Liverpool's toothless night: no shots on target in Arsenal defeat

Liverpool lost 1-0 to Arsenal at Anfield on Sunday without registering a single shot on target, the first time that has happened in a Premier League match at the ground since records began in 2003-04, according to Guardian Football.

Kai Havertz's first-half finish, created when an Alisson pass out from the back went astray, proved the difference and gave Arsenal their first league win at Anfield since 2012, Yahoo Sports reported.

The defeat extended a pattern Guardian Football identifies as a growing concern for Andoni Iraola's side: an inability to turn territorial pressure into clear-cut openings. Liverpool had 52 touches inside the Arsenal penalty area, among the better totals in the league, but created only one Opta-defined big chance.

The Premier League average this season is one big chance for every 10.3 touches in the opposition box, meaning Liverpool's conversion of pressure into real opportunity was roughly five times less efficient than the norm, Guardian Football's analysis shows.

Only Coventry, with 11 big chances, have generated fewer than Liverpool's 12 in the league this season, despite 12 other teams recording fewer penalty-box touches than Liverpool. Everton's Thierno Barry has had 15 big chances on his own, while Manchester City's Erling Haaland has had 14.

The same problem did not appear in the Champions League, where Liverpool have managed 12 big chances in just three matches. Guardian Football notes that two of those opponents, Lask and Villarreal, are rated by Opta as weaker than any side in the Premier League, and that lower-stakes league-phase fixtures tend to be more open.

Part of the issue is self-inflicted: Liverpool have conceded first in five of their eight Premier League matches this season, and have only held two-goal leads against Ipswich and Brighton, leaving opponents little reason to abandon a defensive shape. Iraola has previously said he welcomes facing low defensive blocks, according to Guardian Football.

The Anfield performance offered some evidence of near misses rather than total toothlessness. Florian Wirtz struck the crossbar with a first-half free-kick, while Milos Kerkez's cross was headed wide by Alexis Mac Allister when the midfielder should have scored, Yahoo Sports reported in its player ratings.

Cody Gakpo and Alexander Isak both had penalty appeals turned down by referee Andy Madley, the first after being dealt with by Riccardo Calafiori and the second after his shirt was pulled by Timber, according to the same ratings.

At the back, Alisson's error overshadowed a fine save to deny Christos Tzolis, while Virgil van Dijk was described as reliable but disappointed at how easily his side had gifted Arsenal the opener. Trey Nyoni, 19, was given his first Premier League start in what Yahoo Sports called a show of faith from Iraola, before being replaced by Dominik Szoboszlai on his return from injury.

Wirtz, whose Anfield free-kick was his clearest moment of threat, was among those Yahoo Sports felt needed to contribute more given his price tag, in a match where Liverpool's front line struggled to convert sustained pressure into anything beyond half-chances.

The result leaves Arsenal top of the Premier League after their rare away win at Anfield, while Liverpool face the task of finding a sharper edge against the deep defensive structures that have increasingly defined their league campaign this season.