Arsenal secured their first win at Anfield in 14 years on Sunday evening, with Kai Havertz bagging the only goal of the game for the Gunners.

The visitors started strongly, and they were duly rewarded when Declan Rice fired across goal and Havertz converted from close range.

Liverpool huffed and puffed, but barring a free header from Alexis Mac Allister late in the first half, they never really looked like getting back onto level terms.

Press the next page as we give our Arsenal player ratings for the 1-0 victory…

Goalkeeper and Defence

GK – David Raya – 7/10 – his passing was a bit slack at times, but he cleared his lines well, and he did enough to put off Alexander Isak at the back post to prevent a certain goal.

RB – Jurrien Timber – 7/10 – probably should have conceded a penalty for a blatant shirt pull on Isak in the first half, but he was very solid defensively, making blocks as well as keeping Bradley Barcola quiet.

CB – Ezri Konsa – 8/10 – his hesitation on the ball in the first half essentially shifted the momentum back to Liverpool, but he was rock solid from that moment on.

CB – Gabriel – 7/10 – Isak played in the left channel, so it was a pretty quiet evening for the Brazilian, who kept angering the Anfield crowd for going to ground.

LB – Riccardo Calafiori – 7/10 – he had to step over the line a couple of times to commit fouls, but the Italian did his job, stopping Cody Gakpo and Rio Ngumoha (when he came on) from getting past him.

Midfield

CM – Declan Rice – 9/10 – the 27-year-old was the reason Arsenal won the game. His perfect cross to the back post after making an overlapping run led to Havertz’s opener.

After Konsa’s mistake, he tracked back and stopped Barcola from getting in on goal. He was all over the pitch, putting out fires. An excellent all-round performance.

CM – Bruno Guimaraes – 6/10 – dictated the game early on (along with Rice), but he faded. His most notable contribution was a big challenge on Barcola in the penalty box.

AM – Martin Odegaard – 6/10 – won the ball back for the goal after a poor pass out from Alisson. However, his passing in open play was not great.

Forwards

RW – Noni Madueke – 5/10 – the winger didn’t track back, leaving Timber exposed at times. At the other end, his lack of cutting edge was exposed once again.

ST – Kai Havertz – 7/10 – the German always turns up for the big occasions,  and he was in the right place at the right time for the goal.

Havertz’s overall performance was, though, a bit patchy. He wasted good opportunities on the counter-attack and lost some of his one-on-one duels. You would hope the goal would give him a bit more confidence after a barren spell.

LW – Christos Tzolis – 8/10 – a surprise selection after just coming back from a hamstring injury, but it was the right decision by manager Mikel Arteta. Tzolis should have probably gone for goal himself after Jeremy Jacquet slipped in the second half. He then forced Alisson into an outstanding save.

Substitutes

Myles Lewis-Skelly – 5/10 –  the 20-year-old struggled to get up to the pace of the game, losing a ball that led to a Liverpool counterattack.

Piero Hincapie – 6/10 – replaced the tiring Tzolis to shore up the defence, and he did his job.

Viktor Gyokeres – 5/10 – tried to hold up the ball and chase down lost causes with little success.

Mikel Merino – N/A – came on for Odegaard late in the game, so he didn’t have time to make an impression