Bellerin thunderbolt secures Arsenal a late point against Chelsea
Hector Bellerin's late equaliser ensured the spoils were shared in an entertaining encounter at the Emirates Stadium as Arsenal came from behind to secure a point in a 2-2 draw with defending champions Chelsea.
Alvaro Morata should really have put Chelsea ahead in the opening exchanges after latching on to a hopeful Victor Moses punt up field. A mix up in the Arsenal defence meant the Blues striker was afforded a one-on-one chance with Petr Cech, but he managed to drag his effort wide of the Arsenal post. The hosts then looked to make Chelsea pay for Morata’s miss, only to come up against an inspired Thibaut Courtois.
The Belgian exhibited his tremendous reflexes to turn an Alexis Sanchez effort from close range onto the post as Arsenal could only watch as the ball struck the post, trickle over the line to strike the other post and end up in Courtois’ hands. Alexandre Lacazette, seeking his ninth Premier League goal of the season, was then denied by the Chelsea shotstopper, who got down well to turn away the Frenchman’s low drive.
Cech was then called into action to palm a Tiemoue Bakayoko over the bar as both teams pressed for the opening goal. Marcos Alonso fired a free kick over the bar from 18 yards, while at the other end, Mesut Ozil pulled his effort just wide of Courtois’ far post as both teams strived to take an advantage in at the interval. Chelsea started the second half the brighter and it took two commendable saves by Cech to firstly deny Eden Hazard then turn a Marcos Alonso header behind for a corner as the Czech shotstopper chased his 200th Premier League clean sheet.
Lacazette then found himself in space in front of the Chelsea goal, but was again deny by Courtois following some excellent link up play by Alexis Sanchez and Ozil as the two goalkeepers excelled to keep the score level. However, as Arsenal pressed for the opener, Chelsea were unable to contain the Gunners with Jack Wilshere rifling past Courtois at his near post, his first league goal since May 2015. The hosts’ lead stood for just four minutes, though, as Hazard made no mistake from the spot after being brought down by Hector Bellerin.
Chelsea completed the turnaround with six minutes to play as Alonso netted from close range. Davide Zappacosta got the better of Ainsley Maitland-Niles down the Chelsea right before firing in a low cross for Alonso to bury past Cech. Deep into injury time, though, Hector Bellerin fired past Courtois having capitalised on Alonso’s poor defensive header to beat Belgium’s number one with a sumptuously struck half-volley. Chelsea could well have nicked it straight from kick off after the Gunners’ equaliser, but Cech was on hand to deny Morata, before Zappacosta rattled against the crossbar as the spoils were shared at the Emirates.
On the balance of play, a draw was perhaps a fair result in Chelsea’s trip to Arsenal, with neither team showing the necessary defensive solidity to warrant all three points. Games between these two have traditionally been won by one or the other over a period of their respective dominance, but Wednesday’s stalemate was evenly poised and an open affair that neither team perhaps deserved to win. It made for an entertaining encounter in north London and another game-of-the-season contender at the Emirates Stadium.
