Liverpool came from two goals down to draw with Arsenal and blow the Premier League title race wide open as Manchester City watch on.
The Reds were caught cold by the leaders as Gabriel Jesus headed the Gunners into a two-goal after Gabriel Martinelli feathered the ball into the back of the net to give Mikel Arteta's side the lead. One of the many talking points came when Trent Alexander-Arnold and Granit Xhaka clashed which riled up the Anfield crowd and swung the momentum.
Mohamed Salah pulled a goal back four minutes before half-time as second-half substitute Roberto Firmino headed Liverpool level. It could've been even better for the hosts with the Egyptian missing his second penalty of the season, before in the dying embers Ibrahima Konate couldn't scramble the ball over from inside six yards.
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As a result, Pep Guardiola's side - who have a game in hand - remain six points off the pace with just nine matches remaining. Jurgen Klopp's side will feel slightly aggrieved as to how they didn't manage to claim all three points with the draw adding to their fading Champions League qualification hopes. Below is how the national media reacted.
Jason Burt - Telegraph
Arsenal committed the fatal mistake of making Liverpool angry and, with it, handed the advantage in the Premier League title race to Manchester City.
The turning point, in an extraordinary encounter which may have serious repercussions for assistant referee Constantine Hatzidakis who amazingly stands accused of elbowing Andrew Robertson, came not with the goals but with an incident when Arsenal were 2-0 up and in complete control.
Needlessly, Granit Xhaka clashed with Trent Alexander-Arnold off-the-ball and while both players were cautioned by referee Paul Tierney it was certainly a card worth taking for the Liverpool full-back.
Xhaka did not need to bump into him to provoke him and yet the midfielder did just that and, with it, the Liverpool players and – crucially – the home fans were riled.
Until that point they had appeared traumatised but, after it, their blood was up and in a stadium which runs on emotion arguably more than any other the feelings were raw. How Liverpool exploited them.
Ian Ladyman - Daily Mail
For 79 minutes, Arsenal stuck their elbows out at Anfield. That was how long they led this game. That was how long their lead at the top of the Premier League looked set to return to eight points. But Liverpool got them in the end. And now Manchester City, in time, may get them too.
Liverpool long since ceased to play a part in this title race. But when it comes to going face to face with City at this time of year, they know how it is. They know there is no way back for those who blink.
Here in front of an Anfield crowd with only pride to cling to this season, Arsenal didn't so much as blink as have a light shone deep in to their eyes until they simply could not take any more.
It could have been worse for Mikel Arteta and his team. Having led from the eighth minute and by two from the 28th, they could actually have lost. Their goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale made one of the saves of his career to touch a deflected Mo Salah shot over the bar in the 94th minute.
Then, a minute later, he managed to keep the ball from crossing the line at the Kop End after Liverpool defender Ibrahima Konate seemed to have bundled the winning goal in with his chest from five yards.
Phil McNulty - BBC Sport
Liverpool had produced an insipid performance and were being outplayed until Xhaka unwisely chose to tangle with Alexander-Arnold, the incident injecting Jurgen Klopp's side with the energy and inspiration they had been lacking - and crucially bringing the Anfield crowd into play.
Salah's goal was the perfect invitation to mount a second-half siege in front of the Kop and it was one Liverpool accepted as they finally showed some of their true form.
Arsenal were penned back and it took an outstanding display of goalkeeping from Ramsdale to prevent a resurgent Liverpool from completing the perfect comeback.
While Liverpool's attack looked more potent after the break, once again they looked so vulnerable at the back and both Arsenal goals were cheap.
In the final reckoning it is a result that suits neither side, reducing Liverpool's chances of a top-four place even further and offering a boost to Arsenal's title rivals Manchester City, who trailed by eight points at the start of the weekend but have now seen that gap come down by two points and still have a game in hand on the north Londoners.
Rich Jolly - Independent
The opener was another illustration of the growing fallibility of Virgil van Dijk who, in attempting to intercept Martin Odegaard’s pass, instead only redirected it to the on-rushing Martinelli. He sidefooted a shot past Alisson for his seventh goal in eight league matches.
Jesus soon had a third in two. Xhaka chipped a pass in behind Trent Alexander-Arnold to Martinelli. With Konate coming across to cover, Andy Robertson was nearest to Jesus when the striker rose to head in Martinelli’s cross. It was far too easy for Arsenal: as Jesus rose highest at Easter, it looked a tale of their resurrection from the footballing dead.
But Liverpool could stage a revival of their own. A fractiousness had a surreal element when Robertson seemed to be elbowed by the assistant referee Constantine Hatzidakis at half-time. It also galvanised Liverpool. Ramsdale made his first fine save from the indefatigable Salah. The Egyptian then halved the deficit as he was sharpest to react when a stretching Jordan Henderson diverted Robertson’s cross to the far post. Henderson himself thrashed a shot over.
The onslaught continued. Rob Holding, deputising for the missed William Saliba, barged Diogo Jota over in the box. Klopp, who had chosen not to look, turned around in disbelief when there was no Anfield roar as Salah struck the advertising hoardings with his spot-kick.
But Liverpool nevertheless had the momentum and energy of old. The side who faded in the second half against City surged on after the break, forcing Arsenal back, sucking them of oxygen. Nunez came on and almost scored. Firmino came on and did after Alexander-Arnold, in a redemptive moment on an afternoon of more defensive difficulties, nutmegged Oleksandr Zinchenko and crossed. Still the drama was not over: but for Ramsdale’s brilliance, there would have been a second defeat of the season on Merseyside for Arsenal. And at the end of a barnstorming game, it felt a little less likely they will win the league.
Paul Gorst - Liverpool ECHO
If ever a game showcased the good and the bad of Liverpool's maddening Premier League campaign, it was on full display here in a breathless, angry Anfield draw with Arsenal.
A thrilling advertisement for the top flight had every element that encapsulates what this Reds team is now. Or at least what they have become.
The early concession of a goal; the licking of wounds; the howls of terrace derision at the meekness of it all: it was all there in a 40-minute first-half period where Liverpool looked like they had again cowered when they needed to stand tall.
But, in the interest of balance and fairness, this match also showed how Klopp’s team are still able to mix it with the leading lights of the division this term. That remains a welcome quality.
Click here for the full story from Paul Gorst.
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