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Arsenal Football Club blew a 2-goal lead to draw Liverpool Football Club in an English Premier League thriller on Sunday.
TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports the exhilarating encounter, adjudged to play a key role to decide the title race, saw Gabriel Martinelli pull the first trigger in the 8-minute of play.
Bukayo Saka drove towards the Liverpool defence and tried a one-two with Odegaard. The return ball came off Virgil Van Dijk and into the path of Martinelli, who superbly pokes past Alisson Becker and into the net to put the visitors 1-0 up.
In the 28th minute of play, Gabriel Jesus made it two after Granit Xhaka fed the ball behind Trent Alexander-Arnold for Martinelli, who then curls a delightful cross into the area. Jesus found himself in space in the middle, and his header flew into the bottom-right corner to double the Gunners’ lead.
Before halftime, however, Mo Salah pulled one back for Liverpool in the 42nd minute of play, following a clever move with Diogo Jota pulling the ball back for Jordan Henderson, who managed to sidefoot it towards the back post with Salah there to smash home to make it 2-1.
After the break, Salah missed an enticing opportunity to level the game with a penalty kick. A corner had caused havoc in the Arsenal box, and Rob Holding brought down Jota with a clumsy challenge.
The referee points straight to the spot, much to the Gunners’ disgust. Salah stepped up but sidefooted his penalty wide of the post as he fired towards the bottom-left corner to the relief of Arsenal.
However, the relief was momentary as Liverpool found back of Arsenal’s net with a goal by Roberto Firmino, who was subbed in to replace Fabinho. Alexander-Arnold nutmegged Oleksandr Zinchenko before lofting a superb delivery to the back post, where Firmino was waiting.
The super sub headed at goal but the diving Aaron Ramsdale could not prevent the ball from flying into the net to make it 2-2 in the 87th minute of play.
Mikel Arteta’s men held on in the remaining minutes of play for a draw that could be massive in their bid to win their first title in 19 years.
They extend their lead with the draw against Liverpool to six points, but Manchester City have a game in hand and the Gunners still have to go to the Etihad Stadium, with that vital encounter set to be played on April 26.
For Liverpool, they move onto 44 points, though they are still three points off the Europa League places.