Merino strikes to earn Arsenal bruising 1-1 draw against 10-man Chelsea

In a tense London derby, Mike Merino saved Arsenal as the Premier League leaders fought to a 1-1 draw against Chelsea.

Late in the first half, Chelsea midfielder Moises Caicedo was shown a crude foul on Merino at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.

Chelsea took a second half lead after Caicedo’s dismissal, but Merino’s equalizing goal earned Arsenal a point after the title rivals had fought back.

Arsenal is five points clear of Manchester City, who defeated Leeds United on Saturday, and is six points ahead of Chelsea, who is in third place.

Arsenal were relieved to avoid a damaging defeat after the dust had settled on a game of relentless intensity, and Chelsea were left to rue a missed chance to win the title.

Arsenal are still the favorites to win the Premier League title, but Chelsea’s aggressive display suggested they might pose the greatest threat to the Gunners’ title ambitions.

Chelsea have won their first seven games without losing in all competitions, while Arsenal have won all 17 of those games, winning 14 of those.

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca had slashed his young team’s chances of winning the title, but Arsenal did so without injured centre-back William Saliba.

Both teams tried to impose themselves in a tumultuous first half that included a slew of bookings.

Reece James was cynically pulled down by Gunners midfielder Martin Zubimendi, Chelsea left-back Marc Cucurella crunched into Bukayo Saka, Mosquera pole-axed Joao Pedro, and Riccardo Calafiori.

With a stinging strike that Robert Sanchez saved at his near post, Saka almost exacted immediate retribution against Cucurella.

Estevao Willian, a teenager sensation, made his Chelsea debut following their 3-0 win over Barcelona in midweek.

The 18-year-old was unable to match his stunning goal against Barca when he lashed over from 9 meters (10 yards) to miss Chelsea’s opening real chance.

As Chelsea began to put pressure on the visitors’ reorganized defense, Enzo Fernandez tested Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya from the edge of the area.

When Caicedo caught Merino in the 38th minute with a foul that was upgraded from a booking to a dismissal following a VAR review, the attrition war turned ugly.

This was the Blues’ sixth red card of the season across all competitions.

A dangerous Hincapie elbow on Chalobah, which caused Chelsea to lash out for a red card, did not come after the Ecuador midfielder’s premature exit.

On the cue of half-time, Gabriel Martinelli nearly heightened Chelsea’s anxiety with a powerful blast that forced a fine save from Sanchez.

With ten goals in 12 games, Arsenal became the league’s best set-piece team.

Chelsea finished with eight, but in the 48th minute Chalobah won with nine.

As James curled a corner to the near post before reaching Chalobah’s highest point inside the six-yard box, Chalobah headed his header into the far corner.

On his way back to his former club, Arteta sent on Noni Madueke and Martin Odegaard, who were jeered and chanted “Chelsea reject.”

Merino’s 59th-minute equalizer earned the Arsenal changes instant reward.

A stunning run and cross from Saka past Cucurella led to a powerful close-range header that flew past Sanchez.

Merino scored his fourth goal of the season when Arteta used him as a substitute.

Arsenal were unable to deliver the decisive blow in a furious finale, which featured Sanchez making superb stops to deny Saka and Merino.

Reece James, Chelsea’s captain, expressed regret after receiving the three points and how the sending off limited his team.

“Over the past few years, Arsenal have been at the top. We were aware that it would not be simple. Their midfield is formidable. He claimed that we had already done everything we could to play our game and caused them harm.

He continued, “Maresca] slightly altered the formation, and he was aware that they were going to attack us.” So we attempted to catch them on the counter by attempting to soak up the pressure.

I’m proud of the boys, they say. Today at the Bridge, it was riotous. We’re content to accept the message.

Arsenal were disappointed not to win, according to Merino.

You want to win every game when you sport this shirt. he informed Sky Sports. To enter and take a point at this stadium is a real challenge. The team displayed good mentality, but we could have done better.

Alexander Isak, the underdogs’ record signing, scored his first Premier League goal for Liverpool on Sunday to give them a much-needed 2-0 victory over West Ham United.

Source: Aljazeera