Liverpool beat Arsenal 2-1 in Philadelphia thanks to goals from Mohamed Salah and Fabio Carvalho.
Salah broke the deflection to give Liverpool the lead early on before Carvalho scored the second goal for Arne Slot’s side, with both goals cleverly set up by Harvey Elliott.
Kai Havertz got one for Arsenal when he played a pass from Martin Odegaard.
Athletic’s Arsenal’s James McNicholas and Liverpool’s James Pearce were at Lincoln Financial Field to assess how those two groups are preparing for the 2024-25 season. . .
At the end of last season, that would be the case. Havertz replaced Gabriel Jesus as the team’s first-team striker. But with Jesus returning, he has compatibility and is fine and Declan Rice is still out after the European Championships, Havertz has been restored to a midfield role for this weekend.
It was an impressive performance. As well as scoring Arsenal’s first-half goal, his taste for dynamic running earned him an effective presence in both domains. As the game became increasingly tense, they returned to their own penalty dominance to take advantage of expired time.
Havertz’s performance is intriguing in light of Arsenal’s continued interest in Real Sociedad’s Mikel Merino. Like Havertz, Merino, 28, is a tall, athletic left-footed midfielder with a chance to play a real box-to-box role.
Havertz’s rally against Liverpool suggested there is still life in the midfielder’s experience. But perhaps Arteta sees in Merino a player with a profile comparable to Havertz, who would allow the coach to keep the German up front.
James McNicholas
New hair, old Salah.
Having contributed so much to the achievements of Jurgen Klopp’s reign at Anfield, the Egyptian striker came to a rocky end last season.
After recovering from a hamstring injury suffered at the African Cup of Nations in January, he has struggled to find his rhythm and has scored just 3 goals in his last 11 appearances. Salah’s public row with Klopp on the touchline against West Ham United highlighted his growing frustration.
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Some have pointed to this lean period in the filming era as proof that it was a declining force, but Salah might scoff at that assessment.
An extended summer vacation proved to have helped, and he returned to Kirkby in wonderful shape.
Salah, entering the final year of his contract, makes a difference in education every day and has been a valuable source and advice to young people on their tour of the United States.
At 32, the player in club history who surpassed 20 goals in seven consecutive seasons remains Liverpool’s toughest attacking weapon.
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Salah was the star charm to the club’s American enthusiasts among the sold-out crowd of 69,879 and did not disappoint. Holding on to Elliott’s perfectly weighted pass, he ran over Gabriel and fired a clinical shot past Karl Hein to open the scoring against Arsenal.
Salah running towards Oleksandr Zinchenko is a mismatch and part of his combination play with Elliott and Conor Bradley is sublime. He left with a standing ovation midway through the second half.
Jaime Pearce
Against Bournemouth and Manchester United, Arteta used Vieira on the right wing and not in midfield. The same happened in this match, with the 24-year-old replaced by Reiss Nelson on that flank at half-time.
It is conceivable that Vieira’s appearances on the sideline are only the result of Bukayo Saka’s absence. Someone had to update that aspect of the pitch and as a left-footed player, Vieira was arguably the England international’s ultimate comparable upgrade. Fielding Vieira allowed Arteta to maintain some semblance of the right-flank dynamic between Ben White, Martin Odegaard and Saka that had become so effective.
But can there also be more to this? Vieira may not be a traditional winger, but he has struggled to establish himself in central midfield, and Arsenal want a replacement for Saka. With the emergence of young central midfielders Ethan Nwaneri and Myles Lewis-Skelly, and Arsenal linking up with Merino, Arteta believes the right wing may also be the most productive position for Vieira.
James McNicholas
“Jarrell Quansah’s remarkable rise is last season’s feel-good story”.
The Liverpool academy graduate has gone from being a fifth-choice green centre-back to a reliable starter alongside captain Virgil van Dijk. His form was rewarded with a first senior call-up to England.
No wonder this was ignored when Newcastle United asked if Quansah could play a compensatory role in a conceivable deal for winger Anthony Gordon before talks between the clubs collapsed last month.
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Liverpool would have been willing to sell centre-back Joe Gomez for 45 million pounds ($58 million), but Quansah cannot be obtained at any price.
Possessed in ownership and in command in the face of the danger that surrounds him, the 21-year-old began the preseason where he signed in May.
There was a brilliant goal block against Arsenal when Jesus looked destined to score. Quansah took Konate’s position last season and the French, who could play Manchester United in South Carolina on Saturday, face a real fight to get him back.
An evening that showed the young talents that Slot has inherited. Elliott shone in the role of number 10 and would have managed a hat-trick of assists in the first half had it not been for Diogo Jota hitting the post from close range. There were some great touches from Carvalho, adding an emphatic volley, as he continued his project of breaking into the new head coach’s plans.
After a classy first half, Liverpool dug deep and showed determination with a younger lineup in the second half as they battled for the win.
Jaime Pearce
Wednesday, August 7: Bayer Leverkusen, friendly, 6 p. m. United Kingdom, 1 p. m. ET
Sunday, August 4: Manchester United, match, 12:30 a. m. m. UK, 7:30 p. m. m. Saturday ET