Arsenal throw away two points in draw against Fulham: A habit for late drama costs the Gunners

Unforced errors early and late cost Mikel Arteta's side, ruining a good performance between the two goals they conceded

LONDON -- It is becoming a familiar experience at the Emirates Stadium, Arsenal chasing one last dopamine rush as the clock winds into the 100th minute and beyond. A score, any score will do, and there's precious little time to acquire it. Doesn't that make it all the sweeter when it eventually arrives though?

Still, North London is finding there's no hit quite like the first, no rush that can replicate the moment when the ball dropped to Reiss Nelson just inside the Bournemouth penalty area and with a swing of his left boot he sent 57,000 into convulsions of ecstasy. Now, after a 2-2 draw with Fulham, all Arsenal are getting is that sinking feeling.

It can't keep happening this often. A serious Premier League contender does not make a habit of playing 89 minutes handicapped by a mistake of their own making, hamstrung for the best part of an hour by tactics that do not put some of their best players in their best positions. Arsenal have everything they need to at least establish themselves as the kings of the Premier League in waiting but their addiction to the dramatic will only serve them poorly over the next 35 games.

For the third time in the last nine Premier League games, Arsenal found themselves chasing parity before much of the Emirates Stadium had settled down. Just as had been the case against Southampton and Bournemouth, basic errors handed the initiative to the sort of opponent who title winners should expect to sweep aside long before the final whistle. Despite being put under exceptional when Declan Rice delivered a high ball into him as two Fulham players converged on his position, Bukayo Saka might have done much better than to knock the ball back to nowhere in particular.

Andreas Pereira stole in, bending the ball into the space vacated by Aaron Ramsdale as he back-pedalled too far, too swiftly. Here came Arsenal's shock therapy, repeated exposure to the travails of last season, the sheer emotional heft of the moment they thought the title was destined for them when they beat Bournemouth, and the Friday night they threw it away. No wonder they were so leaden-footed.

It did not help that their system seemed purpose built to slow them down. Thomas Partey might be a strong ball carrier through midfield with a track record of competence as a right back for Atletico Madrid, but he inverts with all the conscious incompetence of a student driver. By no stretch of the imagination is the Ghanaian a bad passer, but he is much more effective dribbling through pressure than threading the eye of the needle. Carrying the ball could well be a greater risk if you are the one who is supposed to drop back into position after any turnovers.

To add to the sense that Arsenal had their plan all wrong, Ben White would still offer infrequent reprisals of his role as an overlapping right back of real quality, delivering one superb pass to Leandro Trossard in the first half. Unfortunately for the hosts, he was all too often needed further back down the pitch, ready for the counters that Fulham would look to spring into the space Partey had left in his wake.

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There were flashes of the best version of Arsenal in the first half, particularly when Gabriel Martinelli charged towards the byline, but Arteta's assessment that his side were "10 times better, at least" than they had been in beating Fulham last season was at best a curious way to assess this team. Maybe they were better than a fairly ordinary early season display in 2022-23, but for nearly an hour this was nothing like the performance they have proven themselves capable of delivering.

Not until the introduction of Fabio Vieira and Oleksandr Zinchenko did Arsenal justify Arteta's lofty post-match assessment. "The way the team played, the way the team generates [positions and opportunities], any other sport you win by 100 points difference," he insisted. Maybe when his substitutes brought Arsenal back to a system reminiscent of last season's best moments. The latter brought his customary zip in possession and shrewd positioning; Arsenal supporters should hope Partey was taking note.

The revelation, however, was Vieira, a player whose form had fell away in his first season after a £35 million move from Porto. Weaving around his close friend Gabriel Martinelli, the Portuguese youngster looked reborn, drawing Kenny Tete into committing a penalty on a clumsy tackle from which Bukayo Saka levelled the scores. Two minutes later Vieira fizzed a ball into the near post and the impressive Eddie Nketiah, on for Trossard at the interval, turned it home. Marco Silva raged that play had continued while Calvin Bassey was down, he was all the more indignant that the center back got two bookings for time wasting and a clumsy foul on Nketiah. "That first yellow card is a joke," said the Fulham boss.

When Bassey exited it ought to have been plain sailing for Arsenal. What fun would that have been though? Joao Palhinha got the goal his performance deserved when he met Harrison Reed's corner and the hosts had another of those grandstand finishes they can't help but come back to. Gabriel Jesus' return, a saved stunning bicycle kick from Fabio Vieira: there were all the hooks you could wish for, but this time the rush never came.