An enthralling contest between two powerhouses of English football ended 2-2 at the Emirates. Even though Arsenal controlled a lot of the possession, their defensive backline was shaky enough to make it an end to end display throughout the 90 minutes.
Chelsea could have easily opened the scoring in the first half with two clear-cut chances to Alvaro Morata and Cesc Fabregas, but the shots went wide from goal. Thibaut Courtois made a brilliant save to stop Alexis Sanchez’s toed effort from close range.
But after an hour of game time, finally, Jack Wilshere broke the deadlock with a thunderous volley from the edge of the box. Finally the redemption he has been looking for.
Minutes later, Hector Bellerin clumsily gave away a penalty to Eden Hazard who calmly slotted the ball past Petr Cech from the spot.
Tied at 1-1 it was back to square one with both sides charging towards the opposition box.
The Emirates was roaring with excitement in hopes of gaining back the advantage but Marcos Alonso silenced the crowd with a poacher like effort in the 84th minute. Looked like all was lost but the Gunner’s did not give up. They took over possession and forced Chelsea back into their own half.
After a series of blocked shots and rebounds, the ball finally landed in front of Bellerin, who guided the ball brilliantly to the back of the net.
A very poor performance from Morata who missed the last chance of the game. The ball could have been easily lobbed over a wandering Cech but he instead hit it straight at the keeper. A point each.
Arsenal Player Ratings :
Petr Cech – 7/10
A brilliant outing for the 33-year-old as he was exposed to 19 attempts from the opposition. Made a few brilliant saves to stop the likes of Morata and Alonso. Had no chance with the two conceded goals.
Calum Chambers – 4/10
Completely off the pace from the start and allowed Morata to drift off him for an open chance in the first half. Made one crucial challenge on Hazard but otherwise very poor.
Shkodran Mustafi – 4/10
A mixture of highs and lows for the German tonight. Should not have allowed Alonso to get in front of him so easily for the second goal.
Rob Holding – 6/10
Was very composed at the back and accurate with his passes.
Ainsley Maitland-Niles – 8/10
Might just be his performance in an Arsenal shirt as he went on to own Victor Moses on the left flank. The 20-year-old did no wrong today with timed tackles and pinpoint marking.
Hector Bellerin – 8/10
The Spaniard was defensively very impressive today. Stripped of possession from the opposition players and ran rampant from the right-hand side. A definite man of the match if he did not give away the penalty.
Granit Xhaka – 6/10
Much better with his passes but a few rash tackles.
Jack Wilshere – 8/10
Speechless as to how he is still covering every blade of glass after playing every game for the past 3 weeks. A peach of a goal along with another midfield dominating performance.
Mesut Ozil – 7/10
Ozil set his foot down today and was very assertive right from the opening whistle. Pestered the Chelsea backline constantly.
Alexis Sanchez – 6/10
A bit too predictable at times, the Chilean could have been better with his passes today. But still a decent shift with one brilliant effort on goal.
Alexandre Lacazette – 5/10
Tremendous work ethic off the ball but missed an open chance. His goalless run has stretched to 6 games now.
