Red cards, own goals, drama, injuries, physical confrontations, this match had it all. It's a little absurd that a match could get this good this early in the season, but I suppose that's just what happens when the Gunners roll into Anfield.
What I thought I'd do since this match ended level at 1-1 was unfold the positives and the negatives for both sides. So without further ado, let's begin:
Liverpool.
Positives: David Ngog looks to be a decent option up top while Torres gets his form back. While Ngog is prone to making ridiculous mental errors, and occassionally seems to completely zone out on the pitch, it's obvious that he's a very gifted player. His finish to add Liverpools only goal on the scorline was absolutely montrous. The angle was so tight, and the ball was driven in with such power that Almunia was no match. Ngog also showed his abilities in the air, which I always liked about him. He times headers suprisingly well, and has a knack for flicking on headers into the nylon.
Jovanovic is well liked, and playing hard. Milan Jovanovic made his Premier League debut for the Reds today, and quickly gained a following in the sixth minute. You see, Milan was driving down the center of the pitch and youngster Jack Wilshere was bugging him, so Milan put one of his brawny Eastern European arms out and threw the Englishmen to the ground. The crowd roared in approval. Jova seemed to take a cue from Anfield hero Gerrard, hurrying to every ball and giving his best effort throughout the match. His exit in the 78th minute to make way for Maxi Rodriguez was met with a standing ovation. There may be a new Serbian in the Premier League, other than United's Nemanja Vidic.
Gerrard: still the best player on the pitch. The Red faithful were a little disenfranchised with their golden boy last season, but "Stevie G" (pictured above) will always lace up and give it his all, you can bet the house on that. Gerrard, the captain of the Reds, simply has to be one of your favorite players. Completely selfless, chases down every ball with a never-say-die attitude, a rare combo of grace and power that only comes around once every couple of generations. Gerrard proved today that he will always wear the Reds kit with pride and that he isn't going away until they drag him off the pitch.
Glen Johnson proves his worth. Glen Johnson, coming off a dismal performance for England at the World Cup, proved just how valuable he is to his club side today with great service and great skill on the ball. His sallying forth from the right back position has proved to be invaluable to Liverpool's game, and is what earned them their goal. Any doubts about his value to the club were put to the sword today.
Kuyt is still a workhorse. Dirk Kuyt is another reason to respect Liverpool. The man's work rate is absolutely incredible, and his service is always spot on. The Dutch sage showed that he is no pushover, and won't be replaced by Maxi Rodriguez anytime soon out on the wing for the Reds.
Carragher and Skrtel. Both of these men, long time Red Jamie Carragher and Slovakian maniac Martin Skrtel, defended like mad men today. They were a nightmare for Chamakh on his debut, and rendered Van Persie's substitution into the game absolutely worthless. Liverpool will get a big boost from having a solid center two in these two men.
Mascherano got a good exit. So all of the signs point to a move to Real Madrid for defensive midfielder Mascherano. He went out in style today with a great, physical performance that is his trademark. His substitution late on was also met with a standing o, which he appreciated.
Negatives: Torres still seems out of form. It was all Fernando Torres could do to make it down the pitch with the ball, it seemed. His explosive pace, his lightning quick feet, still just don't seem to be there. It was good to see the Spaniard out on the pitch, and a clever cross toward the death of the match proved that he is still one of the most creative players around, I just still have doubts about his fitness.
Cole's red card. Joe Cole made his Premier League debut today for the Reds. He seemed to be absolutely worthless, despite one incredibly impressive back heel flick. His job was to link the midfield play and the attackers, but he was absolutely dismal in that respect. He really just crowded Gerrard and went down the pitch too early most of the time. And then, the kicker. In the 44th minute, Cole made a dangerous challenge on Laurent Koscielny, taking out one of his legs with both of his own, got a red card, and was sent off. Not exactly the best way to make your debut, especially when people have been talking about how you could be better than Messi all week.
Reina's own goal. I feel genuinely bad for this one. Jose Reina played an absolutely flawless game, he dealt with every corner, stopped a venomous strike from Rosicky, and just looked to be in top form. Until the last minutes of play. A cross came in, and Reina came out to deal with it. Chamakh got it away, and the ball bounced, quite unfortunately, into Reina's own goal off his hands. A tragic end to a hard fought game.
Arsenal.
Postives: Jack Wilshere looked good. English youngster Wilshere made his debut for the Gunners today, and seemed to do a great job. He took every opportunity he could and was really impressive in defense.
Subsitutions were vital. Theo Walcott and Rosicky provided the only real chance the Gunners had at coming back. Rosicky had perhaps the best chance in the game, a lethal strike that was tipped over by Reina in the 86th minute. Walcott looked daft occasionally, but for the most part got good service and looked more sound on the ball than last season.
Diaby and Nasri. These two men, who may not have started were it not for an Arsenal injury crisis, looked well in form and were important parts of the match for Arsenal. Diaby was untouchable on the ball and did well to hold play back while other players got in postion around the goal. Nasri did basically everything, shooting, passing, defending, set pieces, and performed pretty well, I thought.
Negatives: Laurent Koscielny. The most recent transfer in for the Gunners, Laurent's contribution to this game was two yellow cards (equals red) and going to sleep to allow Ngog's goal. Furthermore, his suspension puts more pressure on Arsenal's wounded defense. Wenger's looking pretty thin back there.
Ashravin out of form. I love Andrei Ashravin, but he looked pitifully out of shape and out of sorts in this game. His passes never seemed to be weighted correctly and he wasn't getting any pace at all out of his legs. Hopefully the Russian will be able to snap out of it for the Gunners' next match.
Chamakh was less than impressive. Marouane Chamakh, perhaps Arsene Wenger's most promising addition to the Arsenal side, was pretty absent in his debut today. He lost the ball in the box on a number of occassions and didn't seem to be in sync with the other players. Perhaps more time is needed for Chamakh to get used to Premier League game speed, so I suppose we'll have to see.
Van Persie did nothing. He was only on for a half an hour, but Robin Van Persie did effectively nothing for the Gunners with his brief time on the pitch, touching the ball maybe twice.
These are my thoughts on today's match. Have some of your own?
ALSO: Manchester United premieres tomorrow in their match against Newcastle United on ESPN 2 at 2:55 PM.
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