Arsenal and Liverpool played out a pulsating Premier League encounter at the Emirates on Friday night with the Christmas cracker ending in a 3-3 draw.
The Gunners found themselves two goals down but fought back to go 3-2 up before Roberto Firmino’s equaliser earned Jurgen Klopp’s side a share of the spoils.
But who thrived and who struggled during the game of the season so far? Sportsmail’s SAMI MOKBEL has provided the player ratings from the Emirates.
Philippe Coutinho was a joy to watch for Liverpool amidst the chaos that surrounded him
ARSENAL (4-2-3-1)
Petr Cech 7 – Should have stopped Liverpool’s third, but kept his team in the game.
Hector Bellerin 5.5 – Struggled to contain Mane. Well short of his best form at the moment. 5.5
Laurent Koscielny 5.5 – Overworked. Couldn’t contain wave after wave of Liverpool attacks. 5.5
Nacho Monreal was run ragged by the likes of Roberto Firmino and was hooked at the interval
Nacho Monreal 4.5 – A left-back by trade and it showed. Hooked at half-time.
Ainsley Maitland-Niles 5.5 – Has a bright future but marking Salah was never going to be easy.
Jack Wilshere 6.5 – The game passed him by in the first-half. Much better in the second.
The game passed by Jack Wilshere at times in the first half but he improved in the second
Granit Xhaka 7 – Sloppy in possession but his piledriver goal made up for it.
Alexis Sanchez 7 – Showed flashes of brilliance to go with his goal. But still lacking intensity.
Mesut Ozil 8 – Has found a new lease of life from somewhere. Brilliant goal. 8
Mesut Ozil scored a brilliant goal to complete Arsenal’s comeback from two goals down
Alex Iwobi 5.5 – Looked out of his depth at times but the Nigerian didn’t hide. Booked.
Alexandre Lacazette 7 – An brilliant flick to set-up Ozil before delirium ensued.
Substitutes: Mustafi 6 (for Monreal 46); Welbeck 6 (for Iwobi), Walcott (for Sanchez)
Arsene Wenger saw his side produce a fighting display during the 3-3 draw on Friday night
Subs not used: Ospina, Walcott, Kolasinac, Coquelin, Elneny.
Manager Arsene Wenger 7: Often talks up his team’s fighting spirit. This was evidence of why.
LIVERPOOL (4-2-3-1)
Simon Mignolet 5 – A spectator for most of evening and then found lacking when his team needed him.
Joe Gomez 6.5 – Has a huge future but caught napping for Sanchez’s header. 6.5
Dejan Lovren 6 – Shellshocked. And it was all going so swimmingly until Arsenal’s first.
Simon Mignolet was beaten by Granit Xhaka’s strike for Arsenal’s equaliser on Friday night
Ragnar Klavan 5.5 – Like his team-mates; capitulated when the going got tough. 5.5
Andrew Robertson 6 – An assured performance from the left-back until Arsenal’s brilliance.
Jordan Henderson 5 – Lasted just under 10 minutes, limping off with a muscular injury.
Emre Can 6.5 – Looked have beating of Wilshere and Xhaka before disaster struck.
Mohamed Salah added another goal to his tally and was a constant threat for the away side
Mohamed Salah 8 – Another game, another goal. And an assist. A constant threat.
Philippe Coutinho 8.5 – So, so good. A joy to watch amidst the chaos around him.
Sadio Mane 6.5 – Guilty of some glaring misses, but his pace was spellbinding.
Roberto Firmino 7.5 – Arsenal couldn’t cope with him at times. His goal was deserved.
Firmino deserved his strike which proved the final goal in a thrilling match at the Emirates
Substitutions:
Wijnaldum (for Mane), Oxlade-Chamberlain (for Coutino), Milner (for Henderson)
Subs not used: Karius, Lallana, Solanke, Alexander-Arnold
Manager Jurgen Klopp 6.5: Yet again, his defence let him down. The German has to take his fair share of blame for that.
Referee: Martin Atkinson 6.5 – Kept things moving the best he can on a hectic night.
Attendance: 59,409
Man of the Match: Coutinho