Liverpool v Arsenal: the numbers behind Anfield's big test
Arsenal chase a landmark away win against a side they rarely beat at Anfield, while two of the league's stingiest defences threaten to make goals scarce on Sunday.
Liverpool host Arsenal at Anfield on Sunday in what The Analyst (Opta) frames as the standout fixture of Matchday 9, pitting a title-defending Arsenal side against a Liverpool team that appears to be settling under Andoni Iraola.
Both arrive with contrasting midweek cup stories. Arsenal were eliminated from the EFL Cup by fourth-tier Fleetwood Town, one of the competition's bigger recent shocks, according to The Analyst. Liverpool, by contrast, advanced to the League Cup quarter-finals by beating Chelsea on penalties after a 1-1 draw at Anfield.
In the league, Arsenal's only defeat this season came 3-0 at Brighton, and they have since beaten Leeds United, Nottingham Forest and Everton to sit on seven wins from eight. Liverpool suffered their own heavy loss, 3-0 at home to Manchester City, but have since won three of four, beating Bournemouth, Brentford and Brighton.
Arsenal chase history at a ground that resists them
Liverpool have won only one of their last eight Premier League meetings with Arsenal, Dominik Szoboszlai's free-kick settling last season's reverse fixture, with five draws and two defeats making up the rest, per The Analyst. Arsenal's away record against Liverpool in the league stretches back even further: they have not won at Anfield or anywhere else against this opponent on the road in 13 attempts since a 2-0 win in 2012-13, with five draws and eight defeats in between.
A 14th winless visit would set a new club record. Arsenal's previous longest barren run at Anfield ran from 1975-76 to 1987-88, ended by the famous 2-0 win on the final day of the 1988-89 season that decided the title. The parallel gives Sunday's game an extra edge: a result for Arsenal would avoid matching their worst historical sequence there, while one more defeat or draw would eclipse it.
There is a landmark on offer too. Arsenal sit one win short of 300 Premier League away victories, a mark only Manchester United (328) have reached. Yet Anfield is statistically their toughest venue: among grounds visited at least ten times, it is where Arsenal have their lowest win rate in the competition, just six victories from 34 trips, an 18% return.
Iraola's low-loss record meets its toughest test
Iraola has lost only two of his 27 Premier League games in the calendar year 2026, winning 12 and drawing 13, figures reported by The Analyst. One defeat came against City, a game in which Liverpool were arguably competitive until Ryan Gravenberch's red card tipped the contest. The other came against Arsenal in January, when Iraola was still in charge of Bournemouth.
That seven percent defeat rate is the lowest for any manager across a calendar year, minimum 20 games, since Jürgen Klopp lost just one of 37 games in 2019, a three percent rate. Mikel Arteta, his fellow Basque coach in the opposite dugout, will be looking to push that number higher on Sunday, and Arsenal's recent history at Anfield suggests it will not come easily.
Two mean defences could squeeze out the goals
Arsenal's underlying attacking numbers lag behind their results. Despite seven wins from eight league games, four teams have scored more goals than their total of 13, and only eight teams have managed fewer shots than Arsenal's 107, according to The Analyst. Their title defence has so far leaned heavily on defensive solidity rather than overwhelming attacking volume.
That approach runs into opponents built the same way. Since the start of September no team has produced more clean sheets than Liverpool, who have shut out opponents four times in their last six league outings. Last season Liverpool were the only side to stop Arsenal scoring in both league meetings, winning 1-0 at Anfield and drawing 0-0 at the Emirates.
Liverpool's own defensive numbers stand up well too. Only three teams have conceded fewer than their eight league goals this season, and they would share the division's best defensive record with Arsenal were it not for three goals shipped while reduced to ten men against City.
Expected goals on target, which measures the quality and placement of shots a team faces rather than simply how many they allow, adds further weight to that picture. Arsenal have conceded an xGOT of 6.5 and Liverpool 7.8, the two lowest totals in the Premier League, meaning both sides have restricted opponents not just to fewer shots but to less threatening ones.
With both defences built to suppress quality chances rather than just quantity, Sunday's game looks more likely to be shaped by a single moment, a set piece, an individual error, or a numerical shift like the one that turned the City fixture, than by a procession of clear-cut opportunities. Arsenal's pursuit of a 300th away win and an end to their Anfield hoodoo may come down to exactly that kind of moment.