Arsenal were unable to push their advantage home against Chelsea, who played more than half with 10 men, allowing the Blues to maintain their lead in the Premier League.
This must not be forgotten as a huge opportunity wasted for Arsenal. And it will be a game-changer for 10-man Chelsea, who once again showed resilience and determination under manager Enzo Maresca.
Arsenal players looked disappointed when they heard the final whistle. A victory would have further strengthened their leadership in the Premier League title race. However, Mikel Arteta’s side were far from their best and failed to create enough chances, allowing Trevo Chalobá to open the scoring from a set-piece.
And the biggest mistake for the visiting team was that they played against more than 10 players for over an hour, including stoppage time, and still could not take advantage of Moises Caicedo’s absence.
It was a moment of madness for Caicedo, often Chelsea’s best player, yet Arsenal still failed to take control of the match. Mikel Merino’s equalizer gave them a point, but in the grand scheme of things it was not a bad result considering it was a tough, tricky and passionate London derby.
Arsenal are still five points behind second-placed Manchester City, but this was their chance to pull away from the pack. Instead, Arsenal were lackluster, not creative enough and not passing well enough. It was a frustrating day at the office for Arsenal, who dropped points in their second successive away game.
read more: Arsenal offer reality check after being ‘disappointed’ at missing Chelsea chanceread more: Arsenal’s angry clash with 10-a-side Chelsea saves Mikel Merino from blushing – 5 talking points
They seemed a little fed up, but maybe they’ve caught up over the last week. They defeated Tottenham in the North London derby and dominated Bayern Munich in the Champions League. However, this felt like a game that went too far for Arsenal. And that doesn’t bode well, with a game against Brentford on Wednesday night followed by a trip to in-form Aston Villa three days later.
It looks like Arsenal should hope to beat Chelsea, who have been on a roll of late. Chelsea achieved a sensational victory over Barcelona in the Champions League.
Maresca has developed a habit of performing well in big matches. They didn’t quite get the win they wanted against Arsenal, but drawing with just 10 men only underlines their progress. It was by no means a classic and will be remembered more for the number of cards – six yellow for Arsenal, one yellow and one red for Chelsea – than for the quality of the football.
Referee Anthony Taylor didn’t always look like he was in control. Taylor booked Martin Zvimendi, Marc Cucurella, Cristian Mosquera and Riccardo Calafioli within the first 30 minutes.
However, Taylor actually missed Caicedo’s X-rated challenge on Merino after 38 minutes. It was a frighteningly excessive tackle. Taylor upgraded to red after checking the VAR screen.
A red card and a siege mentality excited Stamford Bridge. Immediately after the restart they moved forward. Joao Pedro scored from Reece James’s free-kick, but his header was well saved by Arsenal keeper David Raya. From the resulting corner kick, James’ superb near-post shot found Chalobah, who flicked his header inside the back post.
Arsenal, who were without William Saliba after picking up a bruise in training, made changes, with the Cavalry returning from injury. Noni Mandueke was one of the substitutes but was loudly jeered upon his first return to Stamford Bridge.
The Gunners equalized after 59 minutes. Bukayo Saka tricked his way into Chelsea’s box and his superb cross found Mikel Merino to head home from close range. Incredibly, this was Saka’s first Premier League assist in 365 days. It was also Merino’s second Premier League goal of the season.
Chelsea continued to pose a threat towards the end of the first half and showed great performance. Keeper Robert Sanchez made some good saves and the defense looked solid.
However, Arsenal could not find a winner. Madueke’s cross was met by Julien Timber who could not get his header on target. That was the summary of the afternoon.
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