Arsenal 2-2 Fulham: Player ratings as Palhinha snatches late point for Cottagers

Arsenal played out a breathless 2-2 draw at home to Fulham in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon.

The Gunners stumbled through large swathes of their opening two Premier League fixtures but managed to beat Nottingham Forest and Crystal Palace. Quick-fire goals from Bukayo Saka and Eddie Nketiah at the Emirates threatened to bail out Arteta's side once again but Joao Palhinha swept in a late equaliser for Fulham from a poorly defended corner.

Fulham nervily survived a late flurry of set pieces from Arsenal to emerge with a point.

A mere 57 seconds had elapsed before Fulham took the lead at the Emirates Stadium. Saka began a record-breaking appearance with a wayward back-pass which Andreas Pereira pounced upon. Aaron Ramsdale back-pedalled so furiously he tripped over his own toes while watching Pereira's chip bounce into his net.

This was not new territory for Arsenal. Mikel Arteta's side trailed after eight seconds when Bournemouth arrived at the Emirates last March before recovering to win 3-2 and took a point at home to Southampton in April despite falling behind in the first minute. The Gunners strayed towards desperation in their immediate attempts to make another comeback on Saturday but, in the process, left themselves open at the back.

The hosts repeatedly switched the play, flinging the ball from one flank to the other, in an attempt to tease open the tight stitching of Fulham's disciplined 4-4-2. At the culmination of one such first-half move, Saka almost made up for his early error but planted his header into the turf and over the crossbar.

A biblical downpour in north London added to the theatre of a contest where each minute felt like the 90th. Between the vicious thunderclaps, the Emirates crowd produced