Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has the perfect solution to Ibrahim Konate’s woes in the closing moments of the defeat to Arsenal. The centre-back received his second yellow card of the afternoon from referee Anthony Taylor after fouling Germany’s Kai Havertz.
Liverpool go into action at the Emirates Stadium with an unblemished record in their first seven matches of 2024. But they could not continue their unbeaten run after goals from Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossar secured all three points for the hosts.
In the 14th minute of the first half, Mikel Arteta scored the first goal and Saka scored the first goal. Defender Gabriel saw a goal disallowed in the last minute after slotting the ball into his own net following ruthless work by Luis Diaz in Arsenal’s penalty area.
But Liverpool recovered from their second-half mistake when captain Virgil van Dijk and goalkeeper Alisson Becker tangled in their own penalty area, leaving an open goal for Martinelli to slot home. Trossard added a third for the hosts to ensure all the spoils went to Arsenal, closing the gap on Klopp’s side at the top of the table to two points.
Belgium’s final goal came just seconds after United were reduced to 10 men. Klopp was given his marching orders after denying Havertz a goal in the attack against Konate, leaving Klopp with a selection headache ahead of his next game against Burnley on Saturday.
Liverpool’s centre-back position is very light this season after losing the reliable Joel Matip to a serious knee injury in December. Jarrell Quansah, 21, has stepped up when needed, while the absence of Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold in recent weeks has forced Joe Gomez to play at full-back.
