Liverpool 2-1 Arsenal LIVE: Roberto Firmino quick-fire DOUBLE, Premier League score

Liverpool vs Arsenal: Express Sport brings you LIVE Premier League updates from Anfield

LIVERPOOL 3-1 ARSENAL | MAITLAND-NILES (11), FIRMINO (14,16), MANE (31)

Liverpool XI: Alisson, Robertson, Van Dijk, Lovren, Alexander-Arnold, Wijnaldum, Fabinho, Shaqiri, Mane, Salah, Firmino

Arsenal XI: Leno, Lichtsteiner, Sokratis, Mustafi, Kolasinac, Xhaka, Torreira, Ramsey, Maitland-Niles, Iwobi, Aubameyang

• Liverpool could go nine points clear at the top of the Premier League
• Ainsley Maitland-Niles pokes Arsenal into the lead
• Roberto Firmino scores after two deflections
• Firmino grabs a second 60-seconds later
• Sadio Mane converts from Mohamed Salah assist

Liverpool news LIVE updates: All the latest news, transfers and gossip from Anfield

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LIVERPOOL 3-1 ARSENAL

36: Liverpool press high and win the ball in the final third through Georginio Wijnaldum but Arsenal clear their lines. But the ball just keeps coming back with no Arsenal player capable of holding the ball.

33: Granit Xhaka is a lucky, lucky boy. The fired-up midfielder is booked for a late swipe on Andrew Robertson – and decides to kick the ball away in frustration. Not too smart, mate.

LIVERPOOL 3-1 ARSENAL | MANE

31: Too early to say game, set and match?

Liverpool have a firm grip of a nine-point lead at the top of the Premier League thanks to Sadio Mane, who scores one of the easiest chances he’s ever likely to receive.

The goal stemmed from that corner that Sead Kolasinac conceded a minute ago. Arsenal fail to clear, Andrew Robertson crosses for the unmarked Mohamed Salah to prod into Mane’s path. He converts from inside the six-yard box.

30: That’s the last thing Leno needs! The goalkeeper is already dealing with this makeshift Arsenal defence and now Sead Kolasinac fizzes the fastest backpass you’ll see this season!

29: Lucas Torreira is down on halfway. Not 100 percent sure what happened to the battling midfielder but after a pat on the shoulder from Unai Emery – he’s back on the field.

26: Oh, one of those infamous Unai Emery set-piece routines… is ruined by Mustafi, who strays offside. Alisson saved his header anyway.

25: Booked! Andrew Robertson goes in the book for a foul on Ainsley Maitland-Niles, who had successfully rounded the Liverpool star.

23: Chance! That ‘rest’ didn’t last long as Sadio Mane ghosts past Stephan Lichtsteiner before fizzing an angled effort straight into Leno’s arms.

21: Not going to lie – I’m pretty annoyed that we haven’t had a goal for six minutes… Liverpool just taking the sting out of this one by keeping possession in midfield.

18: Roberto Firmino has been directly involved in 10 goals in his last seven Premier League games against Arsenal (7 goals, 3 assists). I think It’s fair to say the Gunners fear this fella.

LIVERPOOL 2-1 ARSENAL | FIRMINO

16: Nothing fortunate about this goal – Roberto Firmino has scored an absolute bobby-dazzler!

The Brazilian forward collects the ball around 25 yards from goal before weaving his way past Shkodran Mustafi and Sokratis Papastathopoulos and drilling beyond the helpless Bernd Leno.

Scorcher from Firmino, but how bad was Arsenal’s defending?! Split open like an out-of-date Christmas pudding.

LIVERPOOL 1-1 ARSENAL | FIRMINO

14: Well that’s just bizarre! Liverpool have levelled with a rather fortunate equaliser courtesy of Roberto Firmino.

Granit Xhaka makes an excellent tackle on the edge of the area and the ball cannons off two Arsenal players and straight to the toes of Firmino, who rolls it into an empty net. No-look finish too… naughty lad!

LIVERPOOL 0-1 ARSENAL | MAITLAND-NILES

11: What?! Unai Emery’s Arsenal haven’t read the script because having been quiet in the opening stages – they’ve gone and made the breakthrough!

This is the first Liverpool have fallen behind in the Premier League at home since Vicente Iborra scored for Leicester 364 days ago.

Nothing too complicated about this. Dejan Lovren gifts the ball to Alex Iwobi, who drives forward before crossing for right-back Ainsley Maitland-Niles to convert.

10: Well ten minutes gone and we’ve got ourselves a traditional game of attack vs defence here at Anfield. Arsenal finding it difficult to work their way around the Liverpool press and are simply giving away possession for fun.

