean, it was when we played, but nowadays you know, teams play with a high line when they're confident, aren't they? And certainly Arsenal, the home we expected to be. He was always going to be a threat, but it was about Liverpool getting on the ball, and some of the highlights of the day, we kept it really, really well before Connor actually heads to the bar, and it can silence the crowd down, but I felt it was just the first time in a game that Liverpool started growing in confidence. They kept it a little one touch, two touch, they went the way through the lines, they went back into the centre-off, then they went back through the middle, and they made Arsenal really work for it, and then they got the rewards by getting the efforts off the back of it, but I kind of felt it gave Liverpool a bit of a bit of real confidence that they were in the game, it was like, I think their fans gave us confidence. I think you felt, doing the commentary there, you could feel it, the ground starting to grow with about 20-25 minutes to go, you could feel it, they understood we were now in control, and we'd done it all in the right manner, better than what I've seen for most of the season, the passing from Ibu to Verge, went quickly, and we moved the ball, and we'd lent it to each other the way you should do, more your dally on it, but then when the ball could go forward, we got between the lines. When Tomo talks there about the moans and the groans from the Arsenal supporters, that was the point I was trying to make before kickoff about emotion, is that 65 minutes in in a game at home, when Liverpool are going for the title, that's when the crowd and the cop comes into its zone, because they're driving the team on, whereas I feel sometimes it becomes stressful, anxiety, anxious at Arsenal, when the crowd feel like that in the game. There's a history, there's a history of not getting over the line, and it's draw, we mentioned it before when we were waiting for Tomo to come in, they've had 14 draws last season, the crowd know you can't afford to draw games, especially at home, where they've been so good, but it's a crowd I think, listen, I may be a bit biased with our crowd, our crowd are the best in the world, but I don't really see us getting nervous, our crowd, but their crowd do, for some reason, I think maybe it's because they haven't got over the line, they haven't won anything in five years, and they're so eager for it aren't they, and it's like, oh, we need to score, we need to score, and when Tomo said when they're getting dominated by an opposing team, it's kind of like, oh, come on, we need better, we need better, it's kind of like they don't stop supporting. I think it's at nervousness, it's over the last couple of years, we've nearly been there, and it's this draw because they've gone into this one thinking, they made it like your opinion, they had all the things, they made all them, and all the five weeks and everything gone off, I'm going, it's fine with your being called. That's the way it was, but that's why it was such a good performance, because in that atmosphere it's like that, for you to draw the game away from somebody so good, and they could feel it, they knew we were on top. Again, this is something we talked about before the game, about title races, and you've been in more than both of us combined quite comfortably, but as to whether in that dressing room, or even waking up this morning, they would have felt a lot more pressure because City didn't win last night. Arsenal, feel in the pressure, yeah, they'd deal with thought, this is our time, this is the one, and that's why the fans were like that, Rob, you're quite right, they'll have dealt on on that, they could see it being dragged away from it, we need to take advantage of all the draws that happened last night, and we're not, it's not just that we've not done that, we've been poor, and you're getting on the back, we didn't have booze at the end, for them sitting top by what, they were 5.6 points now, and I'm amazed that they didn't come out with that. Yeah, just as such I think, listen, I think eight points, I think they won it, I don't think they'd like it, I think they won it, they'd feel a lot more comfortable with it being eight points rather than five, because like we've talked about before, the mindset is the only question mark they haven't ticked on getting over the line, everything else they've ticked, and this season they've ticked a lot of other boxes as well, it's just that mindset of getting over that line, they don't know, they don't know, so of course they won it, they won it eight point gap, don't they? And the other thing is, that thing is, they've not been good, because there's so many games, Rob, you know, that asked them really game, that first, I feel like I've had a better team, not even staying, the Bournemouth game, so it's things, but you got, got over the line, we start to do, we would have to start at the season of first five games, we would just get over the line, that can easily spin, as the draws come in from last year, so you've got to make sure you take advantage at crucial times, and they haven't, I think they're wobbling a little bit, and that one has done them any good. I guess the point tonight, the combined XG of the game was 0.93, not a fan of XG. OK, well, I'll explain that to you. I'll get out of that, believe it. The stats will tell you that there weren't too many, and you watched the game, so you can tell me by using your own eyes, there weren't too many clear-cut chances, and the point I was going for either, really, but the point you would go on to make is, you can sort of allow that a little bit more with Liverpool tonight, away from home, not the form team out of the two, and missing both of their strikers, and most out of their top scorer for God knows how many years. I look at things like that, they've got four shots on target. We had better opportunities with Dominic, probably three of them, to hit the target with shots better. Some two of theirs were sort of, what, they must have been 25. Yeah, I think so. One of those was at J. Zoo's head at the end, which is catching practice, isn't it? This is what I'm saying, is that some of those opportunities, right in the edge of the box, Dominic had it, and he's miscued everything, even two of his free kicks, he's not even at the target, so those things can really sort of be changed there. When was the last time Arsenal didn't have the majority possession at the Emirates? I don't think they've done that too many times this year. I've got to admit though, like, look at the time stats, it didn't look a great game, did it? But I really enjoyed it. I think that was on the edge of me seat a little bit because of Liverpool and the way we've been talking about the game and Arsenal, it's a big fixture, but