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Liverpool Echo
Liverpool Echo
Sport
Mark Wakefield

Jamie Carragher left stunned as Mohamed Salah offers Liverpool a blessing in disguise

Here is your Liverpool morning digest for Tuesday, October 11.

Jamie Carragher stunned by Liverpool players

Jamie Carragher has likened Liverpool's defending for Arsenal's second goal on Sunday afternoon to 'something you see on a cartoon'.

Jurgen Klopp's side were carved upon after 58 seconds when Gabriel Martinelli fired the Gunners ahead and then conceded a second strike on the stroke of half-time as the hosts broke quickly on the counter after regaining possession following a Liverpool set-piece.

Gabriel Jesus collected a loose ball on the edge of the Arsenal penalty before picking out Martinelli, who broke at speed into Liverpool's box and found Saka at the back post. The England international had the simplest of finishes from close range and was left unmarked and in acres of space after the Reds paid the price for committing too many players forward for their free-kick.

READ MORE: Why Liverpool were denied penalty by VAR but Arsenal's was given

READ MORE: Alex Ferguson has already told Jurgen Klopp what he must do to stop Liverpool rot

Analysing this goal scored by the Gunners on Sky Sports' Monday Night Football , Carragher was stunned by the lack of organisation by his former employers and believes Mikel Arteta's men took full advantage of Liverpool's decision to pile bodies forward.

"I cannot believe what I am seeing here," admitted the 44-year-old. "Liverpool have a free-kick in an area where I think it is hard to score from or even put a good ball into the box, and Liverpool’s two centre-backs go up. That is alarming for me. If that free-kick is further down, I would say put it right on the penalty spot and get Van Dijk and Matip in there and they have a good chance of scoring a goal. What happens is that you can’t score a goal from the first header that far away from the goal. In terms of game management, that was criminal and almost like kids football. A team in that position just play football as you don't want to do this.

READ THE FULL STORY HERE.

Mohamed Salah decision speaks volumes as blessing in disguise emerges

It was a grim afternoon for Liverpool’s wide players at the Emirates. Each, though, for wildly differing reasons, writes Ian Doyle.

Until being booted out of the game by clumsy Arsenal midfielder Thomas Partey, Luis Diaz had been, like in so many recent outings, the Reds’ most dangerous forward.

His direct approach and willingness to run with the ball offered a regular outlet for the opening 42 minutes and caused Ben White, playing at right-back, all sorts of problems.

But it was his ability to drift across the front line that helped prompt Liverpool ’s first equaliser, pouncing on a poor touch from Gabriel to sprint into the box down the inside right channel before his cross invited Darwin Nunez to score his third Reds goal.

Small wonder, then, fingers and more besides will be crossed regards Diaz’s injury prognosis, although the initial fear is the Colombian faces an extended spell on the sidelines.

By contrast, rarely can Mohamed Salah have had such an ineffective afternoon on the other flank, the Egyptian, one jinking run and shot aside, alarmingly peripheral until Klopp took the unusual step of withdrawing him.

The Reds boss has long preferred to keep Salah on the pitch for as long as possible due to the winger’s ability to make things happen. That he was sat on the touchline as Liverpool chased in vain for a third equaliser spoke volumes.

READ THE FULL STORY HERE.

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