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For a long while this season, Arsenal have looked an unstoppable force.
They arrived at Sunderland on Saturday looking to extend their winning run to 11 consecutive games and keep a club-record ninth clean sheet in a row.
Victory would have sent them eight points clear at the top by the end of the day, but the Black Cats that crossed the Gunners’ path at the Stadium of Light were set on being disruptive.
Regis le Bris’ side, the pre-season relegation favourites, have surpassed all expectations on their return to the Premier League and are sitting pretty in the European places for now.
They used everything in their power to unsettle and ultimately shock the league leaders, earning a 2-2 draw that will have been celebrated far beyond Wearside.
Sunderland scored the first goal Arsenal have conceded since September when Dan Ballard gave them a first-half lead, and although the hosts then slipped 2-1 behind, there was a late twist as Brian Brobbey scored a dramatic injury-time equaliser, sparking wild scenes of celebration on the pitch and in the stands.
Board games, aggression and ‘chaos’
Arsenal have been known for playing slick, attacking football in the past, but there has been more directness about them this season, with set-pieces proving particularly effective. Long throws have also increasingly been part of their threat.
To combat the throw-in danger, Sunderland moved the advertising boards around the edge of the pitch closer in than usual, to limit the amount of space Arsenal players had when looking to launch the ball.
“We tried to find the details to win the game,” said Le Bris, when asked after the 2-2 draw if that was true.
“They are really strong on set-pieces, we are good as well, and this threat was really important for this game and in the end it was balanced.”
It was indeed more balanced, with Sunderland able to restrict Arsenal to just two corners all game – the same number they had.
But it was not just about stopping what Arsenal could do, but also how Sunderland went about the game themselves.
Led by their talismanic captain Granit Xhaka – who revelled in disrupting his former team – Sunderland were aggressive and brave in the tackle, unsettling their opponents from the outset.
Even after Arsenal had seemingly taken control by scoring twice in the second half after Ballard’s first-half opener, Sunderland swarmed forward in the belief that they could find an equaliser.
It is not the first time Sunderland have got their reward for fighting to the very end, with Saturday’s late leveller the fifth goal they have scored from the 90th minute onwards – more than any other Premier League side.
“There are a lot of games like this in the Premier League right now,” Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta said.
“We conceded a goal in a manner we knew was one of their biggest strengths. They do that really well.
‘They never stopped trying’ – Sunderland’s impressive statistics
Sunderland had a plan and stuck to it, but the statistics highlight just how impressive a result it was.
“They never stopped trying, asking questions of Arsenal,” former Sunderland striker Darren Bent said.
Ex-Arsenal man Ballard epitomises spirit
It was the two ex-Arsenal men – Xhaka and Ballard – who perhaps epitomised Sunderland’s battling spirit best.
Xhaka was the leader on the pitch, orchestrating things in the middle, while Ballard drove the opener past David Raya, provided an assist for the equaliser, and made a brilliant block in the final few seconds to prevent Arsenal snatching the win.
Ballard started his professional career at the Gunners, having been in the club’s academy since the age of eight, but did not make a first-team appearance for them before joining Sunderland in 2022.
“It’s a good morale boost to show we can go against a really top team – probably one of the best in Europe at the minute – and delighted with that,” Ballard told Match of the Day after Saturday’s game.
“But it is just one point and we’ve got a lot of work to do to achieve our goal of staying up this year.”
Former England striker Alan Shearer told BBC Match of the Day: “Ballard epitomised everything Sunderland have done so well, with his aggression and stopping Arsenal play.
“They are really, really tough to play against and there were so many examples of him and his team putting their bodies in the line. Arsenal will not have many tougher games than that this season, and Sunderland thoroughly deserved the point.”
The draw means Sunderland remain unbeaten at home and they have 19 points from 11 games, well on the way to avoiding relegation as they sit nine points above the bottom three.
“Sunderland went physical today but within the laws of the game, apart from one moment in the first half when Dan Ballard challenged Mikel Merino in the box,” Match of the Day pundit and former Arsenal forward Theo Walcott said.
“They were well organised and I didn’t think they’d be able to keep it up for 90 minutes.
“There’s a reason why Sunderland will be fine in this league. The Stadium of Light is not an easy place to play football.
Just a blip for Arsenal?
There is perhaps no harm in title-challenging sides who are on long winning runs being reminded that they are fallible.
The Gunners have been brilliant this season, dealing with a lengthy injury list while building a platform from which they can challenge to win the Premier League.
Now comes the international break, which serves as a chance to take stock and recover some of their injured players before Tottenham visit in the north London derby on Sunday, 23 November.
“Arsenal won’t draw as many as they did last year. If anything it shows resilience to come back the way they did,” Walcott said.
“Arsenal did almost everything right up until the last few minutes.”
Arteta, too, is not reading too much into the result, choosing to focus on the bigger picture.
“We won the last 10 games, not conceded goals, we have seven players injured and the team has been phenomenal in performances and results, so let’s keep going,” said the manager.
Related topics
- Sunderland
- Arsenal
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