there wasn't a great deal of action for the goalkeepers as we've just mentioned there, but I think in a hole I really enjoyed the game. It was exciting. It was exciting. It was some good football between the teams when they were on top, some good football, searching for those gaps in between. I totally enjoyed our game and I'm so pleased and proud for all the players who've had so much criticism and you can go through sort of half of that team who've had difficult times and yet they've all been, but that has only been the start. We've said this team will come good in the new year, we've got to have more of them. Well, how much will that give them because I was sort of fan on social media after the full-time game saying this is the worst on beat and run ever and it's like, yeah, I've got lots of games, but there's a lot of games, you really should be winning there, whereas tonight I think probably he might not admit it now, we will hear from him later on a slot, but if you just said to him at 630, it's going to finish Neil Neil, he would have shook your hand then I would have suspect. Yeah, and I touched on what I said before, you know, the Neil Neil against Leeds was such a poor performance and felt like a defeat and the dressing room would have been down. You know, then they get done by a 96-minute welding from Harrison P and you go into the dressing room, it's like so close and then it feels like a defeat and then, you know, from the same point perspective, one, you go into the dressing room tonight and it'll be all high fives and everyone would be opening each other and it'll be right lads, you know, let's build on this now. Listen, it wasn't a statement, it wasn't a statement point, but it was a statement performance performance. It was a lot of good things of how we played the way we went about our jobs getting in, but do you know when you're on your game, all the balls, all the little bounces fall your way? I remember Jeremy going through just on the right hand side and he went like that and the ball fell between some of his legs and then he fell into another one, all of a sudden he was in and he went, it goes that way but you have to work to sort of to gain those advantages and for the ball to be fallen for you, you know the full game and the lads game the balls bouncing to them, how many times this in the box, every ball announcing the box just fell to them. Let's bring our fans in, Courtney, Louis and Abigail, I'll come to you first, Courtney, all the years I've been doing this job right now, it's been too many times I've been pleased about a nil nil draw, but it is tonight, one of them? Yeah, definitely, I think, especially going on about earlier the draws we've had recently that I've felt very much like losses, I think today it does feel like a win and now speaking of fans earlier on we were all sort of like or take a draw straight away, I even had some people who were saying even if it's one or two nil we get beat by, I'll take that because I think we were all expecting. Abigail! Courtney, come on, I'm you as well! I wasn't, I was happy with a draw, but I had my dad. My dad did say to me, you know what even if we get beat one nil you know what the way things have been lately performance wise, you can't really complain too much because our still for me just lost it in the second half, I think all season they've been brilliantly good in the first half, but second half they're heads went and it felt like our performance in the second half was very reminiscent of last season and hopefully that could be a sign that, we're going to start seeing that a bit more within the next few games, whether we choose to play the exact same cards against fans leave or whether we choose us to change, I think that's going to be interesting, but I think that would just keep the momentum going because like everyone said this feels like a massive win even though it's a draw. What I love most by the way there Courtney is that Tom has given you the wrong name, he actually got your name behind you on a screen. We'll come to you Abigail, you can firstly start with some abuse for Tom over at Avenue completely unfounded there at Rage's. What positives do you take from that game? It felt brave and I think that's something that we haven't seen in the last few games. I think slot plan over since we started losing and he just needed to stop the bleed. That was the plan. We had to stop the bleeding and he did that but I understand why some people were saying it was such a boring, unbeaten run that we're on at the minute, it just felt dull at times, I felt like we were going out to just draw games, don't lose. It felt like there was just this feeling of please don't lose and that's the way we were going into it, but it didn't feel that way with this one. I think Sebaz Light came out in the week ended and interview and said we want to go there and prove we are the champions because he was asked, oh, Arsenal, they're going to be the Premier League champions sort of thing and you go in there to prove a point and he was like, we're going to go there ask the champions and I think that was sort of the performance they put in today. No, it wasn't amazing, it wasn't fireworks, but I just feel at times the way Frimpong played some of the balls he was delivering in, yes, he was across the floor a few times and I thought just ping it over the top a bit, but I was thinking if ESAC, Eckertike, even Salah were there at times, I feel like we win that game today. So to draw in the way that we did against the side that is so good defensively, you know, they've got goals in them, Kirikers dealt with soccer so well for Bradley did really well, so it's such a sick enough from to pick up that injury, especially when we've already got the injuries that we've got right now. That's really disappointing, but I feel hopeful like there's a bit of hope back in me now that, you know, they do still want to play for this team and this manager and they still want to try and get Champions League football, you know, all our hopes back in me now when I was going through a bit of a moment where I started to pick up my daughter again and back in was also just leaving him behind. Oh, Tom's been playing to the crowd tonight. Let's come to you next. It didn't feel a little bit like everyone is hoping there is going to be this one game where it all clicks and it's amazing and all the new signings from the summer link up and Liverpool win 7-0, but actually there might be a few games like this this season, some of them wins, maybe some of them draws where it's actually baby steps in the right direction. Well, I think largely given the amount of players coming in and players going out, some tactical changes, some changes in just the type of personnel, this was always going to feel or look more like a transitional