• Arsenal forced to take only a point from Brentford clash
  • Gunners rested several players ahead of Real Madrid return
  • Result puts Liverpool slightly closer to Premier League title

Arsenal saw the Premier League title slip a little further out of sight on Saturday evening, with Brentford leaving the Emirates Stadium with a point following a 1-1 draw.

Neither side made masses of chances, but Thomas Partey handed Arsenal the lead with their first attempt of the second half around an hour in.

But the Gunners were unable to build on that and couldn’t really have many complaints when Yoane Wissa cancelled out that strike with an improvised finish of his own in the 74th minute.

How the game unfolded

It was a slow start from both teams in terms of creativity. Brentford quickly settled into a good rhythm and Arsenal didn’t do a great deal to test them, with threats thwarted as Ethan Nwaneri had an attempt blocked and Partey’s header across goal came to nothing.

The first clear opportunity went to the visiting Bees midway through the half, the overlapping Kristoffer Ajer firing a low effort saved by the legs of former Brentford stopper David Raya.

Arsenal started to up the tempo themselves thereafter and did have the ball in the net through Kieran Tierney. But the left-back’s glancing header was ruled offside.

As the half progressed, Ajer did well to throw himself in front of a goal-bound shot from Gabriel Martinelli, who had latched onto a diagonal ball into the box. Leandro Trossard later almost took out a pigeon that had landed on the Emirates turf with a fierce shot parried by Mark Flekken.

Arsenal kept that pressure up once the game resumed after the interval. It still wasn’t a case of chance after chance, but they deserved the lead when Partey popped at the hour mark. The counter attack moved from back to front in a matter of seconds, starting as Raya claimed a Brenford corner and quickly released. Declan Rice drove forwards with the ball and delivered a cross to an unmarked Partey, whose strong side-foot rippled the back of the net.

Brentford let a promising opportunity go begging with their own breakaway, frustratingly seeing Bryan Mbeumo’s attempted cross easily cut out. But they got a second bite at the cherry from the resultant corner, recycling the ball after an initial clearance and Wissa managing to hook it into the net on the spin when a cross came back into the box.

Arsenal ultimately had to finish the game with ten players when Jorginho suffered a late knock and Mikel Arteta had already used all five permitted substitutions.

Mikel Arteta made five changes from the team that started the 3-0 win over Real Madrid in midweek. Jurrien Timber, Martin Odegaard, Myles Lewis-Skelly and Mikel Merino all dropped to the bench. So too did Bukayo Saka.

Saka is not long back from a long-term hamstring injury and preserving his fitness for the remainder of the campaign is crucial, less so for the Premier League, but if the Gunners are to realise a genuine chance of claiming a first ever Champions League title.

It seemed abundantly clear in this game that the domestic front is no longer their priority.

The rotation also meant a first Premier League start for Kieran Tierney since May 2023, much to the delight of fans in the stadium and online. The Scotland international will shortly move on at the end of his contract, already confirmed to be returning to former club Celtic.

Emirates hangover

After arguably Arsenal’s greatest ever performance at the Emirates Stadium against the reigning European champions, it might have been expected that the next would be a bit flat.

It took a long time to get going, clear chances were at a minimum and the Gunners looked fairly laboured once Brentford got their equaliser.