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Robbie Keane drew a blank on his return to White Hart Lane as Arsenal survived the first-half dismissal of Emmanuel Eboue to earn a point against Tottenham in the north London derby.

Arsene Wenger’s side – who also lost Emmanuel Adebayor to a hamstring injury and left new signing Andrey Arshavin as an unused substitute – will be happier with the stalemate after a frenetic encounter short on quality.

In reality, however, the result did little to help Spurs’ bid to escape the Premier League danger zone or the Gunners’ attempts to force their way into the top four.

Highlights

Eboue was sent off by referee Mike Dean after 37 minutes for lashing out at Luka Modric, after earlier being needlessly booked for dissent.

Keane had a busy debut, flashing a header just over and shooting narrowly wide in the second half, but Arsenal’s rearguard action ensured Spurs must wait to end their sequence of failing to beat their arch-rivals in the Premier League since 1999.

The home side enjoyed superiority in terms of possession and territory, and it took a vital block from Arsenal keeper Manuel Almunia to deny Modric when he raced clear in injury time.

THIS SEASON’S REVERSE FIXTURE

Arsenal 4-4 Tottenham Hotspur

29 October 2008 – Ref: Martin Atkinson
Arsenal scorers: Silvestre 37, Gallas 46, Adebayor 64, Van Persie 68
Spurs scorers: Bentley 13, Bent 67, Jenas 89, Lennon 9