Brentford emerged with a point from a breathless encounter against league leaders Arsenal on Thursday night, with the Bees blending structure and disruption to cause the Gunners serious problems.

Harnessing the momentum built by successive away wins over Aston Villa and Newcastle, Brentford produced another all-action display - one that could have a serious impact on the title race, with Arsenal’s lead at the top now standing at four points at the end of Gameweek 26.

The fascinating contest in west London saw the two sides locked at 0-0 at the interval. However, Mikel Arteta’s men took the lead through Noni Madueke on 61 minutes, only for Keane Lewis-Potter to haul the Bees level with a diving header ten minutes later.

Lewis-Potter described the latter stages as “a bit crazy”, while Bees head coach Keith Andrews called it “a game that had everything”. And the post-match statistics suggest Brentford shaded the contest.

It may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but the expected goals metric can be helpful when assessing the relative quality of chances created - and the hosts clearly won the battle of the xG at Gtech Community Stadium.

The Bees generated 1.51 xG across the game, almost double Arsenal’s 0.88 xG, while Andrews’ side fired in 12 shots to the Gunners’ seven.

Arsenal’s xG difference against Brentford (-0.63) was also one of their largest deficits in any match across all competitions this season.

The west Londoners still lead the Premier League in shots-on-target percentage (38.9 per cent) and xG per shot (0.17) this season, while free-scoring Igor Thiago owns the highest shot-conversion rate of any forward in the division at 30 per cent.

Thiago was unable to add to his tally of 17 Premier League goals this term, but he ran the top flight’s meanest defence ragged at times and could easily have finished with a hat-trick.

On the eve of signing a fresh contract with the Bees, which runs until 2031, the 24-year-old registered six shots - four more than any other player. A first-half header from Mathias Jensen’s glorious cross and a thunderous late strike that whistled over the bar were arguably Thiago’s clearest opportunities.

However, Arteta’s men were also forced into a series of last-ditch blocks to deny the Brazilian, with Gunners centre-back Cristhian Mosquera recovering superbly on one occasion after being left flailing by neat footwork from January's Premier League Player of the Month winner.

In the lead-up to the clash, Andrews spoke of his hope that Brentford could create “chaos”, and his side delivered in spades, particularly from fast breaks and set-pieces.

Four of the hosts’ shots followed quick transitions, while five efforts - including Lewis-Potter’s equaliser - came from dead-ball situations.

Prior to scoring his diving header from a trademark Michael Kayode long throw, Lewis-Potter had already gone close from a Jensen corner, and the former Hull City winger is a strong example of how Brentford maximise both individual and collective strengths.

Lewis-Potter may be one of the Bees’ shortest players, but appearances can be deceptive. The 24-year-old scored six (46 per cent) of his 13 League One goals for Hull in 2020/21 with his head, and the way he evaded Martin Ødegaard to bury his leveller against the Gunners suggested he retains a real ability in this area.

It was a full-blooded affair, but there was control as well as chaos - something that should stand the Bees in good stead ahead of their fourth-round FA Cup clash with Macclesfield on Monday.