FA Cup: Arsenal 1 - Leeds 1

It was almost a new low to the season, as Arsenal trailed late at home to Championship (the league beneath the Premier League in England) side Leeds. But the Gunners nicked a replay in Leeds on a late penalty earned by substitute Theo Walcott and scored by substitute Cesc Fabregas.

Almost predictably, the lazy and wasteful Andrei Arshavin and the slow, seemingly tranquilized, Denilson played  poorly. (It was Denilson who gave up the penalty that led to the Leeds goal.) Amazingly, when Fabregas and Walcott entered the game, those two did not depart. Instead, Arsene Wenger inexplicably pulled a couple of useful players, Chamakh and Song, from the match. Among the rest of the Arsenal cast, I thought only Djourou and Szczesny, who made an excellent save to keep the Gunners in the match, played really well. The always self-overconfident Niklas Bendtner played hard but wasted a number of decent scoring opportunities. Tomas Rosicky was poor running the offense from midfield.

The only prize Arsenal earned from today's match was the opportunity to play yet another game, away at Leeds, in a schedule already choked with matches. But at least they didn't crash out of the FA Cup (yet).