Arsenal missed the chance to go even further above their rivals for the top 4 spot, as they were held by 6th placed Everton.
Arsène Wenger had mused that "momentum can be fragile" as he considered Arsenal's recent upturn and the need for another victory to turn the screw still further on Chelsea and Tottenham in the Champions League race. On a night of wrecking-ball intensity his team duly had theirs checked while David Moyes' mission to break new ground with Everton and win at a big ground came up short.
The margins were suffocatingly tight. In what amounted to a slug-fest, clear chances were at a premium but the Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud had two and on each occasion, towards the end of either half, his sights were awry. He became the symbol of Arsenal's frustrations, almost as much as the punch that Jack Wilshere aimed at Kevin Mirallas during a tunnel bust-up following a fractious first-half. The post-match feeling was that Arsenal had handed the initiative back to Tottenham.
Still, points were always likely to be dropped or shared during the run-in and Everton, who remain four points behind Arsenal, are hardly the accommodating types. They might never have won at Arsenal, Manchester United or Liverpool under Moyes, but their heart cannot be questioned.
Everton had arrived as the form team in the division and there was a muscular strut to their game. Nobody gets an easy ride against Moyes' side, even though they had felt the pre-match spotlight pick out their inability to win the big ones when it mattered.
Moyes had started with Ross Barkley in the No10 role – a show of faith in the young player – and he was in tune with the Everton ethos; work ferociously and give no quarter in the tackle. Wenger cut an agitated figure on the touchline for much of the first-half as challenges from Barkley resulted in first Santi Cazorla and then Wilshere feeling sore. Barkley, though, was not the only source of Arsenal bruises.
It was confrontational stuff. Everton, street-fighters to a man and in the image of their manager, refused to allow Arsenal any time on the ball. The home crowd demanded better movement from their players in the first-half but it is difficult when the shackles are so tight.
Passions frequently bubbled to the surface and Darron Gibson trod the finest of lines. The Everton midfielder was booked for a challenge on Theo Walcott, although it had seemed that Mirallas, who was also in close attendance, had been the aggressor and Gibson was fortunate to avoid a second yellow card on 34 minutes when he checked Walcott hard and cynically.
It was the sort of challenge that tends to merit a first yellow card, as was proved moments later when Steven Pienaar checked Walcott as he burst away to be booked. The home crowd howled.
Everton had started brightly and Pienaar lifted over the crossbar from Phil Jagielka's pass. Barkley's curler towards the end of the first-half forced Wojciech Szczesny into a routine save while the midfielder's cute turn and pass gave Victor Anichebe the flicker of an opportunity; Kieran Gibbs' back tackle was crucial.
Arsenal offered nothing in front of goal until the 42nd minute but the chance that Aaron Ramsey's cross created for Olivier Giroud was arguably the best of the first-half. Giroud slid in at the near post but with Tim Howard advancing, he diverted the ball wide. Cazorla was also thwarted by a brave block from Jagielka.
The tension was palpable. Mirallas drove at Szczesny upon the second-half restart while Cazorla forced Howard into his first save with a well-struck drive shortly afterwards. The action pulsed and the referee Neil Swarbrick needed eyes everywhere.
Giroud's battle with Jagielka and Sylvain Distin was especially robust but across the field there were scraps that drew the eye. Marouane Fellaini, all upper-body strength, emerged with honours for the visitors.
Arsenal struggled for rhythm in the second-half, too, with Wilshere, the playmaker, labouring to fire his team. It had been something of a surprise when Wenger named him in the starting line-up given the manner of the admission that he had been guilty of rushing him back from injury against Norwich on Saturday but it was less of a surprise when he substituted him. The battle-scarred Walcott did not last the distance on his return either.
Everton could point to Barkley's fizzing, curled effort midway through the second-half, which flew inches past the angle of post and crossbar, with Szczesny beaten, as evidence of their offensive punch. But Giroud ought to have done much better after accepting Alex Oxlade-Chamebrlain's pass and working a yard from Jagielka. His shot was ballooned over the crossbar.
Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everydayThe margins were suffocatingly tight. In what amounted to a slug-fest, clear chances were at a premium but the Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud had two and on each occasion, towards the end of either half, his sights were awry. He became the symbol of Arsenal's frustrations, almost as much as the punch that Jack Wilshere aimed at Kevin Mirallas during a tunnel bust-up following a fractious first-half. The post-match feeling was that Arsenal had handed the initiative back to Tottenham.
Still, points were always likely to be dropped or shared during the run-in and Everton, who remain four points behind Arsenal, are hardly the accommodating types. They might never have won at Arsenal, Manchester United or Liverpool under Moyes, but their heart cannot be questioned.
Everton had arrived as the form team in the division and there was a muscular strut to their game. Nobody gets an easy ride against Moyes' side, even though they had felt the pre-match spotlight pick out their inability to win the big ones when it mattered.
Moyes had started with Ross Barkley in the No10 role – a show of faith in the young player – and he was in tune with the Everton ethos; work ferociously and give no quarter in the tackle. Wenger cut an agitated figure on the touchline for much of the first-half as challenges from Barkley resulted in first Santi Cazorla and then Wilshere feeling sore. Barkley, though, was not the only source of Arsenal bruises.
It was confrontational stuff. Everton, street-fighters to a man and in the image of their manager, refused to allow Arsenal any time on the ball. The home crowd demanded better movement from their players in the first-half but it is difficult when the shackles are so tight.
Passions frequently bubbled to the surface and Darron Gibson trod the finest of lines. The Everton midfielder was booked for a challenge on Theo Walcott, although it had seemed that Mirallas, who was also in close attendance, had been the aggressor and Gibson was fortunate to avoid a second yellow card on 34 minutes when he checked Walcott hard and cynically.
It was the sort of challenge that tends to merit a first yellow card, as was proved moments later when Steven Pienaar checked Walcott as he burst away to be booked. The home crowd howled.
Everton had started brightly and Pienaar lifted over the crossbar from Phil Jagielka's pass. Barkley's curler towards the end of the first-half forced Wojciech Szczesny into a routine save while the midfielder's cute turn and pass gave Victor Anichebe the flicker of an opportunity; Kieran Gibbs' back tackle was crucial.
Arsenal offered nothing in front of goal until the 42nd minute but the chance that Aaron Ramsey's cross created for Olivier Giroud was arguably the best of the first-half. Giroud slid in at the near post but with Tim Howard advancing, he diverted the ball wide. Cazorla was also thwarted by a brave block from Jagielka.
The tension was palpable. Mirallas drove at Szczesny upon the second-half restart while Cazorla forced Howard into his first save with a well-struck drive shortly afterwards. The action pulsed and the referee Neil Swarbrick needed eyes everywhere.
Giroud's battle with Jagielka and Sylvain Distin was especially robust but across the field there were scraps that drew the eye. Marouane Fellaini, all upper-body strength, emerged with honours for the visitors.
Arsenal struggled for rhythm in the second-half, too, with Wilshere, the playmaker, labouring to fire his team. It had been something of a surprise when Wenger named him in the starting line-up given the manner of the admission that he had been guilty of rushing him back from injury against Norwich on Saturday but it was less of a surprise when he substituted him. The battle-scarred Walcott did not last the distance on his return either.
Everton could point to Barkley's fizzing, curled effort midway through the second-half, which flew inches past the angle of post and crossbar, with Szczesny beaten, as evidence of their offensive punch. But Giroud ought to have done much better after accepting Alex Oxlade-Chamebrlain's pass and working a yard from Jagielka. His shot was ballooned over the crossbar.
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