EPL game of the week: Arsenal at Liverpool

Overview

It's matchday 3 of the English Premier League season, and we already have our first matchup of the top two teams in the table. Liverpool and Arsenal are the lone two teams who have earned the maximum six points from their first two matches, and they will get together at Anfield to see who will stand atop the table alone after three weeks.

Liverpool

Liverpool enters this weekend's match with all of its stars contributing. Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mané, Roberto Firmino, and even Virgil Van Dijk have all scored so far this season for the Reds, and Jurgen Klopp is going to rely on them to once again provide the attack against Arsenal. They opened the season with a 4-1 defeat of Norwich City and a 2-1 victory over Southampton, so they'll want to tighten up the defense against Arsenal's forwards. Liverpool is going to need more from Jordan Henderson and James Milner to keep possession and move forward. Expect to see Xherdan Shaqiri enter the match as a substitute to keep Arsenal on its toes and keep the attack going. The key will be the defense, as Arsenal will attempt to go right at Joel Matip and Trent Alexander-Arnold to get shots on goal. Liverpool will need to keep Arsenal's attack at bay to give the Reds' front three a chance to open up on the attack.

Arsenal

Arsenal has opened up the season with wins at Newcastle and against Burnley, so this will be its first test of the season against top competition. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette have been leading the Gunners so far this season. Their chemistry on the field has been wonderful to see, and Arsenal supporters will hope that is taken to a new level against Liverpool. Arsenal's defense is going to have to figure out how to handle Liverpool's front three. Ainsley Maitland-Niles, David Luiz, Nacho Monreal, and Sokratis will have to take the lead to put bodies on attackers and close up any open space. However, the key for Arsenal to pull off the upset will be in the midfield. Newcomer Dani Ceballos, Joe Willock and Granit Xhaka will need to be forceful holding the ball and can't make mistakes trying to move forward. This match will not be won in the first minute, and the Gunners can't get too pressed trying to win it all early. Slow and steady should be their mantra, and when they get a scoring opportunity to materialize, they can't wait.

Prediction: Liverpool 3-1 (+1100)

Arsenal wants to show the league it can contend with the big teams and that Liverpool is not invincible. Liverpool wants to establish control over the league quickly and make it clear it is the team to beat this season. Liverpool's front three of Salah, Mané and Firmino will be too much for the Gunners to handle. Arsenal will get one, but Liverpool will storm through with a 3-1 and end the weekend alone atop the Premier League table.

---

The Premier League isn't the only soccer action in the world this weekend. Check it all out at BetAmerica!