Aaron Ramsey: Fantastic Strike Cements Arsenal Atop EPL Table

Aaron Ramsey sealed Arsenal’s 2-0 victory over Liverpool Saturday with this beautiful curling strike in the 59th minute. It’s the Welshman’s 11th goal in his last 18 games, as he’s well on his way to earning a place in the EPL’s best XI by the time May rolls around.

More importantly, Arsenal’s win — coupled with Chelsea’s 2-0 loss at Newcastle earlier in the day — gives the Gunners a five-point cushion atop the table after 10 games. Maybe this is the year Arsenal ends its eight-year drought without a trophy … but we’ve all said that about 100 times since the club lifted the 2005 FA Cup. Impressively, Arsenal have only dropped two points since a season-opening defeat to Aston Villa, a string of nine games unbeaten.

One thing is for certain: all the doomsayers calling for Arsene Wenger’s head in early August probably feel a little silly in retrospect.

Chalk this up for a missed opportunity for Liverpool, which like Chelsea is now five points behind the Gunners. Brendan Rodgers will face criticism for his lineup choices, which included two ineffective wingbacks — Aly Cissokho and Jon Flanagan — to start the match. There are even some faint rumblings that it might be time to drop captain Steven Gerrard.