year than I think many of us wanted to believe coming off of winning the title last year. This felt very much like a point gained, whereas the last two matches felt like two points dropped. I think that part of this is where watching Arnie slot and the boys kind of build this plane wallets in flight and today a performance away against the difficult opponent who, you know, even though they have not won the league in the last three years has been the most consistent team in England the last three years. They've finished second each of those three years. Us and City have kind of yo-yo to round them gives me a lot of belief that this team, while we may not see that Eureka click moment where they go batter someone 7-0, can certainly put this together in a way that they can make a very deep run in the Champions League. We just went to Arsenal and came away with a point against the team that many in England are anointing the Champions of the League. So I don't know how any of us can come away from today's performance without either of our two main strikers, without Mo Salah and have anything but, you know, some cautious optimism as we look toward the next few months. I think there's a few points to pick up from the trio there. I think it was Abigail talking about you second-guessing me now that every time it's Abigail, I think it's called in basketball. Hopefully you'll fault this. Jeremy Frimpom, is he a right-wing or is he a right back? Does it matter, can he be both? James called it when we did the lead game. He's a wingback. And if we were to play three at the back, and that's one of the big things with tonight's game, we were against the back four, which we haven't been against the back four for a while. And we are so struggle against the back five and it's proved it. Tonight we enjoyed this. But you look at Jeremy Frimpom and he is such an asset. His final ball has to be better. And I know one of the girls was talking because I won't say which one. One of the girls was talking about his delivery and he never really got him. He has to be better with them. The only sort of at least put it in the danger. The one when he was clean through and he just pulls it back but the cross as that happened, I'm not picking because the boy was absolutely tremendous. He was a great outlet tonight. And he's just time and time again. We could feed that ball out even very because they were playing the four at the back. He's scalping that ball out to him. And he was just a threat all night long. What did you see as Jason's best position right back right midfield? He didn't. He sold me. He sold me on the bench. That was his best position somewhere else. But having played both what are the big differences, particularly in the way that you attack because he's in right back or right midfield because he's very game going forward when he plays his full back for him, but the way that you come on to the ball, the way you're in the game, how is that different when you're further up the pitch? You look confused. Yeah, what are you asking me, the difference between right back and right midfield? In terms of, yeah, I know obviously certain differences. You don't have as many defensive priorities playing right midfield. You're there to get into more attacking areas. You know, you've got a full back behind you, you don't get the ball out of the way you deliver the ball from. Do you think that's significantly different when you're playing right back to the right midfield? You can take more risk further forward. You can take more risk. I've got someone's giving me a proper answer to the player. You can go there without the fear. You've got a corner who's a good defender behind you. And Jeremy, it could be one of them where, you know, you play at home against a team, a lesser team, and because you need sort of that space as he did recently, I think it was against Wolves, and he's gone. Now, you can use them as a right back in those home games because you know you're going to have more, but when you've got games like that against the bigger and better teams, you can use them as a right midfielder, because then he can go forward without anything. And it is pace. There's not too many who's got his pace. He's sort of about him specifically. I got a bit lost in the question. He said, you know, he meant him specifically or just in general. In general, given that you played both positions. Well, I'm, listen, I can defend, but I'm not defensive minded. So I'm thinking. That's why he got shit off the wheel. I was jealous. You know, one of his defensive minded managers he wanted to be solid from the back. He didn't want to play off the ball. Back to a player's assistant. Anyway, back to a player's defensive assistant. He's one of the best centre-offs in the world at the time. Anyway, what was going to say then about my point? My point being about Jeremy Freeman, right? And I'll highlight it. And I don't want to because it's a negative. But we got done at Palace away. Palace away. It last minute goal. Last minute, right? The ball gets cleared. Jeremy Freeman is a forward-thinking player. He's very positive. You want him further up the pitch because he's not defensively minded. Why you can play right back is because his pace gets him out of trouble. He doesn't think like a defender. He thinks like an attacker. If you go back to the Crystal Palace game, the ball gets cleared. And his first thing is to get out. Now, he doesn't come out with a man. He leaves his man. Now, he's only half a yard, but he gets done. And he gets done because he goes like that. If he's defensive minded, he stays in, he stays in alongside. He's there to compete for the ball, but he doesn't, because he's defending. Now, that's not a criticism of it. That's just the way he thinks. So, for me, he's the perfect wingback. He's the perfect wingback. I'm glad we finally got some clues on the question. Thank you very much. That's why we've got Fagard Heggam. Now, Tom, you went with us pre-match. You wouldn't have seen the pictures from the Emirates where Pristine Nigel Spackman spent the full hour of build-up under an umbrella. With a blue one. With a blue umbrella. Leaving Mark Benster to look like a draft. Hopefully he has, he has toweled down. Let's hear from the two of them now. Thank you, Rob. You're welcome back down to the Emirates. We've come down pick-side where just behind as you can see Liverpool's subs doing a warm down at the moment. I'm sure Will echo a lot of what's been said in the studio already, but I think a lot to be taken from tonight's Packers. A really good performance in difficult circumstances against a good side with the depleted squad as we touched on pre-match. Yeah, I thought it was from Allie all the way through to the outs. I thought it was a brilliant performance. Obviously no substitutions either