The seven match unbeaten run found its brick wall through the surroundings of North London, giving way to the eight defeat of the Premiership campaign. The Emirates Stadium proved once again to be as welcoming to Liverpool as much as an asylum after a long trip. It is hardly the most hostile stadium imaginable, as the calculating orders of Arsene Wenger can be probably heard from the very back row, but it seems the silence of the place has once again undone the men playing in red. Fittingly enough with the settings, circumstances and short history of the place, on the fourth minute of supplementary time, the man in the middle, the man in black proved to be as providential as a deportation officer, when a blatant handball by Cesc Fabregas was looked over to deny Liverpool one last chance to shoot at goal just outside the penalty area.

Coming from two straight defeats, Arsenal were feared to be like a wounded animal raring to take its own revenge, but really they resembled more a tamed animal, with Liverpool resembling a guard, keeping a stern eye on them rather than taking them on. Once again, the total commitment could be felt but equally enough the lack of flair was apparent as simple passes went astray and with some small exceptions Liverpool managed to get in the face of Arsenal after going a goal down, without ever going to the jugular.

The real backbone of the unbeaten run has been the stubbornness of the back four and the agility of Pepe Reina, with clean sheets subsequently being a tangible result and the springboard for five wins from seven matches. When the back four were undone to the extent of affording Diaby a whole goalmouth to gape at on the 72nd minute, it was always going to be a tall order to extend the unbeaten run. It was only Ryan Babel that seriously threatened to do so when with one delightful touch, he lost his marker and let go a vicious shot that Manuel Almunia did exceptionally well to tip delicately over the bar. Other loose balls bounced kindly enough in the path of Maxi Rodriguez more than once but the Argentine reacted with askew shots.

The little window that in the circumstances had the panoramic view of the third place has been now firmly shut. The race for the fourth place is getting more jumbled, and looks set to be won from the team who will drop the least points. A trip to the City of Manchester Stadium in more than a week’s time will enlighten us whether yesterday was a case of the particular Emirates stadium being very unwelcoming and one place too high to climb for this season, or the travel sickness persisting through out this current season.