The Sunday Supplement panel discuss Arsenal's 3-1 defeat to Liverpool The Sunday Supplement panel discuss Arsenal's 3-1 defeat to Liverpool

The Sunday Supplement panel said the decision to start Alexis Sanchez on the bench against Liverpool was "madness", adding Arsene Wenger is leading Arsenal to "mediocrity".

Wenger admitted the decision "backfired" as the Gunners were beaten 3-1 at Anfield, with Sanchez coming on early in the second half and setting up Danny Welbeck to score.

While the Arsenal manager said his thinking was that he wanted to go "more direct", the Daily Mail's Dominic King described it as "madness".

"When he was explaining that Liverpool were vulnerable at corners and that was the reason he wanted to play [Olivier] Giroud it made no sense," he said. "When the team sheet comes round you are doing a double take.

"It's the worst I have seen Arsenal play at Anfield in 20 years. They were appalling in the first half, it changed in the second half and you can see what he was doing with Sanchez.

2:57 Highlights: Liverpool 3-1 Arsenal Highlights: Liverpool 3-1 Arsenal

"Jurgen Klopp said after the game that the first five minutes of Sanchez felt like 50 minutes, that's the impact he had."

The defeat continues the Gunners' miserable recent away record against their rivals, which has seen them fail to win any of their last 11 trips against the top six in the Premier League.

"When you saw Arsenal come out with Sanchez on the bench you realised how ordinary they have been this season without their top players," said the Sunday Times' Jonathan Northcroft.

Arsenal against the top sides have looked like a second-rate team...Wenger has led that squad towards mediocrity. Sunday Times' Jonathan Northcroft

"That is what Arsenal's performance was: very ordinary. They didn't stand up to Liverpool's early barrage. And Arsenal against the top sides have looked like a second-rate team."

He added that the Gunners are "getting further away from competing".

"Wenger has led that squad towards mediocrity," he said. "You look at the midfield, look at Francis Coquelin, Alex Iwobi and Granit Xhaka.

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"Xhaka has been really average, Coquelin has gone backwards and Iwobi's not a midfielder for me. That's the same midfield that played against Chelsea and it is not a midfield of a top team."

Wenger's contract expires at the end of the season and it is still unclear whether he will stay at Arsenal.

The Sun's Shaun Custis thinks the decision to leave out Sanchez could be a "defining moment" for Wenger.

"You rarely question Wenger's team selection, partly because so many players are interchangeable, but Sanchez is the one player where you think he has to play," he said.

"In some ways it's a bit revolutionary from Wenger and it backfired. That could be a defining moment among fans to say 'he's lost it'.

"He's not bringing anything new to the table. It feels like it's repeating itself."