Chelsea and Arsenal draw produces fireworks, cards galore and plenty of drama in seismic showdown

Tempers were already running high at that point, with Marc Cucurella, Ricardo Calafiori, Cristhian Mosquera and Martin Zubimendi already in the book.

But things escalated when Caicedo lunged in to tackle Mikel Merino, with his studs showing high.

The Ecuardo international was initially shown a yellow by referee Anthony Taylor, who found himself swiftly surrounded by both sets of players.

However, after being advised to check the monitor by VAR officials, that decision was later upgraded to a red.

Chelsea, at that point, could have been forgiven for fearing the worst. Arsenal, after all, have been the best team in the country so far this term with Mikel Arteta's men widely expected to go all the way.

But there is a spirit, a resolve, about this Blues team that shows why they're the Gunners' closest rivals at the top of the table.

And Trevoh Chalobah sparked wild celebrations around the ground when he headed the Blues in front just three minutes after the restart.

The defender, who had once been deemed surplus to requirements by Enzo Maresca, rose magnificently to power a Reece James corner into the Arsenal goal.

First blood Chelsea, then.

Supporters were daring to dream of a sensational win that would have seen them move just three points behind Arteta's men.

Yet Arsenal have a robustness of their own and, in the 59th minute of the contest, finally managed to break Chelsea's resolve.

Merino, fine to play after being crocked by Caicedo earlier in the fixture, converted brilliantly inside the box following fine work from Bukayo Saka.

It was a huge goal for Arsenal and Arteta, who celebrated widly on the touchline before composing himself and urging his players to go for a winner.

As the match ticked on, it continued to be high-octane.

More players joined their teammates in the book, with Piero Hincapié booked.

Arteta, eager to see Arsenal find a crucial goal, threw on striker Viktor Gyokeres in the hope that the Swede would deliver the goods.

He found himself in the middle of controversy, however, with the former Sporting Lisbon star booked late on for a bruising tackle on Blues goalkeeper Robert Sanchez.

In the end, neither side could find another goal.

Chelsea will be happiest after digging so deep, despite being a man down.

As for Arsenal, Arteta will undoubtedly consider this two points dropped - rather than one gained.