Our under-21s were held to a 2-2 draw by Derby County at Meadow Park on Friday night.
Second-half goals from Michal Rosiak and Andre Harriman-Annous gave us the lead midway through the second half, but a late equaliser from the visitors meant we had to settle for a share of the spoils.
What Happened
We started brightly, with Salah combining down the right-hand side with Ismeal Kabia. His cross found Nathan Butler-Oyedeji, whose effort was deflected behind for a corner.
Shortly after, Kabiaâs surging run down the flank led to a pinpoint cross for Louie Copley, who almost guided his header on target. Moments later, Salah tried his luck from a free-kick 30 yards out, but his effort was comfortably saved by Rams goalkeeper Harry Evans.
Despite dominating possession and creating several openings, we couldnât find the breakthrough.
It was Derby who struck first against the run of play, as Cruz Allen drove to the edge of the area and fired past our goalkeeper to put the visitors ahead.
We had a golden opportunity to level early in the second half when Copley was brought down in the box. However, Butler-Oyedejiâs spot-kick was well saved by Evans.
After the break, we turned the game on its head with two goals in three minutes. First, Will Sweet delivered an excellent cross to the far post, where Rosiak brought the ball down and rifled it into the top corner to make it 1-1.
Soon after, Salah slid a perfectly weighted through ball into the path of Harriman-Annous, who coolly slotted home to give us the lead.
But with just a minute remaining of normal time, Derby equalised when Justin Oguntolu was left unmarked in the box and headed home to secure a last-gasp point for the visitors.
What It Means
The draw moves us to 33 points from 19 Premier League 2 matches.
Whatâs Next?
Our under-21s will conclude their Premier League 2 regular season campaign away to West Bromwich Albion on Monday, 14 April.
Kick-off at Damson Park is scheduled for 7pm (UK time).
Line-Ups
Arsenal XI: Ranson, Rosiak, Salmon, Sweet, Washington, Henry-Francis, Copley, Salah (Edwards, 78) Kabia, Butler-Oyedeji (Sagoe Jr, 60), Harriman-Annous (Casey, 86)
Subs (not used): Porter, Quesada-Thorn
Derby County XI: Evans, Turley, Moloney, Osayande, Canoville, Hawkins, Allen (Gill, 84), Robinson, Washington (Oguntulu, 46) Eames, Davidson (Agustien, 46)
Subs (not used): Tola, Shattell
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