Mikel Arteta had a forgettable game for the Gunners (Getty Images)
Arsenal vs Fulham is kind of the London derby that isn't, as the Cottagers have never won away to Arsenal and have secured very few draws. This year's Fulham side is a bit different though, led by Dimitar Berbatov, and looked to alter that horrible away record. Arsenal had the better of the start, but in the end it was Fulham who were happier on the day.
Fulham came out looking quite positive, moving the ball around rather nicely, and it was a bit odd honestly. You don't usually see teams come out and have possession against Arsenal, particularly at the Emirates. However they could only turn this into one early chance, as Bryan Ruiz had a shot deflected just wide of the Arsenal goal in the 4th minute.
The good news for Arsenal was that Olivier Giroud was very active in this one. The Frenchman has been viewed as a little bit of a bust since coming over to the Gunners, failing to tally in the Premier League. He opened his account in a big way in this one though. In the 11th minute Theo Walcott sent a corner kick into the Fulham area and Giroud planted a bullet header just between Fulham 'keeper Mark Schwarzer and his near post to make it 1-0.
It wasn't just Giroud who got in on the act for the Gunners though. Lukas Podolski was also among the goals. In the 23rd minute the Fulham defense fell asleep at the switch in their own penalty area, allowing Mikel Arteta to easily drop a centering pass off to Podolski at the top of the six. The German promptly slotted an easy finish past a helpless Schwarzer to make it 2-0.
It was at that point that Dimitar Berbatov decided he had had enough, and took over the game for Fulham, working well on the ball when he had it, and demanding better from his teammates when he didn't. Berbatov tallied Fulham's first, doinking in a close range header from a corner kick to make it 2-1 on 29 minutes as set piece defense continued to haunt the Gunners.
The former United man was far from finished though and helped pull the Cottagers level before the half. In the 40th minute he sent a spot on cross over to Alexander Kacaniklic who was coming in from the Fulham left. Kacaniklic then headed the the ball just inside the near most to make it 2-2 going into the halftime interval.
The second half would be as much of a battle as the first, though a good portion of the story of the stanza would be told from the penalty spot. In the 65th minute Arsenal conceded a PK as Bryan Ruiz was brought down in the box. Berbatov pretty much froze Arsenal 'keeper Vito Mannone on the spot kick, icing it into the bottom corner to make it 2-3 to Fulham. Arsenal looked to be reeling.
It didn't last long though as Giroud and Walcott came to the Gunners rescue again. In the 69th minute Walcott found the Frenchman lurking in the six with a cross, and Giroud dropped in yet another headed goal to equalize the match with 20 minutes left, 3-3.
Things stayed knotted well into the stoppage time, when controversy reared it's head. In the 4th minute, referee Phil Dowd awarded Arsenal a PK when an Andrei Arshavin cross bounced off the lowered hand of Sascha Riether from point blank range, it really was a tough call. The Gunners crowd scratched their heads though when Arteta stepped up to take the penalty as opposed to Giroud, the striker. Arteta then proceeded to send a tame penalty in toward the corner which Schwarzer easily saved to preserve the draw 3-3 at full time. It really was a horrible missed opportunity for the Gunners at home.
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