JENAS STRIKE STUNS
GUNNERS
A stunning last-gasp strike from Jermaine Jenas saw Tottenham
Hotspur snatch a point from the jaws of defeat as they somehow
rescued a 2-2 draw at home to Arsenal in the 154th North London
derby.
The Gunners looked to have put a difficult week behind them with a
victory at the home of their great rivals after a dominant second
half display, but Jenas popped up in the final seconds to drive a
superb shot past Jens Lehmann and give Spurs a valuable point in
their bid for Uefa Cup football.
Having had to contend with headlines predicting doom and gloom, and
a possible managerial exit, after David Dein's departure this week,
Arsenal overcame Robbie Keane's opener with a stirring comeback
thanks to goals from Kolo Toure and Emmanuel Adebayor.
However, Jenas' late intervention ensured they could not move ahead
of Liverpool into third, even if the draw extended their unbeaten
run over Spurs to 15 games.
A high-octane opening at White Hart Lane saw Spurs make a confident
start, with danger man Dimitar Berbatov only just failing to flick
the ball over Jens Lehmann as the keeper came out to
challenge.
Didier Zokora also dragged a shot wide as Spurs took the game to
their bitter rivals, with The Gunners struggling to implement their
usual passing game in the face of an energetic display from Jol's
side.
However, the red half of North London thought they had taken the
lead on 14 minutes when Adebayor rifled home, but Freddie Ljungberg
had been adjudged offside when producing a clever backheel to steer
the ball to the Togolese striker.
The two combined again when Adebayor laid the ball off to Ljungberg
in the box, but the Swedish international's first-time shot was
wild and flew high over the bar.
The Gunners continued to look ill at ease despite threatening on
two occasions, and Berbatov continued to cause problems when, from
a corner, his awkward presence caused both Abou Diaby and the Spurs
man to be booked for tangling - with Lehmann also receiving a
remarkable eighth caution of the season for his input in the
incident.
When the set-piece was finally taken, Dawson rose highest to head
the ball down and Keane - having peeled away from Gael Clichy -
reacted quickly to nod the ball past Lehmann and send the White
Hart Lane crowd into raptures.
Didier Zokora also went into the referee's book for a foul on Tomas
Rosicky, and the Ivorian midfielder looked to make amends when he
collected an intelligent ball from Berbatov and curled a dangerous
effort just off target.
Arsenal's inclusion of Ljungberg from the start had been somewhat
surprising given the Swede had been struggling with a hamstring
problem, and after the injury flared up again Cesc Fabregas was
introduced for his 150th appearance for the club.
The Spanish schemer almost made an immediate impact when his clever
reverse pass played Emmanuel Eboue in, but after the defender's
shot hit the post Adebayor could only sky the rebound over from
eight yards out.
Keane and Rosicky both threatened further, before the half ended
with Spurs in the ascendancy and enjoying a one-goal advantage over
their bitter rivals.
Arsenal begun the second period with renewed vigour though, and
after working the ball nicely across the pitch only a finish from
Gilberto was lacking on 47 minutes.
The Gunners were inches away from drawing level when Kolo Toure
leapt to meet a Fabregas corner and saw his fine header cannon off
the post, whilst Rosicky's impromptu follow-up effort was also
claimed easily by Paul Robinson.
Fabregas attempted to make it three goals in three games when he
skewed a volley wide, and as the pressure continued to mount
Adebayor produced a looping header that bounced agonisingly off the
bar.
Tottenham's goal was certainly living a charmed life having seen
the woodwork hit on three separate occasions, but Jol's luck ran
out on 64 minutes when Toure levelled matters as he stole away from
Pascal Chimbonda at the far post and tapped home Fabregas' deep
free-kick.
The Gunners refused to rest on their laurels and sent on Julio
Baptista for Rosicky as they poured forward in search of a winner,
and 'The Beast' was in the midst of it immediately as his shot from
the edge of the box was blocked by Michael Dawson.
Spurs were struggling to resist the red tide, and on 78 minutes
their weakness from set pieces came back to haunt them as Fabregas
produced another fine delivery from wide.
Jermaine Jenas mistimed his jump and Adebayor was free to direct a
fine header past Robinson for his third goal against Spurs in three
games this season.
Baptista could have added a third in the dying minutes to seal the
victory, but the Brazilian showed the lack of prowess that has so
frustrated Gunners fans when he directed an easy header well wide
of the post after good work from Adebayor.
Arsenal certainly paid for the miss when, with just seconds to go,
Jenas hammered home a quite beautiful strike to take Spurs into
seventh place.
