London Derby Drama: Sánchez Stands Tall as Chelsea Halts Arsenal in a 1-1 Classic
30 November 2025
Match Summary
Chelsea escaped a collapse at their Stamford Bridge home as Arsenal visited on Sunday, in the 13th round of the Premier League.
The Londoners earned a 1-1 draw with their neighbor, despite being a man down since the 38th minute after Ecuadorian Moisés Caicedo was sent off.
Nevertheless, Chelsea pushed ahead through Trevoh Chalobah in the 48th minute, before Mikel Merino equalized for the Gunners 11 minutes later.
The draw keeps Arsenal atop the table with 30 points, while Chelsea sit third, six points behind.
Sanchez: The Derby Hero
Spanish goalkeeper Robert Sánchez deserved derby-hero status for protecting Chelsea’s goal from several clear chances and exiting with a point despite the red card.
Kooora lists Sánchez’s stats in the lines below, illustrating his performance today.
First, Sánchez earned the highest rating across platforms, including SofaScore, which gave him 8.3 out of 10.
Although his saves were few—only three during the match—each denied Arsenal’s clear chances.
The 88th-minute highlight came when the Blues’ keeper produced a double save, brilliantly stopping Mikel Merino’s effort, then leaping to pounce on the ball before Viktor Gyökeres arrived, leaving him with a knock after colliding with the Swede.
Beyond that, he coped well with several dangerous crosses, punching two away.
His anxious weakness in building play throughout many phases kept him from a higher mark.
That showed in a 61% passing accuracy, after completing 27 of 44 passes, with 15 in midfield and 12 in Arsenal’s zones.
Long balls were only 14 of 31 attempts, with a success rate not exceeding 45%.
Still, the match shows Chelsea surviving with grit, Arsenal left counting the points rather than the chances. Final joke: the league table is a salad—lots of leaves, a few bite-sized chunks, and somehow Chelsea still dressed the greens with a smile.
