Arsenal - 1 Everton - 1: Arsenal are like a chess grandmaster taking on a roomful of wannabes and strolling around casually checkmating them one by one. Except that it does not always work out this way, since occasionally the master is held in check by someone on to his game.
Arsène Wenger's team returned to the Emirates Stadium on Saturday with their masterful 4-0 disposal of Reading the previous weekend still fresh in their minds. "I would say our performance against Reading last week was our most fluid, rapid and prolific of the season so far," declared Wenger in red capitals in the Arsenal programme.
Everton, however, were less than impressed and followed Aston Villa and Middlesbrough by becoming the third team this season to force a draw at Arsenal after taking the lead.
David Moyes' side gained a point through disciplined defending, backed by exceptional goalkeeping from Tim Howard, once Tim Cahill had put them ahead on 11 minutes. Everton's performance was all the more meritorious considering it was achieved with six of the side suffering from a bug.
What bugged Wenger were the delaying tactics employed by the opposition. "Everton defended well and with great spirit," he said, "but it was very frustrating. From first to last their goalkeeper was placing goal kicks from the left then moving them to the right and they were standing in front of the ball at free-kicks. It was negative but that's the game."
At times the Arsenal manager appears as innocent as Candide. Yes, time-wasting can be a pain but it has been going on for decades and on Saturday the tension of an absorbing second half was, if anything, enhanced by Everton's impassive response to the home team's mounting anxiety. And as Moyes observed afterwards: "The referee added on time, didn't he?"
In fact in the Everton manager's opinion Mike Riley added too much and Moyes was ordered from the bench for standing by the touchline pointing at his watch. "He took it the wrong way," said Moyes who was presumably banished for taking the Michael out of Riley.
The real reason why Arsenal dropped two more home points had more to do with the abstruse decision to play Thierry Henry on his own up front in the hope that Fabregas and Rosicky would lend close support while Alexander Hleb and Robin van Persie stretched Everton on the wings.
When Arsenal are reduced to seeking Henry with high balls then something is not quite right. Perhaps the imminence of Wednesday's Champions League visit of CSKA Moscow had something to do with it. There seems to be a desire to save Henry's legs before European games and playing him up front is one way of doing so. Howard distinguishing himself by diving to turn away a header from Henry before tipping a rising shot from Fabregas over the bar. Everton may have had only one serious shot but no Arsenal player matched the alacrity with which Cahill chested the ball down before driving it into the roof of the net.
A stunning free-kick by van Persie brought the scores level with 19 minutes remaining and the rest was a siege which Everton coolly withstood.
"If you came here and played an open game against Arsenal they'd cut you open," said Moyes. Always assuming Henry had a rapier rather than a walking stick.
Guardian Service