left everybody on because I didn't think we wanted to upset it at the end, and we could have so easily have won this game. And, you know, Frimpon got in down the right hand side a couple of times. A better ball in the box, maybe or a better cutback. We could have finished it off, but we created a lot. A couple of free kicks from Dom as well. They had a header at the end where Jesus headed it Australia Allie, but overall I thought we had a lot of possession. We controlled the game for long spells, and even the crowd started turning on something, you know, the Arsenal players. So, you know, I thought overall with a depleted team, I thought it's an excellent performance, a well-controlled performance. The fitness levels were really high, and it gives something to build on going forward with a depleted squad at the moment. It's interesting you mentioned the crowd. I don't know how much it came across in the studio, fellas, but anxiety started to creep a bit at times. Liverpool did ask questions of Arsenal, and you just wonder if we'd have more options to throw on to be a bit more expansive. What we could have done in the closing stages. Yeah, and if you had an out and out number nine, someone who could score goals, be it Eckerts, UK, Beett, Eastack, be it anybody. You know, they played five changes as well, five substitutions. They did as much as they could to try and break us down, but I thought to a man, we stood firm. We worked really hard at some brilliant performance. I thought Kirk has it left back against Sacco, played him out of the game. He got taken off in the end, Frimpon down the right. Bradley, who looks like he got a nasty injury there. I hope it's not. I thought Kanate and Van Dyke and Ali were brilliant as well. Graven Burke in the middle of the park. Sobsley in the middle of the park were brilliant. I thought Virtue made some lovely touches as well. Wanted the ball. So all round, I thought it was really good tonight and, you know, something to build on, but we could have so easily, maybe just nick this and got three points. That you mentioned all 11 players. Yeah, I did. It was because it's your great team performance. No, just being sort of tongue in cheek. It in terms of tonight and Arsenal's approach, do you get a sense walking into the stadium that they were maybe a bit over confident, felt like he walked in and a lot of support, but we're expecting to win today. And that's maybe to be expected given where we've been at recently and where they've been at recently, but it felt like it was with a cockiness, maybe. Well, I said, if I take a point now at the beginning of the game, you know, at the end of the game, you think, well, maybe we're going to nick three, but I thought if we got a point here tonight, it's going to be a great result and it was a great result. But I think turning up here tonight, even in the press room, I think a lot of people thought where it's going to be 3-0, 4-0 Arsenal. They go over Run Liverpool, the depleted team. But I think that just shows why these players are champions, why they won the league last year because their mentality was so strong. And I think the supporters turned up here with the same mentality as the players, maybe, that they thought they'd already won the league and that it's not far from winning the league. You know, we're still in January. Nothing's given out until May. And that's what Kenny Diagleti used to say to us all the time. Nothing's won until the end of the season. No good being top now. You've got to be top at the end of the season. And I think that's something that Arthetta and his Arsenal players and the fans have got to get used to saying every game is a high-pressured game now. And a depleted Liverpool team came here and with a better team here at the Emirates. Can Liverpool use tonight as a template moving forward in terms of concentration more than anything else? I've thought everyone seemed really switched. I mean, they knew the path to be tonight. We should do that against whoever we play, perhaps a little bit more consistent with. Yeah, I think that's easier away from home. I think away from home, come to a big team, where probably tonight before kickoff, you're a bit of an underdog. And you go, well, we can play tactically this way. And our outboard is the pace of frimpong down the right hand side, Bradley backing him up. Then you can hit the diagonals out to Gapo on the on the far side and then Vert gets in those little pocket. At home, the crowd want you to play a bit more control football and get a bit more, I suppose, cutting edge and balls into the box. But I thought tonight they played really, really well. Obviously Bradley's injury could be a problem. And I think now, after this result, going into that game on Monday against Barnes, he'll be who's fit and who can play. And I think we are really depleted down to the bare bones. Yeah, a huge shift in the boys saying just wonder how many of the 11 that played tonight can be asked to start come Monday night, but he might just have to turn to quite a few given the lack of options. Just finally, you've touched on kind of Bradley's injury. How disappointing was it from Gapo on Martin? I had to bounce the ball off an injured player, then try and push him off the pitch as well. When he watches that back, do you think he'll want to go and offer Liverpool man an apology? Because you don't want to see that was a bit uncalled for. I think he's playing to the crowd. I really do. He's come on his sub. I thought, you know, the Arsenal fans were shouting for things when Frempoom went down first half. And then they were booing him. And then one of their players went down and we didn't put the ball out. They were booing us. So, you know, it goes both ways. But I thought Martin Ellie there on the touch line. If a player's gone down injured and he was off the ball, it wasn't, he'd kicked the ball when he'd gone down. I think to throw the ball at him in the first place and then try to move him off the pitch. It's very dangerous because if you've got a serious injury and you were stretched off, you know, you could make the injury worse. And I think he should apologise for that. But also, I think Arsenal should apologise for that because if Conor Bradley's got a bad injuries out for the long time, then really, I thought that was really poor. Yeah, and that was the one real bleak spot tonight, Conor's injury. We wait for an update on his condition. But overall, I think a really encouraging performance from the boys and a really good point on the road. Thank you both, safe journey home. Looking a little bit drier than earlier, which is good news. Let's just round up, shall we? What's happened in the Premier League over the course of this midweek round of fix? There's been a busy, old festive period. I had a big win down at the bottom