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The London derby ended in a draw because Chelsea could not capitalize on Arsenal's recent poor play.
In the first fifteen minutes of the second half, Gabriel Martinelli shocked goalkeeper Robert Sánchez with a shot that went straight to the near post. However, Chelsea wasted no time responding; Pedro Neto equalized less than 10 minutes later, sending the crowd into a frenzy at Stamford Bridge.
The game went into extra time, and Arsenal had a golden opportunity to seal the deal, but a poorly executed effort by Leandro Trossard ended the game for the visiting team.
Story of the game
Enzo Maresca started Marc Cucurella at left back instead of Reece James, keeping with the same starting eleven that played to a 1-1 draw with Manchester United last weekend.
Martin Ødegaard came off the bench to replace Leandro Trossard and was named to the starting lineup for Arsenal's 1-0 Champions League defeat to Inter. Ødegaard made his comeback towards the conclusion of the game. Declan Rice, who was substituted for Mikel Merino, is also named to the starting eleven.
At the beginning of the contest, the Blues were the more formidable team. Colin Palmer, the leading man, took aim from long range in the fifth minute, and David Raya, the Arsenal goalkeeper, dived to his left and diverted the ball over the net.
Both teams went at it in the first half, with Ben White and Pedro Neto both sending excellent crosses into the penalty area, but neither team was able to score. The better opportunity came from Neto's cross, which found the head of Malo Gusto. However, the French right back's connection was not clean, and the ball went over the crossbar.
Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sánchez had to make a reflex save from Gabriel Martinelli's effort in the six-yard box as Arsenal began to find their rhythm midway through the match.
For the Gunners, the scoring began in the 32nd minute via Kai Havertz, who finished off a deftly executed free-kick. Almost immediately after the Chelsea players raised their hands in protest, Havertz was adjudicated offside, rendering the goal ineligible.
Arsenal right defender White received the game's first yellow card for a late tackle on Neto. The Portuguese winger for Chelsea caused Arsenal problems in the first half with two good crosses and 0.51 anticipated assists (xA).
Although both Chelsea and Arsenal had fantastic scoring opportunities in the first half, the first half went scoreless, setting the stage for a thrilling second half.
During the second half, Chelsea began to dominate possession and create more scoring opportunities. In the 53rd minute, a cross from Noni Madueke found Wesley Fofana in the Arsenal penalty area, but Fofana's header just missed the target.
The home team had many opportunities, but the game of football can be harsh at times. Arsenal grabbed the lead in the 60th minute when Ødegaard set up Martinelli on the outside of the box, and the winger scored a goal at the near post. Arsenal took a 1-0 lead, thus the onus was on the hosts to produce an equalizer.
Chelsea may quickly weaken Arsenal's defenses. Even though Martinelli had already scored nine minutes earlier, Pedro Neto wasted no time dribbling the ball and unleashing a long-range drive that ricocheted off Raya's right leg and nestled into the far corner of the goal.
Now that the game had become a sprint to the finish line, both sides made changes that suggested they were planning to assault. Arsenal replaced Mikel Merino, Leandro Trossard, and Gabriel Jesus for the match, while Mykhaylo Mudryk, Enzo Fernández, and Reece James started for Chelsea.
Mikel Arteta's Arsenal may steal a late goal from their West London opponents in the match's last stages. With the goal gaping, substitute Trossard missed a golden opportunity to put his team ahead, but Sánchez was unconcerned because of the offside call that excused his weak effort.
A golden chance presented itself to the Gunners in the 94th minute when a Saliba cross bobbled across the goal; a scuffed attempt by Trossard sent the ball wide of the goal, sending Arteta tumbling to the ground in disappointment.
Chelsea and Arsenal have moved up to third and fourth place in the Premier League, respectively, and are beginning to pull away from the league's top two teams. Liverpool leads the league with 28 points and nine victories out of eleven games, while Manchester City is in third place with 23 points despite their wobbly record.
The Briefing: What role did the Odegaard effect play?
With Odegaard's return, a much-needed boost of optimism was sure to follow. Arsenal needs to improve in the leadership, energy, and originality that their captain provided.
After being gone for so long, it was expected that he would not be performing at his peak, but even a rusty Odegaard can still have an impact. With Odegaard moving to advanced midfield, Arsenal were able to switch to the 4-3-3 formation that was effective for them last year.
He sunk low when Arsenal wanted him to go forward and manage from high on the field. There were additional instances when he signaled for the ball in open space, but his teammates failed to appropriately re-switch on.
Odegaard enchanted his team with a pinpoint pass to Martinelli, who scored Arsenal's first Premier League away goal since their September match against Manchester City.
Arsenal's returning captain Martin Odegaard spoke to Sky Sports after the game about how good it feels to be back on the pitch after injury, saying: "Unbelievable… back doing what I love.
"It has been a long time, the longest I have been out of football in my whole life. It felt good to be back out there although disappointed we didn't get the win.
"We've done a lot of work with the fitness coaches and physios pushing me every day. I wanted to come back as soon as possible. I felt OK today. I didn't expect it (to play the whole match). I've only done three training sessions with the team or something.
"It is a long season, long way to go. We had a tough period in December last season and came back. We know the quality and mentality we have, and we have to keep going."
What Happened with Maresca's Full-Back Switch?
When questioned in the pregame interview about benching club captain Reece James in favor of Marc Cucurella, Enzo Maresca was unusually vague.
Gusto remained "inverted" from right-back, while Cucurella mostly stayed back, much as James had done vs. Newcastle and Manchester United. Thus, there was no major structural alteration to Chelsea's back line.
They may be planning for the Bukayo Saka match. For long periods, Cucurella replicated his successful hassling of Arsenal's star winger at Stamford Bridge.
Though it did not prove to be the deciding factor for Chelsea, the James/Cucurella swap does make us wonder how much of an impact the club captain has at Stamford Bridge.
What's the latest on Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice?
Mikel Arteta has said that Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice will not be available to play for England in their next Nations League matches after their substitutions in Sunday's 1-1 draw between Arsenal and Chelsea.
England will play Greece and the Republic of Ireland in a Nations League double-header next week. Saka will be evaluated after limping out with a muscular problem ten minutes before full-time. Mikel Merino came on for Rice seventy-one minutes into the game when the starter had to leave.
When asked about the situation after the match, Arteta stated: "It doesn't look good because two players of that importance tell you that they cannot continue in the game, so it obviously isn't good news."
"I don't expect them to be fit because if they were, they wouldn't have come off," he said when asked whether the two would report for international duty on Monday.
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