Liverpool v Arsenal Player Ratings

Hope fully most of you have climbed down from the roofs you were about to throw yourselves from. This was unbelievable, but then again, that seems to be the theme when these two meet at Anfield. From Arshavin's 4 goals on 4 shots to Niel Mellor's last second 40 yard shot in 2006 (or 2005, I can't remember) this fixture never seems to be short of drama.

This was arguably one of Liverpool's best performances this season. As funny as that sounds, it really was. It makes writing the ratings hard as victory is the only think that ultimately matters. That said, I am evaluating each player individually, so some of these will be fairly high for a team that lost. I think too often these ratings swing too far one way or another depending on the outcome rather than the play. I am sure there are some sites that will give over half of United's players or Arsenal's players 7s or higher, even though they were both awful on the day (with a few notable exceptions).

Anyways, on to the ratings. Same old song and dance, another keeper has a great day at Anfield. I am getting sick of it.

STARTERS:

Reina - 6 - Got beat near post for the winner. Big no no, but decent with the little else he had to do, like the early save on Walcott.

Enrique - 6 - Other than the shot he let Walcott get off, he did well to show wee Theo that muscle overcomes pace. He did have a part in the Arsenal's first though as he let Sagna get a cross in, but let's be honest, he had no reason to press him out where Sagna was and that was a fantastic cross. He supported the attack well also, providing a lot of width with Downing.

Carragher - 5 - A nightmare. He bore some responsibility on both goals and generally looked like a man who's career is almost over. Allowed RVP to get goalside and ball side on the first and also failed to track him on the second along with Kelly.

Skrtel - 7 - Did well to deal with the pretty much anything aerial. He was a real rock and I can't fault him for anything else that happened back there. None of it was his responsibility.

Kelly - 6 - He did well overall, but a few key mistakes really hurt Liverpool. He whiffed badly on what should have been a sitter, and then allowed RVP in for the winner. He was pretty solid other than that though.

Downing - 7 - Downing had another decent game, providing a real threat and service. Let's just accept that he cannot shoot...at all. However, it is a decent little run of form he is putting together. I liked what I saw today overall.

Adam - 5 - So unbelievably wasteful with possession. He really hurt Liverpool with a number of wasted chances.

Spearing - 7 - He got stuck in a number of times and also had a few exquisite passes that reminded me of Alonso. I believe he also was the one responsible for unlocking Arsenal with a beauty of a pass to Henderson. Overall, a really good game and he did his job to shield the defense. None of the goals came from situations he should have stopped.

Henderson - 6 - This is probably generous, but it was his poor cross that resulted in the own goal. He didn't set the world on fire, but he wasn't bad either.

Kuyt - 6 - Very hard working display and provided a lot of movement that we just don't get when Carroll is out there. Specifically, far post to near post runs and runs that cross Suarez which are generally confusing for defenders. He is a 6 because of the penalty miss and follow up miss. It is sad that I dread seeing Liverpool being awarded penalties now.

Suarez - 6 - He has to start converting all these chances. It is absolutely ridiculous. Yes, he hit the post again, but my god strikers need to score. He was a handful though for the Arsenal defense which had no answer for him. He did force a couple of great saves from Szczensy. Same old story.

SUBS:

Carroll - N/A - If Kenny was going to rely on him to save the day, he needed to make the change much earlier. Not enough time, but no real influence while he was out there.

Bellamy - N/A - Not enough time.