Arsenal had David Luiz sent off before the half-hour mark but Hector Bellerin ensured they left Chelsea with a point.
Hector Bellerin marked his Arsenal return with a dramatic late goal for the 10-man Gunners as they salvaged a hard-fought 2-2 draw against Chelsea.
After six weeks out with a hamstring injury, Bellerin – named captain for the game by Mikel Arteta – curled home from 18 yards with three minutes remaining after Cesar Azpilicueta thought he had won the game for the Blues.
Chelsea took the lead in the 28th minute when Jorginho slotted home a penalty after David Luiz was shown a red card on his return to Stamford Bridge for bundling over Tammy Abraham in his attempt to bail Shkodran Mustafi out for a loose pass.
Arsenal did well to stay in the game and after Gabriel Martinelli cancelled out the opener, and Bellerin ensured Chelsea’s jubilation following Azpilicueta’s 84th-minute volley was short-lived.
Callum Hudson-Odoi was lively early on and, after his delivery ended with Abraham sending a header too close to Bernd Leno, he hit the crossbar when curling the ball in from the left wing.
The Blues got the goal they deserved when Abraham latched onto Mustafi’s loose pass and rounded Leno before being taken down by David Luiz, with Jorginho coolly slotting the penalty into the bottom-right corner.
Arteta reshuffled his pack instead of using a substitute and Chelsea struggled to stay on top.
Martinelli punished the Blues in the 63rd minute. He latched onto Mustafi’s headed clearance from a corner, raced from well inside his own half and placed a composed finish beyond Kepa Arrizabalaga after N’Golo Kante’s costly slip.
Bellerin clapping as he celebrates with fans and teammates
Chelsea pushed for a winner late on and thought they had it when Azpilicueta stabbed Hudson-Odoi’s cross past Leno at the near post.
However, the Gunners quickly hit back with Bellerin cutting inside Abraham, who appeared to be struggling with an injury after sliding into the hoardings at the other end, and guiding the ball into the bottom-left corner.
Substitute Michy Batshuayi had a chance to clinch all three points for Frank Lampard’s men, but he miscued wide to leave the Stamford Bridge crowd deflated.
