Arsenal’s impressive defensive run came to an end dramatically as they were held to a 2-2 draw by Sunderland in the Premier League. Despite ending their 881-minute goal drought, the Gunners could not secure the victory, losing their five-match league winning streak.
Arsenal Ends Long Goal Drought
After suffering an early-season defeat to Liverpool, Mikel Arteta’s side had enjoyed a remarkable spell — eight clean sheets across all competitions. Facing newly promoted Sunderland, who returned to the Premier League after eight years, they finally found the net again.
The breakthrough came in the 36th minute when former academy player Dan Ballard scored against his old club, marking Arsenal’s first goal since September 28.
Bukayo Saka equalised after the break with a fine low strike, reigniting Arsenal’s attacking rhythm. Minutes later, Leandro Trossard fired from outside the box to put the Gunners ahead.
Late Drama Denies Arsenal Full Points
However, the drama didn’t end there. In stoppage time, Sunderland’s Brian Brobbey scored a last-minute equaliser, forcing Arsenal to settle for a point. Despite the draw, Arsenal remains at the top of the table with 26 points from 11 matches.
Manager Mikel Arteta shared his frustration after the game, saying,
“𝑰 𝒇𝒆𝒍𝒕 𝒂 𝒑𝒂𝒊𝒏 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒚 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒎𝒂𝒄𝒉. 𝑰 𝒅𝒐𝒏’𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒅𝒆 𝒂 𝒈𝒐𝒂𝒍. 𝑰𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒂 𝒈𝒐𝒂𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒎𝒂𝒅𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝒅𝒊𝒇𝒇𝒊𝒄𝒖𝒍𝒕.”
Expressing disappointment over the missed opportunity, he added,
“𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒆𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒔 𝒅𝒊𝒔𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒐𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒘𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒆𝒆 𝒑𝒐𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒘𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒈𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒂 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝒅𝒊𝒇𝒇𝒊𝒄𝒖𝒍𝒕 𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒄𝒉.”
Even with the draw, their resilience and return to scoring form offer positives as they continue their Premier League title charge.
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