Arsenal face Liverpool with Premier League title hopes on the line – follow live

Arsenal and Liverpool have met over 200 times – anywhere between 212 and 242 depending on various criteria. The teams first met in the early 1890s, as Liverpool and ‘Woolwich Arsenal’, in Division Two.

Fast forward well over a century and they now meet at the top of the Premier League. Of the 212 supposedly official meetings, Arsenal have won 73, Liverpool have won 80, and 59 have ended as draws.

The Gunners got the better of the Reds in the league last season, drawing 1-1 at Anfield before winning 3-1 at the Emirates in February. However, Liverpool did manage to win 2-0 in the FA Cup at Anfield at the beginning of 2024.

Jurgen Klopp might well recognise something in Mikel Arteta’s words this week. The Arsenal manager insisted his team would be “flying” for Sunday’s home match against Liverpool, despite several absences potentially grounding the Gunners. Such optimism – that can sometimes seem so extreme that it’s delusional – is very much in keeping with Klopp’s approach of only ever speaking positively in public. Don’t let people consider the negatives. The idea is that such assertiveness then manifests in the match itself.

This match may still see a personnel crisis manifest for Arsenal. If all injuries are confirmed, it could ensure Arteta has already lost seven of his best XI for significant games this season. For this game alone, 75 per cent of his preferred defence and 50 per cent of his ideal attack could be missing. Some losses have been partly self-inflicted, the result of red cards, but some have been the rank bad luck of injuries. The frustration is all the deeper since this was supposed to be the season Arsenal closed the fine margins to Manchester City and the title. Instead, such absences open up all manner of space for error. It’s partly why they are now four points behind Liverpool.

Mikel Arteta cast significant doubt over the availability of Bukayo Saka, Riccardo Calafiori and Jurrien Timber for Arsenal’s crunch match against Liverpool after revealing the injured trio are “very uncertain” to play.

Saka has missed the Gunners’ last two matches with the hamstring injury he sustained on international duty with England, while Timber has been absent for three games with a muscular problem.

Calafiori added to Arteta’s woes when he suffered a knee injury in Arsenal’s 1-0 Champions League win against Shakhtar Donetsk on Tuesday.

Liverpool were also victorious in Europe, beating RB Leipzig 1-0 on Wednesday but they have had one less day to recover then their opponents which could play a factor in the outcome especially as both teams are missing key players.

Arsenal XI: Raya; White, Partey, Gabriel, Kiwior; Jorginho, Rice, Merino; Sterling, Havertz, Martinelli

Liverpool XI: Kelleher; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson; Gravenberch, Jones; Salah, Szoboszlai, Diaz; Nunez

Arne Slot is without Diogo Jota, who missed the midweek match in Germany, meaning Darwin Nunez is likely to resume his duties leading the attack. Alisson and Harvey Elliott are long-term absentees. While Federico Chiesa continues to develop his match fitness after missing a large period of pre-season.

Slot must decide who plays alongside the impressive Jones, with two from Dominik Szoboszlai, Alexis Mac Allister and Ryan Gravenberch likely to get the nod.

Bukayo Saka and Jurrien Timber are back in training but remain doubts. Riccardo Calafiori appeared to twist his knee midweek and is likely to miss out here, leaving Arteta short of options at left-back. William Saliba is also out and suspended after his red card against the Cherries last weekend.

Martin Odegaard (ankle) is nearing a return but will remain out here. Kieran Tierney and Takehiro Tomiyasu remain out.

Arsenal v Liverpool is due to kick off at 4:30pm GMT on Sunday 27 October at Emirates Stadium, London.

Viewers in the United Kingdom can watch the match live on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Premier League, with coverage beginning at 4:00pm GMT. And subscribers can live stream the game through Now TV or Sky Go.

Good afternoon and welcome to The Independent’s live coverage of today’s match between Arsenal and Liverpool at the Emirates.

The Gunners have been hit by a small injury crisis ahead of one of their toughest matches of the season, but it remains to be seen whether Mikel Arteta is bluffing as he looks to get his side back to winning ways.

Arne Slot’s brilliant start to his Liverpool tenure continued with a win over Chelsea last week, and the Dutchman is looking to take his team back to the top of the table tonight.

We’ll have the latest build-up, team news and updates right here.