Arsenal Week in Review, Monday 2nd November: Anfield Hoodoo Ended, but Fleetwood Farce Overshadows the Week
What a seven days it's been - a cup humiliation sandwiched between two very different Premier League storylines, with the men's side ending on a huge high at Anfield. Arsenal moved three points clear at the top of the table after Kai Havertz's first-half finish secured a 1-0 win at Liverpool, their first league victory there in fourteen years (ESPN) (ESPN) (Evening Standard) (Football.London) (Football.London). Arteta called it a "historic" win and said his players "loved the mission" of breaking the Anfield hoodoo (ESPN) (Arsenal.com). The performance earned glowing reviews, with several players rated highly including a standout defensive display, while pundits picked over a disallowed Liverpool penalty shout that caused plenty of post-match debate between Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher (Evening Standard) (Football.London) (Football.London) (Sky Sports) (BBC Sport). BBC Sport's panel also praised Ezri Konsa, who has stepped in impressively at the back in William Saliba's absence (BBC Sport) (BBC Sport). The win leaves Arsenal in good shape going into the international break as attention turns to how their run of fixtures compares with Manchester City's (Football.London).
That high followed a torrid night in Lancashire, where League Two Fleetwood Town dumped Arsenal out of the Carabao Cup on penalties after a 1-1 draw, in a match that was even halted for around eight minutes because of a drone over the stadium (ESPN) (Arsenal.com) (BBC Sport). BBC Sport called it the "biggest night in the club's history" for Fleetwood, with 83 league places separating the two sides (BBC Sport), and Fleetwood boss Matt Lawlor spoke about the shock win afterwards (BBC Sport). The night was further soured by Max Dowman's late red card, which sparked a saga of its own - Arteta refused to publicly criticise the teenager but was seen giving him a pointed reaction in the tunnel, reportedly telling him "we are not in Disneyland" (talkSPORT) (Football.London) (Football.London) (talkSPORT) (Football.London) (Football.London). Arsenal lodged an appeal against the dismissal, but it was dismissed by the FA, leaving Dowman suspended and handing Arteta an added selection headache, with the manager also now just one yellow card away from a touchline ban himself (BBC Sport) (Evening Standard) (Football.London) (Evening Standard). Paul Merson was among those critical of how the incident was handled (Sky Sports), while Arteta simply said the club "need to take this on the chin" (Arsenal.com).
In the build-up to Liverpool, Arteta gave fresh team news, with updates on Declan Rice, Riccardo Calafiori and Bukayo Saka among as many as 13 players whose availability was in doubt (Football.London) (Football.London) (Football.London). The Guardian noted Arsenal's long wait for a league win at Anfield and drew on the club's history for inspiration ahead of the trip (The Guardian), while Thierry Henry gave his verdict on Eberechi Eze and Noni Madueke beforehand (Football.London). Elsewhere, Arteta revealed he has been gathering footage of rival managers leaving their technical areas after his side's win over Everton (Football.London).
The women's side also had a big week. Alessia Russo became the highest-ever English goalscorer in Women's Champions League history with a hat-trick as Arsenal thrashed Benfica 3-0 (ESPN) (Sky Sports), with Russo thanking boss Renée Slegers and the supporters afterwards (Arsenal.com). She also said watching Harry Kane win the Ballon d'Or has given her extra motivation as Arsenal look to kick on this season (ESPN). That came after a 1-1 Women's Super League draw with Aston Villa at the Emirates, where Russo salvaged a point with a late header (ESPN), and Slegers gave a pre-Villa press conference touching on the state of the squad (Arsenal.com).
On the transfer front, report-stage gossip continues to swirl: Arsenal are said to be keeping an eye on Monza striker Gustavo Varela (BBC Sport), while other reports link the Gunners with a January move for a Bayern Munich player following the Fleetwood defeat, as well as interest in Nicolo Tresoldi and Bundesliga starlet Ibrahim Maza, with Tottenham and PSG also credited with interest (TeamTalk) (Football.London) (TeamTalk). These remain speculative reports rather than confirmed business. On a lighter note, Arsenal's Ballon d'Or contingent was in the spotlight too, with Mikel Arteta and Harry Kane among those nominated at Monday's ceremony in London (Football.London) (Arsenal.com).
This round-up is written with the help of AI, using only the day's headlines from the publishers credited above. Each point links to the original report — tap the source name to read it in full.
