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

Mikel Merino rescued Arsenal arsenic the Premier League leaders battled to a 1-1 draw at 10-man Chelsea successful a bad-tempered London derby.

Chelsea midfielder Moises Caicedo was sent disconnected for a crude foul connected Merino precocious successful the archetypal fractional astatine Stamford Bridge connected Sunday.

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Despite Caicedo’s dismissal, Trevoh Chalobah headed Chelsea into a 2nd fractional lead, but Merino’s 2nd fractional leveller ensured Arsenal emerged with a constituent from a bruising brushwood betwixt the rubric rivals.

Arsenal are 5 points wide of second-placed Manchester City, who bushed Leeds United connected Saturday, and beryllium six points supra third-placed Chelsea.

When the particulate had settled connected a contention of relentless intensity, Arsenal were near to rue a missed accidental to widen their pb implicit Chelsea successful the rubric race, portion the Blues were relieved to debar a damaging defeat.

Arsenal stay the favourites to triumph their archetypal Premier League crown since 2004, but Chelsea’s combative show suggested they could look arsenic the biggest menace to the Gunners’ rubric aspirations.

Arsenal are unbeaten successful 17 games successful each competitions, winning 14 of those matches, portion Chelsea person gone 7 matches without losing successful each competitions.

Chelsea brag Enzo Maresca had played down his young side’s rubric hopes, but they went toed to toed with Arsenal, who were without injured centre-back William Saliba.

A thunderous archetypal fractional included a rash of bookings arsenic some teams tried to enforce themselves.

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

Saka astir exacted contiguous revenge connected Cucurella with a stinging onslaught that Robert Sanchez saved astatine his adjacent post.

Sanchez saves a changeable from Saka [Justina Tallis/AFP]

Teenage sensation Estevao Willian started for Chelsea aft his prima relation successful their 3-0 midweek triumph implicit Barcelona.

The 18-year-old could not replicate his stunning extremity against Barca nevertheless arsenic helium lashed implicit from 9 metres (10 yards) to squander Chelsea’s archetypal superior chance.

Enzo Fernandez tested Arsenal keeper David Raya from the borderline of the country arsenic Chelsea began to exert unit connected the visitors’ reshuffled defence.

The warfare of attrition turned disfigured successful the 38th infinitesimal erstwhile Caicedo caught Merino connected the ankle with a nasty foul that was upgraded from a booking to a dismissal aft a VAR review.

It was the Blues’ sixth reddish paper successful each competitions this season.

Caicedo and Merino prevarication connected the crushed aft the Chelsea midfielder’s foul [Ryan Pierse/Getty Images]

The Ecuador midfielder’s premature exit was followed by a unsafe Hincapie elbow connected Chalobah, provoking Chelsea cries for a reddish paper that went unheeded.

Gabriel Martinelli astir added to Chelsea’s angst connected the changeable of half-time with a fierce blast that forced a good prevention from Sanchez.

Arsenal arrived arsenic the champion set-piece squad successful the league with 10 goals successful 12 matches.

But Chelsea ranked 2nd with 8 and Chalobah grabbed their ninth successful the 48th minute.

It was a extremity consecutive from the Arsenal playbook arsenic James curled a country to the adjacent station and Chalobah roseate highest wrong the six-yard container to glimpse his header into the acold corner.

Arteta responded by sending connected Martin Odegaard and Noni Madueke, who was jeered and barraged with chants of “Chelsea reject” connected his instrumentality to his erstwhile club.

The Arsenal changes reaped an instant reward arsenic Merino snatched the 59th infinitesimal equaliser.

Saka danced past Cucurella with a mesmerising tally and cross, picking retired Merino for a almighty close-range header that flashed past Sanchez.

It was Merino’s 4th extremity this play arsenic Arteta erstwhile again utilized the Spain midfielder arsenic a makeshift striker.

A frantic finale featured Sanchez making superb stops to contradict Saka and Merino, but Arsenal could not onshore the knockout blow.

Chelsea’s skipper Reece James told Sky Sports that helium was “disappointed” not to travel distant with the 3 points but that the sending disconnected constricted his side.

“Arsenal person been connected the apical for the past fewer years. We knew it wasn’t going to beryllium easy. Their midfield is tough. We done what we could contiguous to play our crippled and wounded them disconnected the ball,” helium said.

He added: “[Maresca] changed the enactment slightly, and helium knew they were going to travel astatine us. So we tried to soak up the pressure, and past effort to drawback them [on the counter].

“I americium arrogant of the boys. It was electrical astatine the Bridge today. We are blessed to instrumentality the point.”

Merino said Arsenal were besides disappointed not to get the win.

When you deterioration this shirt, you privation to triumph each game.” helium told Sky Sports. “This is simply a truly pugnacious stadium to travel and instrumentality a point. We could person done things amended but the squad showed bully mentality.”

Elsewhere connected Sunday, Liverpool’s grounds signing Alexander Isak scored his archetypal Premier League extremity for the Reds arsenic the under-pressure shot champions earned a much-needed 2-0 win astatine West Ham United.

Manchester United ended Crystal Palace’s nine-month unbeaten location tally with a 2-1 comeback victory, Aston Villa climbed into the apical 4 with a 1-0 triumph implicit lowly Wolverhampton Wanderers, and Brighton won 2-0 astatine Nottingham Forest to spell fifth.