Arsenal stay top of u18 PL after comeback draw with Chelsea | OneFootball

Arsenal remain top of the u18 Premier League South after a 1-1 draw with Chelsea on Saturday.

Photo via Arsenal.com

Arsenal had made an excellent start to the new u18 campaign ahead of the first international break, winning three games in a row to go top of the league table. But the team faced their biggest test so far on Saturday, playing against Chelsea.

Chelsea had also made a faultless start to the new season, and they took the lead against the young Gunners in the 25th minute.

But Arsenal didn’t crumble, and 12 minutes later the Gunners drew level. Ceadach O’Neill sent in a free-kick and Abraham Owusu-Gyasi headed towards goal, but his slightly off-target effort was turned in by Callan Hamill for 1-1.

Photo via Arsenal.com

The goal was Hamill’s first in an Arsenal shirt, having joined the club from St. Johnstone this summer.

For anyone experiencing déjà vu, there had been reports that Hamill had scored his first goal for the Arsenal u18s against Birmingham City before the international break.

But that goal was later credited to Sam Chapman instead, so this effort against Chelsea was actually his first.

Photo via O’Neill on Instagram

O’Neill went close to giving Arsenal a late win, but his shot was tipped wide of the post by a fingertips save, and the match ultimately finished 1-1. The point was enough to keep the young Gunners top of the u18 Premier League South, though Chelsea have a game in hand to catch up.

The result was particularly impressive as Arsenal u18 boss Adam Birchall had been juggling the upcoming UEFA Youth League game coming up on Tuesday.

“Thinking about the lead-up to this game, there were certain decisions around who would play what game with the UEFA Youth League coming up, which created an opportunity for other players to play in the game,” Birchall admitted.

“When I analyse it always from a mentality perspective, as a starting point, I’m so proud of them. In the first-half, I think they struggled to break us down. The lads carried out the game plan superbly.

“In the second half, we had to sit deep, but we also probably had the biggest chance in the game with Ceadach at the end to win it.

“Obviously, as a group of lads, that’s exciting as well, to know that we’re very young today and there’s more to come from this group. Just incredibly proud of it.”

Arsenal u18 lineup vs Chelsea

Porter, Owusu-Gyasi, Chapman, Onyekachukwu, Hamill, Murisa, Thompson, Julienne, O’Neill, Hashi, Ogunnaike

Substitutes

Bailey-Joseph (for Thompson, 58), Frohock (for Owusu-Gyasi, 81), Phillips (for Julienne, 90+3), Tahou, Talbot

What’s next?

As mentioned, the Arsenal u19s play Athletic Club in the opening game of the UEFA Youth League on Tuesday, mirroring the first-team game. The u19 side will be comprised of largely the same group of players as the u18s, perhaps with some additions from the u21s dropping down.

The u18s will then be back in action in earnest next Saturday, September 20th, hosting Ipswich Town.