Arsenal head to Anfield on Saturday, hoping to put some distance between themselves and championship rivals Liverpool with their first league victory at the Merseyside ground since 2012. Mikel Arteta has yet to defeat Jurgen Klopp in the league at his home ground, but the German has mentioned an edge the Gunners will enjoy.

On Wednesday night, Liverpool defeated West Ham United in the League Cup quarter-finals at Anfield. The Reds were back to their dominant best in this encounter, but Klopp was not pleased with the atmosphere inside the stadium.

With the challenge coming up this weekend, Klopp urged the audience to be louder and not rely on a spat with Mikel Arteta to get them going. He was, of course, referring to his argument with Arteta during the 2021/22 season, which elicited a reaction from his players on the road to a 4-0 victory.

“We need Anfield on Saturday,” added Klopp. “Without Anfield, I’d say… [Arsenal] didn’t play this week to make sure – I know, I’m sorry – they didn’t play, they prepared for this game.”

“Anyone who knows anything about them knows they’ll be prepared, so we need Anfield to be on their toes from the first second, without me getting into an argument with the opposing coach.” Whatever the case may be, we need you from the start.

“I don’t know if it’s too much football in December, but we have to play it as well.” However, if you are not in good enough shape, offer your ticket to someone else.”

Interestingly, there was an early apology from Klopp in among the cries for greater noise. Because Arsenal is not in the League Cup, they have more days to prepare, whilst Liverpool has less time to recover.

Despite initially resting all three of Mohamed Salah, Luis Diaz, and Trent Alexander-Arnold, Klopp elected to start all three. The Reds will, however, be missing Alexis MacAllister, who suffered an injury in the 2-0 win against Sheffield United.

Arsenal understands that a win puts them on top at Christmas, but a loss puts the home team on top. However, a draw would allow Unai Emery’s Aston Villa to top the pile on the big day, opening up a whole other can of worms in terms of retrospectives.

A victory for the Gunners would be a big step forward in their development under Mikel Arteta. When compared to the last time the teams met, William Saliba is fit to play, while Declan Rice and Kai Havertz are new signings who were not there before – replacing Granit Xhaka, who notably inflamed the crowd after colliding with Alexander-Arnold.