Liverpool 0 - 1 Arsenal: Havertz ends Anfield wait as Arteta’s side go top

Arsenal left Anfield with a 1-0 win on Sunday, and not just any win. This was their first league victory there since 2012, sealed by Kai Havertz in the 16th minute and protected with the sort of hard, cold control Mikel Arteta has been chasing in these fixtures for years.

The decisive moment came early. After that, Arsenal’s defence made it stand.

Havertz scored in the 16th minute, Declan Rice supplied the assist, and Arsenal then made Liverpool live with the problem. A. Slot’s side had more of the ball, more shots, more corners, and still finished with zero shots on target. That is the story. Liverpool pushed, Arsenal absorbed, and Arteta’s team walked away top of the Premier League with 24 points from nine games.

How the match was won

Liverpool started with Alisson Becker in goal, behind Ronald Araújo, J. Jacquet, Virgil van Dijk and Milos Kerkez. Treymaurice Nyoni, Alexis Mac Allister and Florian Wirtz were in midfield, with Bradley Barcola, Cody Gakpo and A. Isak in the attacking line.

Arsenal started with David Raya in goal, with Jurriën Timber, E. Konsa, Gabriel Magalhães and R. Calafiori in defence. Declan Rice, Bruno Guimarães and Martin Ødegaard gave them weight in midfield, while Noni Madueke, Christos Tzolis and Kai Havertz led the attack.

The key action came in the 16th minute. Rice, already Arsenal’s best connector between pressure and possession, made the decisive contribution with the assist. Havertz finished the move and Arsenal had the lead they wanted.

From there, it became a test of game management. Arsenal did not dominate possession — they had 44 percent — but they controlled the danger. Liverpool produced 17 shots, 14 from inside the box, and still did not work Raya once. That was either wasteful finishing, excellent defending, or both. At Anfield, against Liverpool, it usually has to be both.

Rice mattered because he did more than make the goal. He finished with one assist, three shots, two key passes, three tackles, one block and one interception. He gave Arsenal a platform and then helped protect it.

Havertz mattered because he converted Arsenal’s cleanest moment. He had one shot on target and one goal. Simple. Efficient. Enough.

Madueke mattered because he kept Arsenal alive higher up the pitch. He made four key passes, completed two dribbles and won seven of 16 duels. He was booked in the 55th minute, but he gave Arsenal an outlet when Liverpool were trying to lock them in.

At the back, Konsa was huge: five tackles, eight duels won from nine. Gabriel won six of nine. Timber, booked in the 80th minute for argument, still added two key passes, two interceptions and a block. This was not pretty defending. It was necessary defending.

Liverpool’s pressure, Arsenal’s answer

Liverpool’s frustration was clear in the numbers and in the bookings.

Bradley Barcola was shown a yellow card at 45+3 for a foul. Noni Madueke followed in the 55th minute. Milos Kerkez was booked in the 67th minute. Myles Lewis-Skelly, on for Bruno Guimarães in the 62nd minute, was booked in the 72nd minute. Alexis Mac Allister and Jurriën Timber were both booked in the 80th minute for argument. David Raya was booked at 90+3 for time wasting. Virgil van Dijk was booked at 90+7 for dissent.

That timeline tells its own story. The longer the match went, the more Arsenal made Liverpool chase the clock as much as the ball.

Slot tried to change the rhythm. Dominik Szoboszlai came on for Treymaurice Nyoni in the 58th minute. Rio Ngumoha replaced Cody Gakpo in the 67th minute. Then came the triple move in the 81st minute: Konstantinos Tsimikas for Milos Kerkez, Víctor Muñoz for Ronald Araújo, and Lewis Koumas for Florian Wirtz.

It changed personnel. It did not change the core issue. Liverpool kept shooting, but not accurately. Wirtz had three shots without hitting the target. Isak had two, also none on target. Van Dijk had two. Mac Allister had two. Ngumoha added two after coming on. Still nothing for Raya to save.

Nyoni’s full Premier League debut was one of the more intriguing Liverpool notes. He completed 54 of 56 passes in 58 minutes and looked tidy in possession, but Liverpool needed incision more than tidiness after Havertz’s goal.

Arsenal shut the door

Arteta’s changes were about control and survival.

Myles Lewis-Skelly replaced Bruno Guimarães in the 62nd minute. Piero Hincapié came on for Christos Tzolis in the 84th minute. Viktor Gyökeres replaced Havertz, also in the 84th minute. Mikel Merino came on for Martin Ødegaard in the 88th minute.

That was the green light for Arsenal to protect the box, slow the game, and trust their structure. Raya’s yellow card at 90+3 for time wasting was part of the late-game picture. Arsenal knew exactly where the value was by then: not in chasing a second, but in killing Liverpool’s momentum.

Liverpool had 56 percent possession and 464 passes. Arsenal had 372. But Arteta’s side had the better accuracy in the decisive area: three shots on goal to Liverpool’s none. Alisson Becker made two saves. Raya made none because Liverpool never found him.

Match facts

• Final score: Liverpool 0 - 1 Arsenal
• Competition: Premier League, Regular Season - 9
• Venue: Anfield
• Date: Sunday, 1 November 2026
• Goal: Kai Havertz, Arsenal, 16th minute
• Assist: Declan Rice
• Coaches: A. Slot, Liverpool; Mikel Arteta, Arsenal

Key events

• 16th minute: Kai Havertz scored for Arsenal, assisted by Declan Rice
• 45+3: Bradley Barcola booked
• 55th minute: Noni Madueke booked
• 58th minute: Dominik Szoboszlai on for Treymaurice Nyoni
• 62nd minute: Myles Lewis-Skelly on for Bruno Guimarães
• 67th minute: Milos Kerkez booked
• 67th minute: Rio Ngumoha on for Cody Gakpo
• 72nd minute: Myles Lewis-Skelly booked
• 80th minute: Alexis Mac Allister booked
• 80th minute: Jurriën Timber booked
• 81st minute: Konstantinos Tsimikas on for Milos Kerkez
• 81st minute: Víctor Muñoz on for Ronald Araújo
• 81st minute: Lewis Koumas on for Florian Wirtz
• 84th minute: Piero Hincapié on for Christos Tzolis
• 84th minute: Viktor Gyökeres on for Kai Havertz
• 88th minute: Mikel Merino on for Martin Ødegaard
• 90+3: David Raya booked
• 90+7: Virgil van Dijk booked

The numbers

What it means

Arsenal are top with 24 points from nine matches, three clear of Manchester City. The package is familiar now: early punch, midfield bite, defensive patience, no panic. This was their eighth league win of the season and the kind of result title challengers keep in the bank.

Liverpool stay fifth on 15 points. The home record is the warning: one win, two draws and two defeats at Anfield in the league, with four goals scored and six conceded. Slot has quality, but this defeat exposed the problem in the final action. Seventeen shots, none on target, is not bad luck. It is a failure of execution.

Arsenal now carry momentum into Europe, with attention turning to the next assignment and the wider schedule around Slavia Praha vs Arsenal. For Liverpool, the next step is simpler and harder: turn pressure into shots Raya actually has to save.