for Forester with that late goal on Tuesday night at West Ham and to once a minute signed off from Bournemouth with a late winner against Spur's Brentford, a flying up to fifth after a three-no victory over Sunderland Villa stay third after their goals draw at Palace. Everton finished with nine in a one-all draw against Bottom Club. Walls such else he finished with ten as they were beaten by Fullham in the West London, Darby, a point of peace for City and Brighton at the Etihad. Jaden Antony earned Burnley a point against Darren Fletcher's Manchester United and then Harvey Barnes scored 12 minutes into stoppage time to earn Newcastle all three points against Leeds last night. Table looks like this, so Arsenal had the chance to go eight points clear at the top. Instead, their advantage is six points to both City and Villa. Liverpool closed the gap to Villa to eight points and has said Brentford just outside all of that would be, you would think, come the end of the season, a Champions League place. Dan at the bottom were walls of picked up five points from the last three games to go up to seven, but 14 points from safety, and it is already starting to look bleak for Burnley and West Ham, eight and seven off-Norringham Forest respectively. Where does that leave the title race, Jason, because it's as you were from how we started last night, but have Arsenal strengthened their position? The one thing I guess they would say is 21 games, but they've now played both Liverpool and Villa twice. Arsenal, yeah. Yeah, I was going to answer your question before you chipped in with that last little bit, because there's kind of two questions in that, right, you're right. I think Pequery Oliver would be a chippy, so this evening, aren't you? Pequery Oliver would be breathing a sigh of relief, I think tonight. I think he'd be thanking Liverpool for keeping Arsenal out and keeping it a draw, because I think at eight points, I know what SPAC is saying, he's still in January, but eight points for an Arsenal team is quite a significant gap, isn't it? It's not one you really want to claw back. What is it? Six is very doable. Six is very doable. I knew I liked it before. They're not at the best against the top teams this season, whereas last season they were. It seems to have flipped the picking up the points for the draws that they made last season against the lesser teams, but I keep saying that the only question that they have and answered is the mindset? Can they get over the line? Everything else is ticked for Arsenal. It's just whether they can get over the line. We're having the same question about us this time last year. Will we have the mentality? We haven't done it before, this present group, and we're on a slot, who's certainly not been there, and we managed to do it with plenty of games to spare, so I just think you just think City, and before last night you're going, City's going to be in this. Everybody's going out, they can't finish, they've got a fellow up there who's scoring goals, scored 90 this year already, early in garland, they will have something to say about it. Let's bring our fans back in as well. Abigail, come to you on something that Louis said about the rest of the season from here, and I think it would take some ridiculous, for Liverpool to be in that title race, but does this improvement, you talked about having hope again, give you hope, particularly of the Champions League, and we saw PSG really come on strong in the second half of the tournament last year. Yeah, that's something that I've been holding on to, to be honest, I do keep thinking about PSG in the way they've resolved a pause that first half of the season and then brought it back. I think there has just been so much change with new players, McAllister come out himself in an interview and said to listen, there's been a lot of change, and I think that we've just had to learn to adapt to that, and I don't think the noise around everything that's been going on has helped at all. So I think a game like this, a result like this can sort of pull us on to maybe be more brave in certain games in the Champions League. I mean, Liverpool's magic in the Champions League, no matter what. I mean, you can look all the way back to Istanbul when we went the best team that year, you know, when we won that. There's something about Liverpool in the Champions League where I've thought from the start of the season that that was the competition that I wanted us to win anyway. And then obviously we've got the FA Cup coming up, I think that's a good opportunity for some of the kids to sort of, you know, Rio. I really wanted to see more Rio. Maybe today, I mean, at times, I've got pervert thought, maybe he could bring Rio on, but is it worth risking him? I just think players like that can get opportunities in those competitions and, you know, if you get a good run in the FA Cup, if you do well in the Champions League, all our spits are up and you forget about this point in time where we've been, I won't say dreadful because we're on an onbeaten run at the minute, but, you know, not, not, not been the best. But I think I'm getting a little bit more hope now, but I always had faith that we could do well in the Champions League and I'm still holding on to that. Are you confident, Louis, that Liverpool will go on and finish in that topic? Because that would be really helpful not to have two extra games and you would say, Marseille way, Carabag at home, you would think maximum points should be within reach there. So we're even on points right now with that, let you call the only reason we're outside the top eight in the Swiss model right now is on goal differential. I do expect six points from the last two matches and look, if you, if we can get to the last 16, then we can set it up where any side that we play has to come to Anfield. I have full belief that this club and these boys and this team and this manager can make a deep run in this competition. You know, it's all felt difficult for two or three months now. And last year, City as defending champion also had that same difficult period. Now they addressed it by making a lot of signings in January. We made a lot of signings this past summer. And like I said initially, you know, we're in a, we're in a place where we're kind of building the plane in flight. And I think that once some chemistry is developed, because we still have a lot of new players, you know, we were talking a lot about Frimpong's performance tonight. And I think much of Frimpong, you know, putting it on the ground rather than nicking it through the air. I think a lot of that comes down to these players haven't played a lot together. And in the Champions League, we have to win, you know, seven or eight matches, and it may be a trip to a final in Budapest. And it can end up being a really