Arsenal fail to take advantage

Arsenal 2 Everton 2:TALK OF Arsenal's shortcomings has become almost cliche. The squad lacks sufficient depth; there are too many players of similar styles; there are too many frailties too easily exposed at the back; and too many key personnel, from Robin van Persie to Cesc Fabregas, are injured. Having passed up this chance to move within a point of Chelsea at the top, they might appear forever condemned to loiter on the approach to the summit.

Yet in what has become a weirdly eccentric title race, the optimist in Arsene Wenger might justifiably cling to a very different reality. Arsenal froze on Saturday, appearing to spurn what had effectively become their game in hand on the leaders, but they were resilient enough to take an unlikely point from a substandard display against organised and admirable opponents. Such stubbornness is a rare skill that Chelsea, during December in particular, and Manchester United have made their own in recent times. In securing some level of reward in spite of their own deficiencies, Arsenal actually exposed themselves as contenders.

Wenger said his charges were “off the pace”. They trailed twice and were “always closer to losing the game than winning it” but they still squeezed a point in stoppage time with their second deflected goal of the afternoon. Tomas Rosicky’s equaliser, flicking from Lucas Neill’s lunge, was unexpected but it extended his team’s unbeaten league run to seven matches. Their challenge must always be put into the context of the 11-point lead Chelsea held over them after winning here in November.

“I would have signed up to being this close (to Chelsea) midway through the season,” said Wenger. “But as soon as you drop your level a little bit, you are in danger. We never found the speed of our passing to manoeuvre Everton out of position.”

Arsenal lacked a Fabregas to pluck a win from a sloppy display, as he had against Aston Villa last month, but the Spaniard should be back on Sunday at Bolton Wanderers. The striker Nicklas Bendtner, too, is close to a return. Reinforcements are en route to bolster this title pursuit whether the manager dips into the transfer market or not and this match could yet prove to have been a critical point gained rather than two lost. The progress of Wenger’s team will be defined in games against Aston Villa, Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool in the space of 15 days in late January and early February.

This felt less like a missed opportunity because of Everton’s excellence. David Moyes’s side had been beaten 6-1 at Goodison Park on the opening day of the season but they should have emerged from the return with their first away win against one of the “big four” since 1999.

Their midfield, with Marouane Fellaini gargantuan and Landon Donovan seamlessly introduced, choked the hosts.

“The game plan was to be aggressive in the midfield, not give them enough time, because we know if you give Arsenal two metres they will play you off the field,” Steven Pienaar said.

There was no space for Andrey Arshavin to exploit, no time for Aaron Ramsey to demonstrate his development, and consequently there was little to disturb the visitors’ resolve.

Alex Song, who is on duty at the Africa Cup of Nations, was badly missed as the Arsenal back line’s defensive shield. Denilson may have scuffed in the first equaliser but his collapse to the turf, under no challenge and clutching his side, with eight minutes left to play, summed up his performance.

The Brazilian will require a scan today to determine what caused him such discomfort. He was removed on a stretcher, but was on his feet again in the dressingroom.

Wenger was not impressed that his midfielder had not stopped the play. “I told him, ‘If that happens, you have to commit a handball’,” said the manager. “If you go down, and there hasn’t been a foul, you cannot ask Everton to stop their counter attack. So at least put your hand on the ball and it’s a free-kick.”

James Vaughan should have scored in the counter attack that ensued and if he had done so Everton would surely have won. Instead they took only one point, after Leon Osman’s thumping first-half header and Pienaar’s wonderful scooped second goal. David Moyes’s team remain in a false position, 12th, but, having been saddled with horrendous injury problems, they are recovering.

“Everybody needs an opportunity, and we’ve had to give games to the likes of Séamus Coleman and Jack Rodwell, and maybe more than we’d have liked to do,” said Moyes.