Liverpool's world champion defence inexplicably took their foot of the gas yet again at Arsenal

Liverpool’s world champion defence switched roles with the Premier League’s more error-prone backline as the Reds inexplicably took their foot of the gas yet again at Arsenal

  • Arsenal pulled off a shock victory over Liverpool at the Emirates on Wednesday  
  • Virgil van Dijk and Alisson made mistakes while the Gunners defence were quiet
  • The Reds have been accused of being in their armchairs since securing the title

The list of The Simpsons’ prophecies is long, from the time they predicted Donald Trump would become US President to the horse meat scandal to the invention of smart watches.

Then there’s that 1993 clip of Sideshow Bob repeatedly standing on rakes and whacking himself in the face – a scene which sums up David Luiz’s bad days in defence rather well.

Yet, strangely, it was Virgil van Dijk and Alisson who failed to sidestep the rakes here, while Luiz kept a lower profile ahead of Saturday’s pivotal FA Cup semi final.

Liverpool were stunned by Arsenal in a 2-1 win for the Gunners at the Emirates on Wednesday

Liverpool were stunned by Arsenal in a 2-1 win for the Gunners at the Emirates on Wednesday

The Reds' defence turned leaky as Vigil van Dijk's error led to Alexander Lacazette's goal

The Reds’ defence turned leaky as Vigil van Dijk’s error led to Alexander Lacazette’s goal

Alisson later made the error for Reiss Nelson's goal, with his pass falling straight to Lacazette

Alisson later made the error for Reiss Nelson’s goal, with his pass falling straight to Lacazette 

Graeme Souness, sat in the Sky Sports studio, had suggested before kick off that you can never know what you’re going to get with players who have been confirmed as champions. 

‘I can’t explain it, why you just drop off the pace,’ said Souness, speaking from experience.

But we did not expect this – not such lackadaisical errors by the two men who played such significant parts in Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool winning the Premier League title at such ease.

First, Van Dijk was put under pressure by Reiss Nelson. The Dutchman fumbled his attempt at a pass back to his goalkeeper, Alexandre Lacazette picked up the loose pass, and scored.

The talk in the build-up was of Arsenal's shaky defence coming up against the champions'

The talk in the build-up was of Arsenal’s shaky defence coming up against the champions’ 

Van Dijk claimed he was fouled, but only in a bid to hide his embarrassment of his error. When you’re built like a statue, you don’t get blown over by a gentle breeze.

Then, a pass by Alisson accidentally found Lacazette. He crossed and Nelson scored for 2-1.

The cameras showed Jurgen Klopp catching flies with a mouth wide open on the touchline.

Opta statistics show no club over the last four seasons have made more errors at the back that have led to goals in the Premier League than Arsenal.

However, the likes of David Luiz enjoyed a relatively smooth game and kept a low profile

However, the likes of David Luiz enjoyed a relatively smooth game and kept a low profile 

The hosts weren’t at their best here, either. Liverpool’s opener, for example, involved poor communication and organisation from Arteta’s new-look back three of Rob Holding, Luiz and Kieran Tierney.

Andy Robertson made a run behind Holding and Luiz moved away from his central position in a bid to close him down. That turned out to be a mistake from the Brazilian.

It left Sadio Mane with an abundance of space in the centre to score, and he did.

Jurgen Klopp was visibly frustrated as Liverpool looked to have again relaxed in the game

Jurgen Klopp was visibly frustrated as Liverpool looked to have again relaxed in the game 

Such below-par defending would no doubt be punished by Manchester City on Saturday, too.

But it was Liverpool’s defence who stole the show here.

Souness suggested at half time the players, for whatever reason, were ‘in their armchairs’. Given how out of the ordinary these mistakes were, it’s hard to disagree with that diagnosis. 

source: dailymail.co.uk