successful season, despite a difficult period from October through January. So I have every belief that currently just on the new signings. Well, I didn't see that new anymore, but we've spoken a lot about Jeremy Frimpong and given him praise tonight. What about Florian Vietz, where are you with him and how he played this evening? Oh, I think Vietz was one of the best players on the pitch this evening. I think that most games lately, I think that little moment where we went through the box and he had like four or five players around him and just gets unlucky with the fan performance. Yeah, it was, it was one of those ways that we were watching it, maybe they're like, oh, this could be a penalty. Yeah, and then we'd have like wishful thing as soon as the ref was like now. But I think that little run from him, if we can get him in more positions like that, instead of having them play a bit more defensively, I think him being more forward is the best thing for Liverpool. I think you show him what you can do when fingers cross they continue. Courtney, did you think it was the boss did very, very well when he played because he changed the positions, didn't he, from the weekend. Cody going out left and he caused them, he caused the two centre backs so many problems and on a you filter with him dropping off and I'm called, they had nobody to mark. And I think I think great tactical decision, did you think? Yeah, definitely. I think seeing the change in for it, I don't know if it's lots like gone, we found his best position now, hopefully. And I think as well, Cody sort of struggled a bit lately and I think maybe again, changing Cody's positions, just hopefully become a match made in heaven and we'll see it next few games. Abby, do in your mind have what you think is the best 11 if everyone's fit and available? Not really, I'm still in this position now where I can't decide on the midfield because Curtis Jones has started performing so well and I just want to try and get Curtis in more teams but then who do you lose in order to have Jones in the team? So that's sort of part of me, that's pulling on me heartstrings a little bit. I think obviously Brad Lee's just got in jibble, like you've just said, but if all players have fit, you know, if Salah's back from Afghanistan, you've got those decisions to make with Frimpong and Bradley and I like Frimpong more, like Brightwing, you know, I think you've got Salah there. So I haven't really got this solidified team and you know, you've got in your sack and EK probably some of the best strikers in the Premier League and it's just how do you work? All these players into the team but I've got full faith that slot's going to be able to do that. I mean, with a fully fit squad, hopefully eventually we do get there, we're very lucky with what we've got, we've just got to try and work out a way where it's all balanced but in either squad like that, because he took a lot of criticism, I thought he was absolutely outstanding today and you were looking, he did well the first half, but Sacka was, but I thought he, he needs a good mention, do you not think? Yeah, definitely. Yeah, he come out on the second half and did really, really well, I thought he dealt really well with Sacka and that's the sort of performance I've been wanting from him because I've felt for the last few games that he's played. He's looked a little bit overexcited. At times, he looks like he's trying to use up all his energy in the first 45 and then he looks absolutely shattered for the second half. I've been in the lower Kenny standard times in a few games that I'm field and he's been holding his back, he's been, you know, looking at the bench just seeing if he can come off because he's been so tired, but I feel like he's sorted today balanced his energy in ways made sure that he didn't overexpend himself and all that sort of stuff. So he's performed much better, he's still young, I feel like there's a lot of pressure on him because of like how well he did a boom, the money was spent on him, but he's got to remember, he's a really young, glad, and when you're stepping in the shoes of Andy Robertson and brilliant player at this football club who's still there and can still put in great performances for us, there's a lot of pressure there, but I feel like he's finally coming into his own. Now it's not the whole, I'm really excited to be playing for Liverpool and I'm going to be throwing in Tackelsey, I'd be down on the floor there, he looked a little bit more professional today and a little bit more thought out to me, so that's what I've been wanting to see from him, it looks a bit more like what we were hoping to buy when we got him, so I'm really happy with his performance there, yeah. I think that part of that, Louis, it's really interesting, isn't it? Because you have to remember that they are coming into a huge scenario, huge football club, some of these players, and it isn't easy that, for every Mo Salar and Sadio Mane, who seemed to be brilliant from the moment that they put that red shirt on, you have to afford others a little bit of patience, particularly when there was so much churn, and they came into the dressing room at an incredibly difficult time because of the grief around the club in the summer too. Yeah, and I think that a lot of the new signings need to be accorded a level of grace for differing reasons, right? I think everyone expected or had hoped that Alexander ESAQ would hit the ground running. Alexander ESAQ had been played football in four or five months because of the nature of the protracted negotiations for his transfer. As a result, it felt like he was just starting to kick off when unfortunately he broke his leg. I think Milo's carecast is another one who patience is needed. We had a player Fabinho. Fabinho didn't play for six months, and then when he finally embedded in the side, he became one of if not the best holding midfielder in Europe. I think with regard to carecast today, what spoke louder to me than his own performance was how calm the rest of the back line looked with him out there, in particular Van Dyke and Konate, who I have felt have at times been asked to cover a bit too much due to rash tackles or rash decisions by Kirkets, and you could tell just by the body language today that Van Dyke felt much more comfortable with those players in the back line, and I think in large part, you know, carecast settling in is a big part of that for sure. So I do think that the new signings need to be accorded grace, and again, that's why I have optimism for what the next five or six months may have in store, because they're only going to get better. The more time they spend together at the training ground and the more time they're able to actually get together and link up on the pitch. Now, we're probably seeing at best 40% of