Mehmet Ali's young Gunners made a return to action after a four-week hiatus, with an eventful 2-2 draw against Stoke City at the bet365 Stadium on Monday night.
Although we initially found ourselves on the back foot, a crucial stop from Ovie Ejeheri denied Jack Griffiths' shot inside the area, keeping the scoreline level.
Our first clear-cut opportunity arose ten minutes into the game, as Amario Cozier-Duberry set up Jimi Gower but his shot from the edge of the area narrowly missed the target. Moments later, Jack Henry-Francis found space in the box, but his goal-bound effort was thwarted by a determined Stoke defence.
Undeterred, we continued to apply pressure, with Cozier-Duberry once again showcasing his creativity by driving into the area and finding Ethan Nwaneri, whose shot was blocked. James Sweet attempted to capitalize on the rebound, but his follow-up effort met a similar fate, as Stoke's defence held firm under the mounting pressure.
Our well-deserved opening goal came courtesy of a penalty, awarded after Sweet was brought down by Jaden Mears inside the box. Cozier-Duberry confidently stepped up and expertly dispatched the penalty, sending Tommy Simkin the wrong way to give us the lead ten minutes before the break.
We started the second half on top and almost doubled our lead when Ayden Heaven connected with Gower’s free-kick but his header was saved. But, the hosts drew level against the run of play when Dara McGuinness met Griffith’s cross.
Almost immediately after kick-off, we were awarded a second penalty when Nathan Butler-Oyedeji was brought down by Jaden Dixon. However, Cozier-Duberry's penalty struck the outside of the post and went wide.
The hosts seized the lead when Dara McGuinness netted his second goal of the game, capitalising on Mears' pass and slotting the ball home from close range. However, Nwaneri swiftly brought us level with a delightful first-time strike into the bottom corner, marking his eighth goal in 10 Premier League 2 appearances this season.
We came agonizingly close to clinching victory right at the death, but Cozier-Duberry's effort was cleared off the line in the dying moments. Despite leaving with just a point, it was great to see Elian Quesada-Thorn make his first appearance since January 2023, as he came on for the final 15 minutes of the match.
What it means
The result sees us drop to fifth place with 32 points from 17 games played. However, we are just three points behind Fulham in third with a game in hand.
What's next
We're back in action next week as we host Aston Villa on Monday, April 15.
Kick-off at Meadow Park is at 7pm.
Team news
Arsenal XI: Ejeheri, Walters, Foran (Quesada-Thorn, 75), Heaven, Sweet, Lewis-Skelly (Kamara, 90+1) Henry-Francis, Nwaneri (Oulad M’Hand, 75) Cozier-Duberry, Gower, Butler-Oyedeji
Subs not used: Rojas, Robinson
Copyright 2024 The Arsenal Football Club Limited. Permission to use quotations from this article is granted subject to appropriate credit being given to www.arsenal.com as the source.
