THEY say revenge is a dish best served cold. One part of the old adage was without question at a freezing Emirates Stadium as Everton looked to exorcise the demons of a 6-1 humbling by Arsenal on the opening day of the season.
Everton were just minutes away from doing so when it appeared Steven Pienaar’s exquisite finish would warm the hearts of the travelling support as they headed back north amid further severe weather warnings.
Instead, Tomas Rosicky’s deflected effort off Lucas Neill provided a chilling end to a pulsating game with an injury-time equaliser that poured cold water over the premature celebrations taking place in the visitors section.
Given that Arsenal’s first goal also took a wicked deflection – this time off the scorer of Everton’s opener, Leon Osman – it was a harsh conclusion to a game the Toffees deserved more from after twice taking the lead.
Denilson ensured the sides went in level at the break before Rosicky came off the bench to rescue a point for the Gunners.
That Evertonian’s could feel aggrieved afterwards though, is a measure of how far the team has come since the alarming humiliation dished out by a rampant Arsenal side that raised questions about Everton’s capacity to build on the progress of recent years.
The green shoots of recovery may have arrived too late for an assault on a top-six finish this year, but with the draw at The Emirates extending Everton’s unbeaten run to five games, they have addressed the poor form that had previously seen them flirting perilously with danger.
Since the undeserved Merseyside derby defeat in late November, Everton have now registered three impressive draws against clubs with top four ambitions.
In addition to Saturday, the results against Tottenham and Chelsea have provided a belief that David Moyes’ side can match the best teams in the country on their day; something that will no doubt be impressed at Finch Farm this week ahead of Manchester City’s arrival at Goodison Park.
Up against an Arsenal side that has breathed new life into their title hopes with five wins from their previous six league games, perhaps Everton were expected to come away from the capital with little. In reality, they should have taken maximum points, a fact Gunners manager Arsene Wenger alluded to in his post match analysis.
Had James Vaughan taken a leaf out of Pienaar’s book and opted for finesse rather than power four minutes before the end, it could have been a very different post-script for Moyes’ men today.
Everton haven’t won at Arsenal for 13 years.
The fact this draw there came as an anti-climax is a moral victory in itself.
With Diniyar Bilyaletdinov dropping to the bench, Landon Donovan made his debut on the right of midfield.
The on-loan American provided width and a turn of pace that troubled Arsenal left-back Armand Traore until the LA Galaxy man eventually ran out of steam and was substituted midway through the second half.
If his first impressions last, Donovan could represent a shrewd piece of business by Moyes. In keeping with the rest of the Everton defence, Phil Neville was a tower of strength at right-back too. Making his first start since the middle of September, the skipper was one of several Everton players vying for the man-of-the-match bubbly.
