Arsenal's winless run in the Premier League extended to four matches after a 1-1 draw against Chelsea on Sunday evening.
Premier League
Result: Chelsea 1-1 Arsenal
Date: 10 November 2024
Venue: Stamford Bridge
The Gunners were boosted by the return of Martin Odegaard, who made his first league start since August, while Kai Havertz was in the centre of a front trio, including Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli against his former side.Meanwhile, Chelsea forward Cole Palmer shrugged off injury concerns to form an attack alongside Pedro Neto and Noni Madueke, with Nicolas Jackson at the top.
Enzo Maresca's charges nearly had a perfect start after Palmer fired a dipping strike from range that stretched goalkeeper David Raya.
The Blues continued to have the better chances as on 24 minutes Malo Gusto was expected to score after he was found unmarked by a cross from Neto but he headed his effort wide.
As the game opened up, Havertz found the back of the net for Arsenal just after the half-hour mark after he went through on goal from a quick free-kick by Declan Rice but the goal was chalked off by the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) for a slight offside.
However, the sides were guarded towards the end of the first stanza as chances were few and far between and the first stanza ended without goals.
The sides were not holding back from the interval and on the hour-mark, Martinelli eventually broke the deadlock for Mikel Arteta's men with a shot from a tight angle at the back post after he was found by Odegaard.
It took only ten minutes for Chelsea to reply after Neto made it 1-1 with a powerful drive following a through ball by Enzo Fernandez.
There were concerns for Arsenal in the last ten minutes after Saka picked up an injury and he was replaced Gabriel Jesus.
With the game on the edge in the dying minutes, Chelsea had the fresh legs of Christopher Nkunku in place of Jackson up top.
However, neither side could create chances in the end as they shared the spoils, as both sides slipped nine points off the top spot, with Chelsea in third and the Gunners in fourth spot on the log respectively.
