Arsenal, Tottenham find comfort from derby draw

ESPN FC's Craig Burley says although Arsenal played well at times, they looked like a tired team in their 1-1 draw against Tottenham.

LONDON -- It ended up being a North London derby of missed opportunity for both Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur following their 1-1 draw on Sunday. Gunners boss Arsene Wenger will spend the next fortnight ruing his team's failure to take advantage of Manchester City's failure to beat Aston Villa in a goalless draw and go two points clear.
Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino, meanwhile, clearly regretted the missed chances and ailing legs that prevented his club gaining a first win on Arsenal territory in five long years and getting closer to the top four. With the result, Spurs stayed three points behind fourth-placed Manchester United.
A thrilling match's final score slowed the upward curve that both clubs have shaped in the Premier League, but each manager chose to draw comforts rather than bemoan ill fortune. During their post-match news conferences, both reminded of the back-breaking schedules their teams have recently had to negotiate. A point rescued from a highly troublesome opponent prevented rot spreading after Arsenal's midweek Champions League 5-1 thrashing. Tottenham are no Bayern Munich, after all, but they remained unbeaten since the opening day of the season.

Arsenal

Tottenham Hotspur

1

1

FT

Though relieved that Kieran Gibbs' equaliser had levelled out Harry Kane's strike, Wenger made sure to point out his team's strong form line in the Premier League. "We have five wins and a draw," he said. "We have shown character again today. We responded well. In the end I believe 1-1 is a fair result. I must give credit to my players to refuse to lose the game."
Wenger praised the recovery of his team in a North London derby that threatened to get away from his team, especially when Kane missed a couple of second half chances and goalkeeper Petr Cech saved a goalbound header from Toby Alderweireld. "He has shown again that the goalkeeper is the most underrated position in football," said Wenger of Cech.
He also made clear, pointed mention of his title rivals' own troubles. City had failed to beat an Aston Villa team that had not won a Premier League match since winning at Bournemouth on Aug. 8, and was under the new management of Remi Garde, while Liverpool had lost 2-1 to Crystal Palace to stop the Jurgen Klopp turnaround train in its tracks.
The months of October and November are heavy on the top Premier League squads, with teams competing on multiple fronts. Arsenal, despite having just three points from four Champions League group matches, and already having exited the League Cup at the hands of Championship team Sheffield Wednesday, are keeping pace with City, even though the Gunners have an injury list that now numbers ten first-teamers, according to Wenger's calculations.

Tottenham were unable to earn their first win at The Emirates since 2010 in Sunday's 1-1 North London derby draw.

A draw delivered by Mesut Ozil fighting off heavy legs to supply Gibbs' second goal of his entire Premier League career continued Arsenal's successful compartmentalisation of the Premier League, a priority this season, away from more troubling fronts.
Pochettino, for his part, reminded his team have faced an even tighter schedule. Spurs' energy levels had far exceeded those of the home team until the last 15 minutes in which they conceded Gibbs' equaliser. Though no foreign travel had been required, Spurs had played hard-fought home games on both Monday and Thursday, beating Aston Villa 3-1 in the Premier League and Anderlecht 2-1 in the Europa League, respectively.
"It wasn't fair, we deserved more," said Spurs' manager in summary of the match. He was much more disappointed than Wenger. "The way we played in the first half and the chances we created, we deserved more.
"I'm very proud of my players, the way we played and the character we showed. In six days we played three games, and it's always difficult to play Monday, Thursday, Sunday when the opponent plays Saturday, Wednesday, Sunday."
The fortnight-long international break that begins on Monday may give managers time to re-gather their own thoughts, but they will also spend much of their time hoping and praying their players do not come to harm when playing for their countries. "I cannot stop him," said Wenger, asked if he would try to prevent Laurent Koscielny, recently hampered with hamstring and hip problems, from joining up with the French national team. He also expressed concern about Alexis Sanchez, a negligible factor in Sunday's match, who is set for two World Cup qualifiers in South America with Chile, and also Spain's Santi Cazorla, subbed at half-time when feeling dizzy.

Wenger will similarly be denied an immediate chance to pep up Olivier Giroud's mood after the striker missed two excellent headed chances. Giroud had scored in six in his previous seven Arsenal matches, but his manager described the France international team striker as being "very angry" with himself in the dressing room after the game. "He wanted too much to score," continued Wenger. "It can happen, I accept that."
Meanwhile, Pochettino brushed aside queries about Kane's fitness ahead of England's friendly doubleheader with Spain and France, after the goalscorer played the match with strapping on his knee. "Harry is OK," said the Argentinian, levelling high praise at a player now back in the form that made his name last season, after having struggled for goals until his current glut of five in three outings.
"Maybe today you start to say today that he's playing as well as ever, but we always had confidence in him," Pochettino said. "Nothing changed for us when he scored or didn't score."
Just 12 matches into their Premier League campaign, ailing psychology and fitness are concerns that North London's football managers already face. The two rivals had both shown signs of mental and physical fatigue. Those factors were always likely to play a decisive part in a result that halted recent runs of form, but was no disaster for either party.