Arsenal were held by Liverpool on Sunday afternoon in the Premier League.

The Gunners fell 2-0 behind in the first half, courtesy of a neat header from Cody Gakpo and a tap-in from Luis Diaz.

However, Mikel Arteta’s side recovered in the second period and secured a deserved point at Anfield, with Gabriel Martinelli and Mikel Merino both scoring headers to level up the scoreline.

The game ended 2-2, and while the result may not seem too significant on the surface, it meant Arsenal achieved something for the first time in their history.

Photo by David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images

Arsenal go unbeaten against top six for second consecutive season

Peter Schmeichel labelled Arteta a ‘control freak’ before the game on Merseyside, but the head coach’s meticulous style has overseen the Gunners’ remarkable turnaround in fortunes in recent years.

Arsenal struggled in the big matches in the latter years of the Arsene Wenger era, often embarrassed away from home against their fiercest Premier League rivals.

Arteta has managed to completely change this, with Sunday’s draw meaning his team have now gone back-to-back seasons without suffering a defeat against any of their ‘big six’ rivals in the league.

Since losing 4-1 to Manchester City in April 2023, Arsenal haven’t been beaten by any of City, Manchester United, Chelsea, Liverpool or Tottenham.

While the North Londoners have enjoyed three separate seasons in the Premier League without losing to any of these teams before the most recent two (1998/99, 2001/02 and 2003/04), they’ve never followed that up with a second consecutive unbeaten season in these fixtures.

This feat was also considerably less impressive back in the late 90s and early 2000s when this ‘top six’ hadn’t really been formed yet.

Arteta deserves immense credit for reversing Arsenal’s fortunes in the big fixtures and for ending old tropes about the Gunners’ weak mentality in the difficult games.

Photo by Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images

Arsenal’s record vs the big six since start of 2023/24

Arsenal came back from two goals down away at Liverpool for the first time since 1908 on Sunday, making it a day of records for the Gunners and Arteta.

The breakdown of their unbeaten record against the big six highlights truly how impressive it is.

Netting two goals per game in the matches and conceding less than one per 90 minutes, the North Londoners have won eleven of their last 20 top-six encounters.

Arsenal’s big six record since beginning of 2022/23 – via FotMob – correct as of 12/05/2025

Beating Tottenham and United three times out of four in the last two seasons, Arsenal have beaten Chelsea and City twice, and Liverpool once.

The hallmark of a great team is winning the biggest games, and this is something Arteta has mastered – he just needs more consistent results against the rest.