Szoboszlai blast shoots down Gunners

Fulltime was approaching at Anfield on Sunday and it was clear something special was needed to separate Liverpool and Arsenal, as they slugged out an early-season heavyweight contest in the Premier League.

Enter Dominik Szoboszlai.

With a long-range freekick that flew in off the post in the 83rd minute, Szoboszlai earned Liverpool a hard-fought 1-0 win over the opponent most likely to be the biggest challenger to its title.

"The game needed a moment of magic for either team to win it," Liverpool manager Arne Slot said, adding: "And it was Dominik who provided it."

Many thought Manchester City would be back in the title race this season, but perhaps not. Collapsing to a 2-1 loss at Brighton, for a second straight loss, was another sign that Pep Guardiola's once-dominant team has lost its aura.

"This is the reality — we are not at the level from a long time (ago)," City midfielder Rodri said.

Szoboszlai is popular among Liverpool fans for his work ethic and versatility, and the Hungary midfielder was filling in at rightback — for so long the position of the now-departed Trent Alexander-Arnold — because of injuries to Conor Bradley and new arrival Jeremie Frimpong.

Szoboszlai did his best impersonation of Alexander-Arnold with a top-quality dead-ball strike that was out of keeping with the rest of the game.

"Until now, Trent was taking them," Szoboszlai said of his former teammate who now plays for Real Madrid. "Now, I could finally take one."

It secured a third straight win for Liverpool, with the defending champion the only team on a maximum nine points after three rounds of the Premier League. It's already beaten two tough rivals in Newcastle and Arsenal, too.

As for Arsenal, it was a first loss this season — extending a winless streak at Anfield that dates back to 2012 — and a first league goal conceded by a defense that was without centerback William Saliba from the fifth minute at Anfield because of a leg injury.

"When you play against this kind of team, and at a high level where the margins are minimal, they can be decided by a magic moment," Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta said. "We needed that moment for us and we didn't have it."