An injury-hit Arsenal side was only able to salvage a 1-1 draw against Norwich City at Carrow Road on Sunday evening.
Mesut Özil opened the scoring on the half-hour mark with a delightful finish over John Ruddy, before Lewis Grabban levelled the scores two minutes before the half time interval. The result sees the Gunners sit in fourth place, two points adrift of leaders Manchester City, while Norwich hover three points above the drop zone in 16th.
Arsenal’s injury woes keep on coming
Despite Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain returning to first team action at Carrow Road and Theo Walcott nearing a comeback, Arsene Wenger saw two of his star men hobble off injured on Sunday in the form of Laurent Koscielny and Alexis Sanchez. Koscielny left the field writhing in pain after only 10 minutes, while star man Sanchez was forced off with a hamstring injury midway through the second half. With a hectic festive season schedule looming, the absence of two of the club’s stars will certainly cause headaches for Arsene Wenger.
Özil continues his rich vein of form
The German playmaker played a staring role for Wenger’s side on Sunday. Özil had already made Premier League history by recording assists in seven consecutive matches and although he was unable to make it eight at Carrow Road, the former Real Madrid star did manage to find his second goal of the season with a gorgeous dinked finish over the onrushing Ruddy. The Gunners’ record signing looks to finally be coming of age this season and has been involved in 13 of Arsenal’s goals in their last 12 matches.
Cech continues to justify his signing
Were it not for the former Chelsea stopper, Wenger’s men would not have amassed the number of points they have this season thus far. In truth, the Czech gloveman did not have very much to do throughout the game, but his jaw-dropping reflex save from a fizzing cross with 15 minutes left on the clock helped the Gunners claim a point in a largely unconvincing performance at Carrow Road.
Lewis Grabban’s incredible turnaround
In a weekend that also saw former non-league footballer Jamie Vardy break Ruud van Nistelrooy’s record by scoring in 11 consecutive matches, Norwich’s Grabban netted his first ever goal in the top flight after spinning past Gabriel and slotting home past the seemingly impassable Petr Cech. A remarkable change in fortunes when you consider the former Rotherham forward’s future at Norwich was in doubt not too long ago and has only been handed four league starts this season.
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