10 November 2012 - A Rebuttal To The "Draws Are Boring" Crowd

On 10 November 2012, a missed Arsenal penalty in stoppage time helped Fulham preserve a dramatic 3-3 draw at the Emirates.

The teams opened the day occupying the seventh and eighth spots in the table. They were level on points, with Arsenal taking the higher position by virtue of a better goal differential. Playing in front of a crowd of just over 60,000, the Gunners staked an early claim to what looked to be an easy three points after first-half goals from new signings Olivier Giroud (11') and Lukas Podolski (23') gave them a 2-0 lead. But Dimitar Berbatov, playing in his first season for the Cottagers, closed the gap with a 29th-minute goal, then provided the assist for Alex Kacaniklic's equalizer in the 40th minute.

In the 67th minute, Berbatov put Fulham ahead with a penalty kick after Arsenal midfielder Mikel Arteta fouled Bryan Ruiz in the box, but Giroud headed home two minutes later to restore the balance.

Level at 3-3 in stoppage time, Arteta had an opportunity to atone for his earlier mistake. In the fourth minute of added time, the referee awarded a penalty to Arsenal for a handball by Sascha Riether. Arteta stepped up to take the shot, but was denied by Fulham goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer, who stretched low to his left to knock the ball away.