Champions not on their game

Arsenal are back on top, but this was scarcely the stuff of champions on a day in the north London heat when title prospects seemed more like a mirage.

Results during the nerve-frayed run-in, it is usually and strongly argued, are more important than performances, but while Arsene Wenger's team accepted the opportunity to regain a one-point lead over Manchester United, they tossed away the chance to reverse United's single-goal advantage. On such small details are championships frequently won or lost.

That trademark ultra-professionalism was alarmingly absent in the last 10 minutes. It is rare to see Arsenal tired or nervous. They looked both as Derby, patently second best for so long, suddenly came on strong. It is even rarer to see Wenger, for whom the term sangfroid could have been invented, so agitated, twice receiving instructions from officialdom to return to his technical area.

Later Wenger maintained that United remain favourites, but shrugged aside suggestions that minds were already on Wednesday's derby at Tottenham once Nicolas Anelka had scored crisply and early.

To the prompting that United now play three successive away games, Wenger remained everyone that his side must play two, with Leeds hard on the heels of the White Hart Lane argument. Indeed, he believes it is a three-cornered contest. "Chelsea can still be champions - they can make 77 points and that can still win the title."

Arsenal can "make" 81 with a final flourish reminiscent of last year's extraordinary closing run, and all this was broadly the mood as chants of "champions" rang out before kick-off. When Anelka scored after 15 minutes, fractionally avoiding an offside flag and shooting low into the far corner, Highbury hugged itself and sat back in anticipation of several more.

They never materialised, and fiesta gave way to siesta. Highbury basked, half-heartedly chanted for Dennis Bergkamp's introduction and applauded party tricks from Kanu's repertoire. But too often the Nigerian's indulgence invited a wider sense of complacency, with Ray Parlour and Nigel Winterburn the vibrant exceptions.

Wenger substituted Kanu and Anelka, the latter having long stopped making meaningful runs, together with Marc Overmars in the space of 16 second-half minutes. The replacement of Overmars may well have been an insurance against the winger's calf problem, because through this Dutchman's pace lay the obvious route to a more convincing victory.

Rory Delap, pressed into service following the latest catalogue of Derby injuries, seldom got close to Overmars, and when he did was booked for a scything tackle. Then again, neither did the more reliable Spencer Prior.

Sadly for Arsenal, Overmars overran one superb 35-yard pass from Emmanuel Petit and later under-hit a pull-back after being presented with an almost free 40-yard run to the byline. At least he produced the best Arsenal opportunity of the second half; Steve Bould, virtually on his knees, headed the cross past the far post.

Parlour had industriously engineered Anelka's goal; he showed typical persistence before passing incisively to the Frenchman. And it was the midfielder's energy that took him into the area in the last minute to force a difficult save from the erratic Mart Poom.

In fairness to Arsenal, the counter-threat from Jim Smith's well-coached, well-organised team came late, but for all that it was still unnerving. Paulo Wanchope bundled the ball into the net but was pulled back unbooked for his handball fractionally before. Then Tony Adams had to produce a remarkable overhead kick to deny the same striker after his own acrobatic effort in the penalty area.

Three minutes from time Adams and Wanchope tussled again for a hopeful long ball which fell loose for the Costa Rican to shoot against David Seaman. The danger did not end there as the ball eventually fell to the substitute Marvin Robinson whose shot, with Arsenal's goalkeeper poorly positioned, drifted past his right-hand post. The Highbury faithful thus greeted the final whistle with relief rather than rapture.

Arsenal: Seaman, Dixon, Bould, Adams, Winterburn, Parlour, Vieira, Petit, Overmars (Hughes 76), Kanu (Bergkamp 62), Anelka (Diawara 78). Subs Not Used: Grimandi, Lukic. Goals: Anelka 14.

Derby County: Poom, Carbonari, Laursen, Bohinen (Murray 68), Powell, Burton (Harper 13), Eranio, Delap, Beck, Wanchope, Prior, Harper (Robinson 78). Subs Not Used: Jackson, Knight. Booked: Delap, Carbonari, Murray, Wanchope.

Referee: N Barry (Scunthorpe).