No quarter given... Arsenal’s Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (top) and Tottenham’s Danny Rose fight for the ball during Saturday’s derby.Arsene Wenger was frustrated on several fronts after the north London derby, with the Arsenal manager accusing Tottenham of time-wasting in a match which saw their injury problems mount.
The 174th clash between these sides looked to be going the way of the Lilywhites at the Emirates Stadium, where Nacer Chadli struck in the second half of a match in which Spurs defended impressively.
Try as they might, though, their resistance would not hold, with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain slotting home from close range after the ball came to him in a penalty-box melee.
Wenger felt his side deserved more than a 1-1 draw having dominated the possession and shot count, with the time-wasting antics of Spurs particularly rankling.
“I must give credit to my team because once again we came back and we put a huge effort in,” the Frenchman said.
“It’s one of the few times that we’ve had so much possession against a Tottenham team since I’ve been here, but they defended well. You have to give them credit.
“Younes Kaboul and Jan Vertonghen did well, as well as Hugo Lloris. They took every second they could again, to make the game last as little as possible. I would like to see the referee deal with that in the proper way for once.
“Slowing the game down is normal and I understand it completely.
“But the referee’s there to make the flow of the game respected. People pay money in the stands to watch football. It’s as simple as that.”
That frustration with his opposition was compounded by the fact Wenger now has yet more injury problems to contend with.
Mikel Arteta and Aaron Ramsey were forced off in the first half with calf and hamstring complaints, respectively – injuries he says will rule them out of Wednesday’s Champions League clash with Galatasaray and next weekend’s Premier League encounter against Chelsea.
Jack Wilshere could also be absent from those games with an ankle issue, leaving Arsenal struggling for numbers once more.
Results, standings
West Brom 4
Dawson 30; Berahino 45, 56; Dorrans 90;
Burnley 0
HT: 2-0. Att: 24,286.
Playing today
Stoke City vs Newcastle - 21.00
| P | W | D | L | F | A | Pts | |
| Chelsea | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 19 | 7 | 16 |
| Southampton | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 4 | 13 |
| Man. City | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 12 | 7 | 11 |
| Arsenal | 6 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 11 | 7 | 10 |
| Swansea | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 8 | 6 | 10 |
| Aston Villa | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 7 | 10 |
| Man. United | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 11 | 9 | 8 |
| Tottenham | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 8 | 7 | 8 |
| C. Palace | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 10 | 10 | 8 |
| West Brom | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 7 | 7 | 8 |
| Leicester City | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 9 | 10 | 8 |
| West Ham | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 10 | 10 | 7 |
| Liverpool | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 8 | 9 | 7 |
| Everton | 6 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 12 | 14 | 6 |
| Hull City | 6 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 9 | 11 | 6 |
| Sunderland | 6 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 5 |
| Stoke City | 5 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 5 |
| QPR | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 13 | 4 |
| Newcastle | 5 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 11 | 3 |
| Burnley | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 8 | 3 |
The Championship
Reading vs Wolves - 3-3