The uncertainty in the squad about the players leaving and the fatigue from the high-octane EFL Cup semi-final match was clearly seen as Arsenal players struggled to keep up with the tempo of the hosts at the Liberty Stadium, both mentally and physically. The Gunners had taken an early lead against the run of play when a curling pass by Mesut Ozil found Nacho Monreal at the far post, who didn’t make any mistake to slot it in.

However, the lead prevailed just for a minute as Sam Clucas equalized after Granit Xhaka failed to mark him from a counter. Ten minutes into the second-half saw Arsenal goalkeeper Petr Cech making a blunder as he miskicked a back pass from Shkodran Mustafi straight into Jordan Ayew’s path. Ayew then helped Swansea put the final nail in the coffin as he set up Clucas in the 86th minute to extend the lead to two goals.

Liverpool’s lead was doubled in the stoppage time of the first-half as Roberto Firmino managed to squeeze in from the narrowest of angles from a Sadio Mane pass. The game was pretty much over in the first half itself before Mohamed Salah converted from the spot in the 78th-minute after Billing brought down Can in the box.

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