Arsenal 1-1 Brentford: Player ratings as Gunners held by resilient Bees

Arsenal were held to a 1-1 draw by Brentford at Emirates Stadium as Thomas Partey's opener was cancelled out by a Yoane Wissa strike.

Mikel Arteta played it safe when naming his starting XI to face the Bees, giving the likes of Bukayo Saka, Jurrien Timber and Myles Lewis-Skelly a much-needed rest. Thomas Partey made the shift to right back while Kieran Tierney and Oleksandr Zinchenko were among the names to come into the side.

The first half-chance went Brentford's way when Bryan Mbeumo played a nice pass through for Kristoffer Ajer to strike at goal, but his effort was well stopped by David Raya. The Gunners thought they had found the breakthrough soon after when Kieran Tierney headed in from an Ethan Nwaneri cross, but the Scotsman was ruled to have been offside.

Both sides caused problems following the disallowed goal but it was Arsenal who went closest on two occasions. Gabriel Martinelli brought down a lofted ball from Jorginho, but his effort was blocked well by Ajer. Just before the break, Leandro Trossard picked the ball up 30 yards from goal and cut onto his left foot to unleash a strike that was palmed away by Mark Flekken, ensuring it was level at half-time.

Arsenal finally got on the scoresheet on the hour mark when Raya rolled the ball out quick from a corner for Rice to pick up and drive deep into the Brentford half. He played a pass for Thomas Partey to fire in from the right side of the box.

A series of substitutions saw the Gunners bring some stronger names into the game, but that couldn't stop the visitors from levelling it up. A cross was played deep into the box and Nathan Collins headed it back across for Yoane Wissa to fire in with an improvised finish.

Saka almost put his side back ahead instantly when he robbed Flekken of the ball but he couldn't set himself in time to shoot and was tackled well. Arsenal continued to push to find a winner but couldn't break through as they had to play the final minutes with 10 men after Jorginho hobbled off with injury.

The 1-1 draw with Brentford sees Arsenal remain second, 10 points behind Liverpool. However, with the Reds still to play this weekend, that gap could widen once again. The Gunners' focus will now turn to their second-leg trip to Real Madrid in midweek, where they will look to hold onto their 3-0 aggregate lead.

Here are the Arsenal player ratings from their draw with Brentford.

Arsenal 1-1 Brentford player ratings

Goalkeeper & Defenders

David Raya (GK) - 7/10 - Made a nice save to deny Ajer the opening goal in the first half. Played some nice long passes up the pitch. Started the build-up to the opener with a quick rollout from a corner. Not much he could do about the equaliser.

Thomas Partey (RB) - 8/10 - Adapted to the position switch well as he made a number of runs up the pitch to help out on the right side. Played in some troubling crosses that caused problems for the Brentford defence. Grabbed the eventual winner with a well-taken strike from the right side of the box before being taken off with 20 to play.

William Saliba (CB) - 8/10 - Dealt with the Brentford threat well and enjoyed some battles against Schade. Was actually a source of creativity for his side as he did really well to get up the pitch numerous times and kickstart attacks. Showed real drive and energy. Outjumped by Collins for the equaliser.

Jakub Kiwior (CB) - 7/10 - Another solid performance at the back and he didn't really put a foot wrong. Got across the pitch well to make an emphatic clearance amid a Brentford attack in the first half.

Kieran Tierney (LB) - 7/10 - Making his first Premier League start since May 2023, he thought he had put his side ahead with a nice header midway through the first half but was adjudged to have strayed offside. Did what was required of him defensively, battling well with Mbeumo. Taken off just after the opener.

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