8: All the players are wearing black armbands in honour of former Arsenal chairman Peter-Hill Wood, who died at the age of 82 on Friday.

Sadio Mane peels off Lucas Torreira and skips beyond Stephan Lichtsteiner before seeing his drilled cross rebound to Mohamed Salah to flick into the side-netting.

5: More ominous signs for Arsenal as goalkeeper Bernd Leno panics when pressured by Roberto Firmino, and punts the ball straight out for a throw-in by the corner flag.

3: Well Jurgen Klopp’s side could easily have taken the lead inside two minutes! Andrew Robertson’s teasing cross should be poked home by Sadio Mane, who for some unknown reason, decided to stop in his tracks.

LIVERPOOL 0-0 ARSENAL

1: Ready for another crazy night at Anfield? Well it doesn’t really matter because we’re underway anyway! Nine point advantage or a swing in Manchester City’s favour?

Hugs all round

17:28: Jurgen Klopp walks over to Arsenal duo Stephan Lichtsteiner and Sokratis and gives them a big hug. Kind fella.

Here they come…

17:25: The players have just emerged from the tunnel to a wall of noise at Anfield. I don’t think supporters needed any more encouragement to get excited – but a late kick off, against Arsenal and with the chance to go nine points clear has certainly raised the decibel levels!

Fair play

17:21: Wolves have taken points from Manchester City, Tottenham, Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal this season. Not Liverpool though I notice…

Friendly warning

17:20: Jose Mourinho may have departed our screens, but that doesn’t mean the mind games are over.

And that’s because Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has warned Liverpool of the pressures of being Premier League leaders.

How kind of him…

“From January, February last season people said, ‘The Premier League is over’. To live with that is not easy,” said the City boss.

“One month ago people said about (the match against) Liverpool and before (then) we had three or four games. Football is that you are able to win a lot of games and you are able to lose a lot of games. When I was at Barcelona for one period I lost four games in a row.”

Danger…

17:15: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has been directly involved in 30 goals in his 32 Premier League appearances for Arsenal. The Gunners striker is also a goal ahead of a certain Mohamed Salah in the battle to be the Premier League’s top scorer.

Twitter round-up

Dan: 30 Premier League games since Liverpool lost at Anfield and they’ve conceded only 12 goals in those matches. It’s 364 days since they were even behind at home!

Joe: We’ve now got Spurs fans hoping Arsenal turn us over to keep their chances of winning the title alive, and Man Utd fans hoping we beat Arsenal to keep alive their chances of a top 4 finish. Ha!

Yoni: Would today be one of those days Tottenham Hotspur fans would be supporting Arsenal in the game against Liverpool?

Get with the programme…

17:05: Jurgen Klopp used his programme notes to reveal that Liverpool have a “healthy belief” in themselves… which is a good thing. I think.

“Arsenal are a team that can and will punish you if you drop even 0.01 per cent of your focus. Our game against them in London was exhausting to watch because of the pace of it and the intensity,” Klopp wrote.

“We have shown against intense opponents and in intense games we step forward with our own quality. We play at our home and we have a healthy belief in ourselves. We all know our jobs and we focus on that and that alone.”

PerfectMatch.com

17:00: Dejan Lovren believes manager Jurgen Klopp has found the missing pieces to the puzzle which have frustrated previous hopes of a title challenge.

“I think experience,” Lovren said when asked what is different from previous years.

“There are quite a lot of players still here and it was like a puzzle, you just keep bringing these players you missed and now I think it’s a perfect match.

“You feel that in the squad, it’s how it should be. There has always been something missing all these years but I think now we have everything. But it doesn’t mean anything. Even Manchester City has in every position two players, top players.”

Big cheer

16:55: Supporters inside Anfield are being updated on all the goals in the Premier League and a huge roar goes up when the announcer reveals that Wolves are winning 3-1 against Tottenham.

Helder Costa got the third to pull off a SHOCK result at Wembley. Those odds on Liverpool winning the title are shortening all the time…

Can Liverpool handle the pressure?

16:50: Jurgen Klopp’s side have acquitted themselves superbly so far, reaching the halfway stage unbeaten and with a healthy cushion at the top.

They have conceded just seven times and shown a previously unseen ability to win without playing at their best.

But perceptions of them have suddenly changed.

No longer are they seen as a side clinging onto the coat-tails of City, they have been installed as outright favourites for the first time.

As Guardiola has pointed out, that brings a different pressure.

Add to that the lack of a league title since 1990, and the season from here on becomes as much a test of nerve as ability. The visit of Arsenal today presents them with a stern examination of their credentials.

