Arsenal were denied victory by the woodwork, some heroic Burnley defending and the video assistant referee amid a dramatic late onslaught as Granit Xhaka’s error ultimately cost the Gunners dear.
After Xhaka’s errant pass struck Chris Wood for a bizarre equaliser to cancel out Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s opener, Arsenal piled on relentless pressure in the closing stages.
The Gunners thought they had been awarded a penalty against Erik Pieters but the spot-kick and the defender’s red card for deliberate handball were overturned by VAR after replays showed he had diverted Nicolas Pepe’s shot onto the bar with his shoulder.
That was not the end of the late drama as Ben Mee’s block denied Aubameyang a sure-fire winner in stoppage time before Calum Chambers crashed an effort against the post in his first league start for 14 months.
Ultimately, however, the blame for the dropped points will be laid at the door of Xhaka, who was sent off in the Gunners’ December defeat by Burnley and had another day to forget against the Clarets.
Receiving a short pass facing his own goal from keeper Bernd Leno, he tried to clip a square ball to David Luiz across the penalty area but succeeded only in hitting Wood in the midriff and the ball bounced into an empty net for the softest of levellers.
Buoyed by the unexpected gift, Burnley controlled a scrappy second half before Arsenal’s late siege but Leno first produced a fine save to keep out Erik Pieters’ dipping 30-yard volley, and then used his leg to deny Wood in a one-on-one.
A fifth successive home draw inches 15th-placed Burnley seven points clear of the Premier League bottom three, while Arsenal remain 10th, their hopes of a late push for European qualification hindered by two dropped points.
More to follow.
Player of the match
TarkowskiJames Tarkowski
Burnley
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Squad number5Player nameTarkowski
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Squad number9Player nameWood
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Squad number6Player nameMee
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Squad number23Player namePieters
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Squad number27Player nameVydra
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Squad number1Player namePope
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Squad number11Player nameMcNeil
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Squad number18Player nameWestwood
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Squad number19Player nameRodriguez
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Squad number3Player nameTaylor
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Squad number12Player nameBrady
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Squad number8Player nameBrownhill
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Squad number2Player nameLowton
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Squad number7Player nameGudmundsson
Line-ups
Burnley
Formation 4-4-2
- 1Pope
- 2Lowton
- 5Tarkowski
- 6Mee
- 3TaylorSubstituted forPietersat 63′minutesBooked at 71mins
- 7GudmundssonSubstituted forBradyat 68′minutes
- 18Westwood
- 8Brownhill
- 11McNeil
- 27VydraSubstituted forRodriguezat 86′minutes
- 9Wood
Substitutes
- 12Brady
- 15Peacock-Farrell
- 16Stephens
- 19Rodriguez
- 23Pieters
- 26Bardsley
- 28Long
- 34Dunne
- 41Benson
Arsenal
Formation 4-2-3-1
- 1Leno
- 21Chambers
- 23David Luiz
- 22MarÃ
- 3Tierney
- 18ParteySubstituted forCeballosat 80′minutes
- 34Xhaka
- 7SakaBooked at 55mins
- 11ØdegaardSubstituted forLacazetteat 63′minutes
- 12WillianSubstituted forPépéat 69′minutes
- 14Aubameyang
Substitutes
- 2BellerÃn
- 6Gabriel
- 8Ceballos
- 9Lacazette
- 16Holding
- 19Pépé
- 25Elneny
- 33Ryan
- 35Martinelli
Live Text
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Match ends, Burnley 1, Arsenal 1.
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Second Half ends, Burnley 1, Arsenal 1.
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Corner, Arsenal. Conceded by Matthew Lowton.
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Attempt blocked. Pablo Marà (Arsenal) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
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Dani Ceballos (Arsenal) hits the right post with a right footed shot from the centre of the box.
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Attempt missed. Bukayo Saka (Arsenal) left footed shot from the centre of the box is close, but misses to the right.
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Attempt blocked. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Arsenal) left footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked.
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Foul by Calum Chambers (Arsenal).
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Erik Pieters (Burnley) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Hand ball by Jay Rodriguez (Burnley).
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Foul by Nicolas Pépé (Arsenal).
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Dwight McNeil (Burnley) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Hand ball by Alexandre Lacazette (Arsenal).
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Attempt missed. Jay Rodriguez (Burnley) left footed shot from the left side of the box misses to the left.
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Offside, Arsenal. Kieran Tierney tries a through ball, but Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is caught offside.
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Substitution, Burnley. Jay Rodriguez replaces Matej Vydra.
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VAR Decision: No Penalty Arsenal.
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Attempt blocked. Nicolas Pépé (Arsenal) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Bukayo Saka with a cross.
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Attempt missed. Nicolas Pépé (Arsenal) left footed shot from the centre of the box misses to the right. Assisted by Kieran Tierney with a cross.
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Substitution, Arsenal. Dani Ceballos replaces Thomas Partey.
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