Valiant Fulham hold Arsenal to 2-2 draw

Arsenal dropped their first points of the 2023/24 Premier League season as Fulham held the Gunners to an enthralling 2-2 draw at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday. Andreas Pereira opened the scoring for the visitors in the rollercoaster encounter inside 60 seconds before the Gunners hit back in the second half, scoring two goals in the space of two minutes.

Things went from bad to worse for Marcos Silva’s side when Calvin Bassey was sent off, but Fulham showed tremendous character to level the scores with 10 men, earning a hard-fought 2-2 draw against their London rivals.

The Cottagers remained winless on each of their last 30 league trips to Arsenal but got off to the perfect start at the Emirates Stadium as Andreas Pereira found the back of the net after just 56 seconds. The Brazilian pounced on a misplaced pass from Bukayo Saka and wrong-footed a backpedalling Aaron Ramsdale with his long range effort into an empty net to put Fulham 1-0 in front on their travels.

Arsenal dominated the possession and parked themselves in the opposition half after the early goal but couldn’t find the final pass needed in a frustrating first period. Former Arsenal shot-stopper Bernd Leno denied Gabriel Martinelli and Martin Odegaard to keep the Gunners at bay before the break, and it wasn’t until Mikel Arteta turned to his bench in the second half that Arsenal clicked into gear.

The introduction of Eddie Nketiah and Fabio Vieira helped turn the game in the hosts’ favour in the second period. The Portuguese was instrumental in forcing the equaliser, earning a penalty after being clumsily brought down in the box by Kenny Tete, which Bukayo Saka calmly slotted home in the 70th minute to draw Arsenal level. Two minutes later, Fabio Viera combined with fellow substitute Eddie Nketiah, teeing up the English striker with an inviting cross to help Arsenal take a 2-1 lead, much to the delight of the partisan crowd.

The Gunners’ advantage grew in the closing stages when summer signing Calvin Bassey received a second booking for impeding Eddie Nketiah on a counter, forcing Fulham to survive the final eight minutes plus stoppage time a man down. However, in an incredible turn of events, the ten men of Fulham stunned last season’s runners ups, with Joao Palhinha pouncing on some lacklustre Arsenal defending from a corner to draw level at 2-2.

Adama Traore could have even won it for the visitors at the death, but Aaron Ramsdale proved equal to the Spaniard’s effort to ensure the spoils were shared after a dramatic Premier League outing in North London.