Last-Minute Penalty Hands West Brom Shocking Draw vs. Alexis Sanchez, Arsenal

Jay Rodriguez spoiled what was a historic day for Arsene Wenger as his 89th-minute penalty salvaged a 1-1 draw for West Brom against Arsenal on Sunday night at The Hawthorns.

The match was Wenger's 811th as a Premier League manager, which is the most in league history, according to Arsenal's official Twitter account.

Rodriguez's goal came five minutes after Alexis Sanchez put Arsenal ahead on a free-kick that deflected in off James McClean.

Arsenal will have justifiable anger over the decision to award West Brom a penalty. Referee Mike Dean determined Calum Chambers handled the ball in the 18-yard box, but subsequent replays showed the action was more accidental than intentional.

Many on social media took Dean to task for the decision:

Truth be told, a draw wasn't an entirely unfair result on the balance of play. Despite having 65 percent possession, Arsenal had the same number of shots as West Brom (14) and managed just one more shot on target (four).

The Gunners had a fair bit of luck on Alexis' goal as well. His kick appeared to be headed wide of goal before making contact with McClean, who was officially credited for an own goal.

After the perceived absence of a celebratory reaction following an Alexis goal in the 3-2 win over Crystal Palace on Thursday, the Arsenal players surrounded the Chilean forward once he broke the deadlock. SB Nation's The Short Fuse made light of the situation:

Arsenal can point to the penalty as the reason they were denied a victory Sunday, but they did themselves no favors by flattering to deceive for much of the 90 minutes against West Brom.

Prior to the match, Arsenal announced Mesut Ozil was suffering from a knee injury that would keep him out of the lineup Sunday night. ESPN FC's Mattias Karen thought the German midfielder was sorely missed as the Gunners struggled to break down an organized Baggies defense:

Arsenal were better in the second half. Alexandre Lacazette forced Ben Foster to make a difficult save in the 60th minute on a left-footed shot inside the 18-yard box. Minutes later, Alexis found Lacazette with an inch-perfect pass, and the Frenchman got his foot to the ball and had Foster beat. His effort bounced just to the left of goal.

Alex Iwobi then had a long-range shot in the 72nd minute bounce rather harmlessly into Foster's arms.

The longer the match went on, the more West Brom reverted into a defensive shell. The substitution of fullback Allan Nyom for Hal Robson-Kanu in the 75th minute illustrated Alan Pardew's priorities late in the second half.

Pardew will be more than happy to take the draw, since West Brom move ahead of Swansea City on goal differential. Although they're still in the relegation zone, only three points separates them from 16th-place Crystal Palace.

Arsenal, on the other hand, dropped two valuable points. Gooners will want to move on quickly from Sunday's match not only because of the performance but also because of a wardrobe choice by the club. Arsenal wore their usual red primary shirt but complemented it with similar colored shorts and socks. Seeing the Gunners in an all-red ensemble was a jarring sight for some:

Considering the result Sunday, it may be a while before Arsenal opt for an all-red kit again. According to commentator Jon Champion, the Gunners lost 2-1 to Queens Park Rangers the last time they were in all red (April 1978).

Things may get even worse for Arsenal to start the new year. They play Chelsea in their next fixture Wednesday. After getting off to a somewhat underwhelming start, the Blues have won 10 of their last 13 Premier League matches.

Beating the Blues would give Arsenal some much-needed momentum, as well as potentially put them level on points with Liverpool for fourth place. A defeat, however, would be another psychological blow at a time when Alexis' future with the club is casting a massive shadow at the Emirates Stadium.