{"id":1494,"date":"2025-12-01T18:43:27","date_gmt":"2025-12-01T18:43:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/badvibes.live\/?p=1494"},"modified":"2025-12-01T18:43:27","modified_gmt":"2025-12-01T18:43:27","slug":"what-arsenal-must-learn-as-chelsea-draw-shows-how-premier-league-title-race-will-be-decided","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/badvibes.live\/?p=1494","title":{"rendered":"What Arsenal must learn as Chelsea draw shows how Premier League title race will be decided"},"content":{"rendered":"

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After the physically and emotionally testing games against\u00a0Tottenham<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Bayern Munich<\/a>, perhaps\u00a0Arsenal<\/a>\u00a0would have been happy to settle for a point against title-rivals\u00a0Chelsea<\/a>.<\/p>\n

And yet, as\u00a0Mikel Arteta<\/a>\u00a0reflected on\u00a0Arsenal\u2019s 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge<\/a>, it is clear that he thought his side left something out there in Sunday\u2019s\u00a0feisty London derby<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u2018I think overall it\u2019s been a really positive week because the difficulty was immense,\u2019 the Spaniard began in his post-match press conference.<\/p>\n

\u2018But I have this flavour that today we should have and we could have won the game and we haven\u2019t. That\u2019s a learning point from it.\u2019<\/p>\n

That, in part, will be down to the nearly 60 minutes that the Gunners played against ten men after\u00a0Moises Caicedo was shown a straight red<\/a>\u00a0for a reckless challenge on Mikel Merino.<\/p>\n

In a game largely devoid of clear-cut chances, it was Chelsea who had the better of the proceedings in the early stages, with Estevao blazing over with an opportunity from 12 yards out inside the first 20 minutes.<\/p>\n

But even after Caicedo\u2019s dismissal, Maresca\u2019s side did not go into their shell as they had done in previous matches when going down to ten men. Sure, they ceded possession to the visitors, but they also showed bravery, breaking with a regular threat and even taking the lead through Trevoh Chalobah before\u00a0Mikel Merino\u2019s equaliser 11 minutes later<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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After Caicedo\u2019s red in the 38th minute, Chelsea had as many shots (eight) as Arsenal in the remaining two-thirds of the game, and ended the match as only the second team to record more than ten shots on Arsenal\u2019s goal in the league this season.<\/p>\n

The Gunners, meanwhile, struggled to impose their usual control on the game, perhaps not helped by the metronomic Martin Zubimendi making way on a yellow card before the hour mark.<\/p>\n

\u2018Two teams very willing to win, and not much football,\u2019 Arteta conceded post-match. He was right.<\/p>\n

But that lack of football created a bit of unwanted history for Arteta\u2019s side as they failed to win a league game in which their opponents received a first half red card for the first time since August 2010.<\/p>\n

\u2018We managed to get some good spells without having too much momentum and we score a great goal, and after that, we had two or three big chances but lacked certain detail, especially in the manner we attacked, and especially in certain positions,\u2019 he added.<\/p>\n

A hallmark of Arteta\u2019s tenure in north London has been his side\u2019s remarkable record against the \u2018big six\u2019. And barring an otherworldly free-kick from Dominic Szobozslai at Anfield, Arsenal would still be unbeaten against those sides this campaign.<\/p>\n

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But a draw against ten-man Chelsea on Sunday, combined with the below-par performances against both Manchester clubs and the defeat to Liverpool earlier in the season, points to an Arsenal side that are yet to produce their best in the league when the stakes are at their highest.<\/p>\n

Perhaps next weekend\u2019s trip to the Midlands to take on the in-form and fourth-place Aston Villa offers the perfect opportunity to silence those doubts.<\/p>\n

The Champions League mauling of Bayern Munich certainly shows a team that is capable, but Arteta\u2019s side must soon find that statement performance in the league to ensure the chasing pack doesn\u2019t gain any more encouragement behind them.<\/p>\n

Both Arteta and Maresca may want a day or two to recharge and reflect, but no such rest is afforded at this hectic time of the season.<\/p>\n

Arsenal and Chelsea now face another run of three games within seven days, pushing their squads to the limit in what has already been a gruelling start to the season.<\/p>\n

Arsenal were able to welcome back Viktor Gyokeres and Gabriel Jesus to their bench, but\u00a0an injury to William Saliba in training<\/a>\u00a0meant the Gunners named a starting lineup without the Frenchman or the also-injured Gabriel Magalhaes for just the second time since August 2021.<\/p>\n

Piero Hincapie and Cristhian Mosquerad deputised admirably on Sunday, perhaps a vindication of Arsenal\u2019s front-footed squad building over the summer after seeing last season\u2019s title charge derailled by injuries.<\/p>\n

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\u2018Our depth has been tested since pre-season, because we lost six or seven players constantly out of the squad, Arteta said. \u2018But I have no doubts with the squad we have and the mentality every player has.\u2019<\/p>\n

A three-match ban for Caicedo will test Chelsea\u2019s squad depth, too. Romeo Lavia and Dario Essugo remain injured, while James\u2019s chequered injury past means he might not be risked in midweek against Leeds after playing the full 90 on Sunday.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Sunday\u2019s match was evidence yet again that this is going to prove an intense and physically demanding league season. Long balls, long throws and winning duels are back in vogue, and teams will have to push themselves to the limit to keep up.<\/p>\n

One thing that cannot be doubted is Chelsea\u2019s credentials to be in that race. Even after his side\u2019s draw with the league leaders, Maresca was keen to kick any title talk into the long grass. But another impressive performance against a big side showed a young team that has already grown and learned from its past mistakes.<\/p>\n

\u2018Arsenal tonight, Barcelona the other day, Liverpool, PSG, these kind of games, for sure, they give to the players, you know, the confidence to grow and to believe,\u2019 Maresca admitted post-match.<\/p>\n

This year might not serve up the body-beautiful football that title races between Manchester City and Liverpool produced in years gone by, but the survival-of-the-fittest slugfest that has replaced it could be just as intriguing.<\/p>\n

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  After the physically and emotionally testing games against\u00a0Tottenham\u00a0and\u00a0Bayern Munich, perhaps\u00a0Arsenal\u00a0would have been happy to settle for a point against title-rivals\u00a0Chelsea. And yet, as\u00a0Mikel Arteta\u00a0reflected on\u00a0Arsenal\u2019s 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge, it is clear that he thought his side left something out there in Sunday\u2019s\u00a0feisty London derby. \u2018I think overall it\u2019s been a really positive […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1499,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1494","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t