what this Liverpool side can be right now. All right, let's see what the Liverpool head coach made of it on a slot speaking at his post-match press conference. Of course, you're doing that a little bit with that and they're going to strike it as much, and the second one performance, you look clearly a bit of a starting second off. Were you having the result of any performance? Now, definitely with the performance, to a certain extent, also with the result, because Arsenal's having a great season domestically and also in Europe, so you know how hard it is to even get a result against them that are long to win. So that's why, to a certain extent, you're positive about the result. I think in the first half, they had much more ball possession than us, although in some spells of the game, you could already see how well we can play. The ball out from the back and how many times we could play through them, but they were more dominant, were a few times very dangerous over their right side with Timber and Sakka, but that did not much more than crosses. And in the second half, I think we defended a little bit better in their first build-up, so that made it more difficult for them to dominate as much as they did in the first half, and we were even better on the ball, or we did similar things like the parts in the first half to dominate, but from all that ball possession, and that's not something new for someone who follows Liverpool. You're hoping for more chance creation, and we were a lot of times very close shots, decision-making in the end, but yeah, hit the bar in the first half. Just not enough to score goal. No, I got the same question just a second ago. I don't know, Gabri Amattinelli, but he comes across as a nice guy, and I think the problem for him is, and that's the problem in general and for ball, that there are so much time wasting and players pretending that they are injured in the final parts of the game or during the game, that you can then sometimes be annoyed if you want to score a goal, that you think that player is time wasting, and I cannot ask from Gabri Amattinelli in the 94 minutes when it's so emotional for him to understand that he plays Liverpool, that that is a team when they are being whole, whole, whole against, which was the game against Leeds United, and we don't even go to the floor if we play West Ham United, and Paketa tries everything to do, to get a second yellow card that my players try to drag Amattinelli, you cannot expect from Amattinelli, that he thinks so clearly in 94 minutes. So I'm 100% sure that if he knew what the injury might be, that he would never do that, but it doesn't look great if he has the injury which we fear he might have, of course, but football time wasting, diving has come to the situation that players think in the 94 minutes, that probably that is happening again, because I've seen it happening against us so many times this season, that I can understand that Amattinelli might have thought that this was time wasting as well, and he couldn't afford it, but this is Liverpool, they don't do this. I don't know yet, but it didn't look great if you have to go off on a stretcher, and I think we could both, when we see the video, we both think probably the same, but we have to wait on the scans. If it's that bad, or maybe he can play on Monday, let's hope so. I think there are other things to talk about where both teams are at the moment, then talking about the bench, I think we show today, that another for the first time, by the way, this season, that again, in the big games we are able to compete with any other team, and I think we've had a result against almost any team, any big team that we've played, except for Man City, which was, of course, so obvious that we scored the 1-1, but the only one that didn't for, that was obvious, was the referee in the VR, so that's the only game where we've lost by 3-0 for all the other games, I think we've showed a home against Arsenal, away against Arsenal, that we can compete with any other team. The question then, of course, is why you're 14 points behind them, and for me, that's also so obvious, because we struggle so much against low blocks to unlock that, and as you all know, sitting here, there's 20 goals difference between them and us in set pieces, but again, in both games, I think we've shown now that both teams are really strong and very competitive against each other, we won it because of a free kick and unfilled, and today there wasn't a moment like that, so that's why I ended new now. No, like I said, I think the way we pressed their two centerbacks and their number six was better in the second half than in the first half, that's why we could regain ball possession faster in the second half of the first half, and they couldn't come as far around our box than in the first half, but maybe the main thing was that we had the ball also for long spells, and then when they kick to the way we could pick it up again and start playing again, but credits to Arsenal as well, the way they defended their box, I think we had five, six or seven shots, mainly from Dominic Solvosly, and he has a good shot I can tell you, and one shot I thought might have gone in, but then of course, Gabriel blocked it with his body forward and it's like so. There are good and so many things, including box defending, that it's so difficult to get a result against them, but we managed to do so. Hi, after a good performance like this one, what can you build on the next game? Do you have a game against a non-top team? What can you build on this? Yeah, I'm a bit surprised that people think this is a good performance because when we have 60 or 70% ball possession against other teams, people find it boring, and now it's a good performance, but again, we hardly created a chance, and now we say, for us, what a performance. This is who we are, we can dominate ball possession, we know how to build up, we know how, but we struggle, obviously, in a few things, and it's a piece of one of them dominating moments when we're in the final third, then to find the right power as the right execution, that is something that's still not at the level, some other teams are, and that's why we are working every single day, but yes, we did really well in ball possession, but for me, it wasn't that much different than playing leads at home, or full of them away, where we dominated ball possession as well, but then people are annoyed by the fact because these teams are not of the magnitude of Arsenal, then it's not good enough, which I completely agree on, by the way, because I want to see a screening watch since as well. Let's get a final thought then from each of our fans before we let them go this evening, Louis comes to you first on that last bit about Conor Bradley, it was unsavory, I think even if you're not