Mikel Arteta admitted he was ‘disappointed’ after his Arsenal side were held to a 1-1 draw by a 10-man Chelsea side at Stamford Bridge, but said his team ‘gave everything’ in the clash.
Moises Caicedo saw red for a dangerous tackle on Mikel Merino in the 38th minute, but that didn’t stop Chelsea taking the lead early in the second half, thanks to a header from a corner from Trevoh Chalobah.
Arsenal struggled to dominate the game despite having a numerical advantage, though they did find an equaliser as Mikel Merino headed home from an excellent Bukayo Saka cross.
The Gunners pushed for a winner, but clear-cut chances after that were few and far between. A lot of credit must go to Chelsea for their attitude and defensive resilience.
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Speaking after the game, Arteta (via Teamtalk) said: “Right from the beginning, you could sense how much was at stake. Every duel and action was full gas, very short sequences of play. With the 10 men, we expected a different game, we plan it, we went through it in the second half. They get a free kick and they score. Then it becomes a very tricky game to play. Overall, I think that when you don’t win with 10 men for 45 minutes, you have to be disappointed. But you have to know the week we had, a tough opponent.”
“They did everything they can again. They’ve never played together so we need to build that synergy. There were a lot of things happening before the game. The spirit of the team is in tact. We’ve had a massive week both mentally and physically and I think overall it’s a positive week.”
