Sensational Szoboszlai lays down a title marker

If Liverpool are to successfully defend their Premier League title, they will look back on the moment when Dominik Szoboszlai sank Arsenal with a late and showstopping free-kick as a foundation stone.

- David Hytner

There had been little between these teams, the only ones with 100% records at kick-off; pragmatism held sway for long spells. Or maybe it was the fear of defeat. Nobody wanted to countenance that, however early in the season this fixture came.

Would Arsenal have taken a fourth Anfield draw in a row beforehand? The answer was probably yes and it appeared Mikel Arteta had placed the emphasis on being difficult to beat. He loaded his lineup with physicality, playing Mikel Merino in the No 10 role rather than Martin Ødegaard, who was not fully fit. Or Eberechi Eze, the new signing, who was also among the substitutes. Which was a surprise.

Arteta knew it would be tight; he wanted it to be that way – for his team to retain a puncher's chance. Perhaps they could nick something from a set piece? He did not subscribe to the notion of fortune favouring the brave.

In the end, Arteta got nothing, he and his players floored by what Szoboszlai produced with seven minutes of regulation time remaining.

The free-kick was 30 yards out but the Hungary international made light of the distance with a stunning execution up and over the wall, the technique generating dip and fade, leaving David Raya clutching at thin air. Szoboszlai brought precision to the party, too, placing the ball perfectly inside the goalkeeper's right-hand post.