a Liverpool fan, it was pretty unsavory watching Gabriel Martinally doing that towards the end. I truthfully think it was a reflection of something that Bill and Jason mentioned earlier. I think Arsenal are starting to feel a bit of pressure from the fact that they've been nearly there three years running, and that gap's only six points, and I think that Martinally reaction was disgraceful. One, it was just a lack of respect for an opponent who's on the pitch, but I think it's largely based on this Arsenal team has now reached January, and it's pressure time, and I think they're wilting a bit, and I expect it that we had an opportunity to get a point today for that reason. Courtney, sort of again, what part of the manager alluded to there is, you want to see positive steps keep going in the right direction because too often this season, you felt it's been a step forward, and then three days later it's a couple back again, so you just want to maybe Bansley is not the right time to judge it, but once it gets to Burnley and then into the Champions League again, you want to just keep seeing this progression going. Yeah, as I was saying earlier about the teams, we don't know what to expect for the Bansley game. I think, at the minute, before the game, you probably as I said, we're seeing quite a few changes, but I think now, if it was me, I'd go for the same team just to keep the momentum going and keep building on the positives. Abby, what about you? Who would you like to see on Monday night? I think you touched on Rio earlier, but anyone else you'd like to see a game given to? I want to see more keys. I really, really want to see more keys, especially when ESAP got injured. I could TK's picked up a fitness issue. It just felt like a time where keys could be given a bit more game time. I know I keep saying it. I want to see more Rio. I just believe there's so much faith in Rio and going by the club and by the fans. I just believe he's the type of player that can win us games for balls, especially in a competition like the FA Cup. I think it's made for magical moments from players like Rio, so I'm hoping he's someone that we see as well. The injuries just don't help us at all. I can understand what Courtney's saying about just, just stay consistent, start a strong team, try and go on a bit of a win and run now maybe try and build on that, keep the unbeaten wrong going and all. I do get that, but I think you've got to give all the players keys in a Rio chance again time. It's important for fitness as well, so yeah. Abby Courtney, thank you very much indeed for being with us this evening. We will speak to you all again soon. We will just talk to the boys about that game against Barnsley on Monday night. Before we go, Jason as part of the only Liverpool team that played in a Premier League game around the world, that we're being won-0 by Barnsley that day. We're talking about it next to me, thanks, very much for your mind and me. You weren't included for the reverse picture, don't you? Well, later in the season. And we won that, didn't we? Yeah. What are you expecting from? Foggy team. Foggy team. Foggy team. Listen, it's an opportunity to give some of the players who haven't had minutes, minutes, you know, they're like a Kiezer, Rhea Wengemauer, Troy Naomi. If these kind of players will come into the team, I think Robo will get to start. It'd be a sprint cliff like Robo. Yeah, Joe Gomez, the players need game time, need to get up to speed because you're going to need them, you're going to need them to drop into the first team at some point because the boys can't, you can't keep picking the same team week in week out. It's going to have to rest. I hope it will be changes. I hope he has the cavalry on the bench. Yeah. Ground's going to be full. Barnsley fans are going to be going, but the ground will be full. And the spectators come. No matter what to see, a lot of the big stars. I know they need rest, I know they do, but we're going to have to play some of them, but have them on the bench just in case. The game against Crystal Palace with all the kids on the bench as well did not go down well. I felt for a lot of the young kids who come to watch the game and I think that should always be taking into account. It's interesting, isn't it, because last season you could sort of understand the had they have made a lot of, I mean, they did make huge changes. Actually, that went out to Plymouth with a lot of changes, but there was a bigger prize in sight. Now, obviously Liverpool is largely focused on winning Premier League and winning Champions League, but the perception of a season, which has been difficult. There's been a lot of churn transition. We've talked about all of that, but the perception of that season, if at least you put some silverware in the cabinet, if it's an FA Cup, does change a little bit, doesn't it? Yeah, no, without a doubt. You have to understand I've been there and making those decisions where you've had to change the team, but you always have that extra quality on the bench to come on just in case. And it's always got to be there, but you are. I always feel your duty bound. We are a huge club. There's kids come from all over the world who can't get tickets for Premier League games. They can get them for the carabout cup. They'll come to the FA Cup games, show them those players. Shock result in the FA Cup, it's not down to the lack of quality, it's down to mentality. Like the big game, like when you'd see that Rex and Beaton Arsenal and Liverpool going out, I remember watching Graeme Sooner's last game on the cup. It was Bristol City. You know, it's mindset, it's mentality. I've played in the other side, but I'm giant killing myself with Beaton Arsenal and Highbury. It's mindset, it's that complacency, it's that lack of respect really, they give you, it's just they go through the motions and then all of a sudden your tails are up. You get a few opportunities, you think, oh, and then it's just sometimes your night. But if the top teams are on it, no matter what plays are out there playing, you should win the game. You should win that game. It's all about mentality. If Liverpool go out with the right mentality, with a nice balanced team, I agree with Tom on you. I have a for security on the bench. You'd have a vet on the bench, you'd have, you know, hopefully a critique game might be able to come on and play a little bit. Absolutely, yeah. Then you just have a bit of security. You should win the game. That is it for this episode of the reaction. We are back on Monday evening as we reflect on Liverpool taking on Barnsley at Anfield in the third round of the Emirates FA Cup. Until then, if you haven't already, please give us a follow wherever you get your podcasts to make sure you don't miss an episode. Thanks for being with us. Bye for now.