Ten-man Chelsea battled to a 1-1 draw against Premier League leaders Arsenal in a fiery London derby at Stamford Bridge.
Moises Caicedo was sent off in the first half after VAR upgraded his yellow card to a red for a studs-up challenge on Mikel Merino, making him the fourth Chelsea player to be dismissed this season.
Despite the numerical advantage, Arsenal struggled to break down a disciplined Chelsea side. The Gunners eventually equalised when Bukayo Saka twisted past his marker on the right and delivered a precise cross for makeshift striker Mikel Merino to head into the far corner.
With more than 30 minutes left to play, Arsenal looked poised to push for a winner, but they created few clear chances. Merino came closest, forcing Robert Sánchez into a sharp save from the edge of the box, but Arsenal managed only eight attempts to Chelsea’s 11.
The league leaders were without first-choice centre-backs William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhães for just the second time in 162 Premier League games. They also flirted with disciplinary trouble of their own, picking up six bookings — four of them in a tempestuous first half.
Chelsea were left angered by a yellow card shown to Arsenal defender Piero Hincapié for an elbow on Trevoh Chalobah that left the defender with a bruised cheek.
The hosts continued to threaten on the counter, with substitute Liam Delap drawing a save from David Raya late on. In the end, Chelsea fans applauded a hard-earned point — while wondering what might have been had Caicedo stayed on the pitch.