Wolves ahead!

16:45: I don’t want to excite Liverpool fans too much but… WOLVES ARE WINNING AT WEMBLEY!

Raul Jimenez has scored the second against Tottenham to give Nuno Espirito Santo’s side a 2-1 advantage with less than five minutes remaining.

If things stay the same and Liverpool win tonight – Jurgen Klopp’s side will hold a nine-point advantage with Manchester City to play tomorrow. What a Christmas for Liverpool supporters.

Team news

16:40: Jurgen Klopp isn’t messing around and selects his strongest available side for todays showdown.

Just the one change from the side who beat Newcastle on Boxing Day. Fabinho replaces Jordan Henderson in midfield.

Four changes for the visitors.

Shkodran Mustafi returns to the side after recovering from a hamstring problem. Ainsley Maitland-Niles, Alex Iwobi and Aaron Ramsey are recalled by Unai Emery after the 1-1 draw against Brighton.

Laurent Koscielny, Alexandre Lacazette and Matteo Guendouzi drop to the bench. A knee injury keeps Mesut Ozil on the sidelines.

What has gone wrong at Manchester City?

16:35: Just a few weeks ago, City were looking formidable in their title defence but now they find themselves third, seven points behind Liverpool, after a sudden slump. Pep Guardiola’s men have lost three of their last four games – one more defeat than in the entirety of last season.

Midfielder Fernandinho was sorely missed in this week’s back-to-back losses to Crystal Palace and Leicester, and there will be concern he is again a doubt for Sunday’s trip to Southampton.

City’s defence has also lost some of its shape, with no clean sheets in their last six games.

With a crunch clash against Liverpool coming up next Thursday, City cannot afford to drop any more points this weekend.

The starting XI…

16:30: And here come the sides. A quick glance tells me Xherdan Shaqiri has done enough to start, and Mesut Ozil is absent completely.

In other news, Wolves have just equalised against Tottenham with 15 minutes left on the clock! If Liverpool needed more inspiration – I think It’s just arrived!

Liverpool XI: Alisson, Robertson, Van Dijk, Lovren, Alexander-Arnold, Wijnaldum, Fabinho, Shaqiri, Mane, Salah, Firmino.

Subs: Mignolet, Clyne, Keita, Henderson, Sturridge, Lallana, Origi.

Arsenal XI: Leno, Lichtsteiner, Sokratis, Mustafi, Kolasinac, Xhaka, Torreira, Ramsey, Maitland-Niles, Iwobi, Aubameyang.

Subs: Cech, Elneny, Koscielny, Lacazette, Guendouzi, Willock, Saka.

Title latest…

16:25: As things stand, Tottenham will reduce the deficit to three points as they lead Wolves 1-0 at Wembley. They aren’t half making hard work of it though. 20 minutes to go in London. Other scores: Brighton 1-0 Everton, Fulham 0-0 Huddersfield, Leicester 0-0 Cardiff, Watford 0-1 Newcastle. I’ll let you know if anything changes.

Whatever the result, Liverpool will finish 2018 on top of the Premier League. If only the season ended now, eh?

Afternoon

16:20: Hello everyone and welcome to our LIVE coverage of the Premier League.

We’re just over an hour through the 3pm kick offs and there’s been very, very little in the way of entertainment.

In other words, I suspect tonight’s clash at Anfield will be first on MOTD whatever the scoreline…

Anyway, Liverpool have a six-point lead at the top as the Premier League season moves into its second half this weekend.

The Reds are no longer seen as a side clinging onto the coat-tails of Manchester City – they have been installed as outright favourites for the first time.

Can they handle the pressure? We’ll find out soon enough against Unai Emery’s Arsenal.

LIVERPOOL vs ARSENAL

Liverpool midfielder James Milner will miss out with a minor muscular injury. He sat out the win over Newcastle and is not expected to return until Thursday’s trip to Manchester City. Left-back Alberto Moreno has recovered from a back injury, but striker Dominic Solanke (muscle) is out.

Arsenal’s Rob Holding (knee), Konstantinos Mavropanos (groin), Hector Bellerin (calf), Henrikh Mkhitaryan (ankle) and Danny Welbeck (ankle) are out, but Shkodran Mustafi has a slight chance of being involved after hamstring trouble. Captain Laurent Koscielny should be fine following a foot issue.

Last season: Arsenal 3 Liverpool 3, Liverpool 4 Arsenal 0

Last five league matches: Liverpool W W W W W; Arsenal D W L W D

Top scorers (all competitions): Mohamed Salah (Liverpool) 15; Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Arsenal) 15

Referee: Michael Oliver (Northumberland)