Arsenal and Chelsea played out a highly entertaining 2-2 at the Emirates as the two London sides got their accounts for 2018 up and running with a thriller.
Jack Wilshere gave the Gunners the lead in the second half before an Eden Hazard penalty saw Chelsea equalise. Marcos Alonso then looked to have won the game for the Blues with six minutes left but Hector Bellerin popped up in injury time to make it 2-2.
Arsenal were at their free flowing best in attack but once again had defensive issues. However how did the team fare individually?
Goalkeeper and defence:
Petr Cech - 7: The Arsenal keeper had a strong game for the most part and made some crucial saves, especially in the second half to deny Hazard and Alvaro Morata late on. Some people may still question his ability at the highest level but tonight was one of his better displays this season, even if he has yet to keep out a penalty for the club. That elusive 200th Premier League clean-sheet still seems out of reach too.
Calum Chambers - 5: Not a particularly strong display from the young centre half who looked out of his depth at times. His composure was questionable and he gave the ball away on a couple of occasions. It was his third consecutive league start as Arsenal look to deal with their defensive injuries and you have to feel as though it won't be too long before he is out of the team again.
Shkodran Mustafi - 6: The best of Arsenal's three men in defence but that isn't saying much based on Wednesday night's evidence. He made some important tackles but was left exposed on a number of occasions by those either side of him.
Rob Holding - 5: Holding seems to have been starved of first team chances this season and after Chambers was selected ahead of him in the Gunners' draw with West Brom at the few weekend it seems he has slipped down the pecking order. His performance didn't provide much to shout about and he was caught ball watching for Chelsea's second goal. He has plenty of potential and with more game time that will start to be seen.
Wing backs/midfield:
Hector Bellerin - 6: Another strange performance from a player who is failing to live up to his potential at the moment. The Spaniard has moments of class but as he showed against Chelsea looks unconvincing at times, especially when sticking a foot in on Hazard to give away a penalty. In his role as a right wing back he seems undecided of when to make the run forward and when to make the pass to a team mate and that is something that needs addressing. He did however score the Arsenal equaliser and he deserves praise for steering home a difficult opportunity late on.
Ainsley Maitland-Niles - 7: There seems to be plenty of hype around the England U20 World Cup winner at the moment and the confidence and maturity he seems to be showing is the main reason for that. Playing out of position he has seized his opportunity at left wing back and hasn't looked out of his depth. Despite that, he isn't setting the world alight yet and it's important fans don't get ahead of themselves too much when discussing the versatile youngster.
Granit Xhaka - 6: Another fairly average display from the Swiss midfielder. We all know his passing range is exceptional but he didn't do much in the game to really have an impact. His time at Arsenal was rather summed up by a misplaced pass late on in the game. With Arsene Wenger's side on the break he had the chance to slot in a team mate to potentially make it 3-2 but his pass was over hit and had no chance of finding the runner.
Jack Wilshere - 7: Get him on the plane. It's as simple as that. England need a performing Wilshere at the World Cup and his performance against Chelsea showed why he should be in Gareth Southgate's plans for Russia. He was perhaps lucky to have stayed on the pitch when the referee missed what appeared to be a dive and a second yellow card, but his all round display aside from that was excellent and was capped off with the opening goal. Picking up a loose ball inside the area he was able to smash the ball home for his second goal in all competitions this season. Surely it's time he gets a new contract?
Attack:
Mesut Ozil - 8: Arsenal's best player on the night was easily their German play maker, and much like Jack Wilshere the Gunners will be hoping they can sort out a new deal for him. Ozil touched the ball more times (105) than any other player on the pitch and that summed up his desire to get on the ball. Dropping deep and into wider areas he was able to have a big effect on the game and was quite unlucky not to score, driving wide in the first half.
Alexis Sanchez - 6: The Chilean has been back in form in recent weeks but struggled to make a real impact against Chelsea. Despite that he was denied a goal by a brilliant save from Thibaut Courtois. Sanchez picked the ball up and then fired a shot which the Belgium keeper got a hand to, pushing it onto the post before the ball bobbled across the line and hit the opposite post. January will be an interesting month for Sanchez and it will be intriguing to see whether he is still an Arsenal player come the end of the window.
Alexandre Lacazette - 6: Arsenal's record signing looks short of confidence at the moment and he just can't seem to find the net. His link up play has been impressive and it wasn't really an area of his game pundits were aware of when he first arrived in England. However what Arsenal need him to do is score goals and if it wasn't for Courtois he would have had one against Chelsea.
Substitutes:
Danny Welbeck - N/A: Only had ten minutes to make an impact and failed to do anything productive. Had a good opportunity to pull the ball back into the path of the waiting Sanchez or Ozil but a Chelsea defender stepped in to block his cross.
Theo Walcott - N/A: His evening only lasted two minutes plus stoppage time as he barely touched the ball.