Wojciech Szczesny almost the finished article as Arsenal goalkeeper proves a point against Liverpool Since then, however, things have definitely changed. Aided by a defence protecting him much better, the 23-year-old has cut out most of the errors: the tendency to wander off limits at dangerous times, to come for crosses he could never reach. Dare we say it, the lad may be slowly turning into the top keeper many predicted when he was young. He still is young of course. But if Saturday evening is anything to go by, Arsenal can now count on a much more dependable figure between the posts, someone who doesn't give team-mates palpitations with mad rushes of blood. Against Liverpool, in fact, he was absolutely superb for nine tenths of the game. Some saves were outstanding, reminiscent of Peter Schmeichel in his prime the way Szczesny jumped forward in a star shape, making himself as big as possible to block the shot. This was a huge test remember - keeping at bay the strike partnership of the moment in Luis Suárez and Daniel Sturridge. Szczesny knew he would have to be ready for all sorts of attempts, from snap shots hit with power to deft chips and clips. As it turned out, that SAS combination did not quite fire. But on the few occasions it did spring to life, Szczesny was on his toes to repel the raids. In fairness, he has always been a good shot-stopper, a big frame and sharp reactions enabling him to pull off some great saves in recent years. More impressive here, though, was the way Szczesny commanded his box. As Hart has proved lately, your decision-making gets impaired when you are not sure of your game. Given a split-second to react, it is easy to do something rash to concede a goal. Yet for the most part at the Emirates, Arsenal's guardian did all the right things. Among them, he timed his advances off the line very well to catch crosses cleanly in a crowd. His handling was sure to go with his movement, which sets everyone at ease, not just the players but the crowd as well. What would not have encouraged them so much was the moment late on that reminded us of a flaw. When the ball was played back to Szczesny, he had plenty of time and space to clear his lines with a long kick. No point, after all, in taking chances when this game was practically won. But he did take a chance by trying to curl the ball around Sturridge standing 10 yards away. And this stupid attempt nearly ended in embarrassment when the ball hit the forward. Luckily for the keeper, it rebounded back to safety. Too clever by half. That is a part of his character that must be tamed. As for the talent, it is clearly there in abundance. If Szczesny keeps this up, Arsenal can claim one aspect at least of the qualities needed in a title-winning side.