“Liverpool weren’t expecting it” – How Arsenal star in unfamiliar role led to Gunners goal

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4 weeks ago

“Liverpool weren’t expecting it” – How Arsenal star in unfamiliar role led to Gunners goal

Ben White replaced William Saliba for Arsenal vs Liverpool (Photos by Marco Luzzani, Alex Pantling/Getty Images)

Liverpool were perhaps taken by surprise by Ben White’s pass out from defence today that led to the opening goal for Arsenal forward Bukayo Saka.

White doesn’t normally play centre-back for Arsenal, but he had to start there today for Mikel Arteta’s side due to William Saliba being out suspended following last weekend’s red card against Bournemouth.

Still, see below as Arsenal-focused Telegraph journalist Sam Dean points out on X, formerly Twitter, that the pass by White to Saka was not necessarily the kind of ball Saliba would have played, so it perhaps ended up being a blessing in disguise for Arsenal as Liverpool weren’t expecting it…

Quite interested in that Ben White pass for Bukayo Saka’s goal. I’m not sure William Saliba would have played that pass from that position? Different players, different skill sets etc. Perhaps Liverpool weren’t expecting it.

— Sam Dean (@SamJDean) October 27, 2024

Arsenal have plenty of quality depth in their squad these days, and it’s pretty remarkable that, so far at least, they’re not missing Saliba too much, even though the France international is world class and usually a hugely important player for the team.

White is another quality player even if he’s not in his best position, so that’s not a bad option for Arteta to rely on while Saliba is out.

Ben White in action for Arsenal against Liverpool (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)

Arsenal facing further defensive issues against Liverpool

As well as Saliba being out, Arsenal are now also without Gabriel Magalhaes as he limped off early in the second half to be replaced by Jakub Kiwior.