DIEGO CARLOS produced the “miss of the century” as he fluffed his lines against Liverpool in sensational style.
The defender had the chance to draw Aston Villa level against Jurgen Klopp’s men at Villa Park on Monday.
Liverpool were 2-1 up and less than 10 minutes from the break when some lax defending saw Villa get in behind.
Leon Bailey got the better of Joe Gomez and found himself on the byline with space to drill a ball across the box.
He did that and more, with a precise pass whizzing its way clear of Liverpool’s defence and towards onrushing Villa attackers at the back post.
Both Carlos and Ollie Watkins were on hand to slot the ball away.
Amazingly, Carlos appeared to muscle Villa’s leading scorer out of the way before throwing himself at the ball.
But the Brazilian did not time his effort properly and instead skidded the ball clear of Liverpool’s net.
In doing so, he also robbed Watkins of the chance to tap the ball home, with the England striker left miffed at Carlos’ error.
Fans were certainly in stitches at the mind-blowing mistake.
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One said: “That is miss of the century.”
Another declared: “That is the worst open goal sitter missed in football history.”
One noted: “That is the worst open goal sitter missed in football history.”
Arsenal fan and Sun columnist Piers Morgan felt it was set to play a huge role in deciding the Premier League title.
He said: “On behalf of all Arsenal fans, thank you Diego Carlos!”
Should Villa drop points to Liverpool, it would open the door for Tottenham to pinch the fourth and final Champions League place.
They play Arsenal’s title rivals Man City on Tuesday.
And with top four still available, they would extra incentive to beat Pep Guardiola’s men – thus putting Arsenal top going into the final day of the season.
By Jordan Davies
ARSENAL are stepping up plans to sign a world-class striker in the summer after their Champions League heartbreak.
Mikel Arteta splashed out £204.5m last summer on Declan Rice, Kai Havertz and Jurrien Timber.
But the Spanish manager accepts he needs a proven goalscorer to take the club to the next level.
And here are the players he is looking at to get the Gunners firing:
BENJAMIN SESKO (RB Leipzig, value £40m-£45m)
One for the future at 20 years old. Scored 16 goals for RB Salzburg in the Austrian Bundesliga last season and the Slovenian has carried on that good form in Germany with Leipzig this campaign.
VIKTOR GYOKERES (Sporting Lisbon, value £60m-£80m)
Been scouted several times this season. The Swedish striker, 25, is more of a traditional No 9 so may not suit Arsenal’s demand for flexibility but would bring a physicality that boss Mikel Arteta craves.
ALEXANDER ISAK (Newcastle, value £75m-£85m)
Impressed in his first two seasons in English football. The Swede, 24, has the pace and finesse to match his finishing ability, and Eddie Howe’s Toon may need to sell to balance the books this summer.
JOSHUA ZIRKZEE (Bologna, value £45m-£50m)
Dutch wonder is attracting the attentions of clubs across Europe. At 6ft 4in the 22-year-old forward would have no trouble adapting to the Premier League and already has an eye for goal.
XAVI SIMONS (RB Leipzig, value £70m-£80m)
An incredible talent in the Bukayo Saka mould, currently on loan from Paris Saint-Germain. The future of the Dutch attacker, 20, depends on how much money his parent club want to make from him.
