Neto makes point as Arsenal falter again

There were people on the pitch, Chelsea substitutes to be precise, the joy of everyone connected to the club overflowing. Pedro Neto had produced the equaliser with a vicious low drive from distance and if it did not turn out to be the statement victory that Enzo Maresca and his players wanted – a first against a so-called Big Six rival – they could see the merit in a battling draw.

- David Hytner

For Arsenal, this was a better performance than some of those of late and yet it was not the result that Mikel Arteta had called for, the one to silence the noise that has built around his club. It was another example of them losing the lead in a big game after the draws against Manchester City and Liverpool – and it meant they have not won in four Premier League games, a sequence that has yielded two points. They are now nine behind the leaders, Liverpool. Is it too much to recover?

At least they stopped the rot away from home after the losses at Bournemouth and Newcastle; in the Champions League at Inter on Wednesday night, too – all matches lost to nil.

Gabriel Martinelli gave them the promise of something glorious, finishing with power after a pass from Martin Ødegaard, who returned to the starting XI in impressive style. The captain's fitness was something; he probed until the very last. Neto, though, would snatch it all away.

Chelsea have been all about consistency of selection in the league under Maresca, although he had a decision to make at left-back. He went for Marc Cucurella over the club captain, Reece James, sticking with Malo Gusto at right-back. Maresca is no respecter of reputation.