Liverpool: Robin van Persie scored his second goal of the game in injury time to give Arsenal a 2-1 win at Liverpool on Saturday in an English Premier League match the home side had dominated.
In the third of eight minutes of injury time, Van Persie shot past goalkeeper Jose Reina at the near post to end Liverpool's unbeaten home record and strengthen Arsenal's chances of qualifying for the Champions League.
Arsenal goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny had saved a penalty and rebound effort from Dirk Kuyt before Liverpool took a 23rd-minute lead through an own-goal by Laurent Koscielny.
Van Persie leveled the scores eight minutes later, heading in Bacary Sagna's right-wing cross.
"To score at Anfield is big because Anfield is a massive ground," Van Persie said. "I'm proud of that, but even more proud of this win. I don't think we really deserved it, to be honest, because Liverpool played better."
The Netherlands striker has scored 31 club goals this season.
With so much at stake, both managers kept faith with the majority of the players who helped their teams enjoy morale-boosting victories last weekend.
Reds boss Kenny Dalglish was forced to make do without captain Steven Gerrard, injured on England duty on Wednesday evening. League Cup final hero Dirk Kuyt was preferred to Andy Carroll alongside Luis Suarez up front, while Jamie Carragher, Martin Kelly and Jay Spearing were also handed starts.
Despite injury concerns after their international participation in midweek, both van Persie and Thomas Vermaelen started for Arsenal, as boss Arsene Wenger elected to field an unchanged side to the one which came back to stun Tottenham 5-2 a week ago.
Flushed with recent success, both sides began in confident mood, stroking the ball around with speed and assurance. Chances were at a premium in the early moments, but it was the Arsenal defence which looked the more vulnerable in the face of Liverpool pressure, with Luis Suarez in particular causing problems.
Suarez won Liverpool's penalty when he tumbled over Szczesny but Kuyt's missed kick means the Reds have failed with six penalties this season - plus another two in a shoot-out win over Cardiff in last week's League Cup final.
The Arsenal goalkeeper was powerless to prevent the opening goal when Koscielny, under little pressure, turned Jordan Henderson's cross into his own net.
Liverpool could have made it 2-0 moments later when Henderson's shot was parried by Szczesny to Suarez, who drilled the rebound against the post.
Arsenal looked in trouble but equalised with their first clear chance of the game when Sagna picked out Van Persie, who got in front of Jamie Carragher and headed in.
Suarez twisted and turned past four opponents and drew a save from Szczesny before Kuyt hit the post in injury time at the end of the first half. Despite the hosts’ best efforts, however, Arsenal managed to escape to the interval on level terms.
There was a lengthy hold-up after the break when Mikel Arteta was concussed in an accidental collision with Henderson, forcing the Arsenal midfielder to be carried off on a stretcher.
Arsenal now enjoyed a greater share of possession in the midfield, but it was Liverpool who still posed the greater attacking threat, and Szczesny had to be brave to parry away Spearing’s knock-down with Martin Kelly bearing down upon him.
Neither side looked particularly convincing when dealing with deliveries from wide areas, and moments after Kelly had missed a gilt-edged chance to put Liverpool back in front when he failed to make any clean contact with Kuyt’s precise centre, Reina denied Theo Walcott’s deflected strike with his trailing legs.
Liverpool continued to miss chances and paid for their profligacy when Van Persie volleyed Alex Song's cross from a narrow angle.
Liverpool poured forward but never looked like equalising, and now face a huge challenge to secure Champions League football next season.
The result means Dalglish’s men still have only one Premier League victory to their name in 2012, and are now 10 points behind the Gunners with a game in hand as the season enters its final stages.
Arsenal, meanwhile, have now extended their unbeaten run in the league to five matches and will be delighted to emerge with a victory from one of their hardest remaining fixtures, as they took control of the race for the top four.
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