EPL: 'Fatigued' Arsenal Held By Crystal Palace At Home

Arsenal's recent revival ground came to a halt in a scrappy 0-0 draw against Crystal Palace on Thursday. Mikel Arteta attributed it to 'fatigue'.

Arteta's side had won their previous four matches in all competitions, but they were fortunate to extend their unbeaten run to five games.

Palace were unable to convert several first-half chances at the Emirates Stadium. Although Arsenal improved after the interval, they missed a chance to climb into the top half of the Premier League.

"I wanted to see a win and a few goals but we were fatigued. I cannot fault the spirit but it wasn't enough," Arteta said.

"We created a lot of situations against the low block but there was a period when we gave the ball away too much.

"We are playing a lot of games and you can see fatigue. Many players aren't fresh. We lacked the quality in the final third to win the game."

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Arsenal sits in 11th place, eight points adrift of the Champions League places as they continue to pay the price for their worst start to a season since 1974-75.

Just before Christmas, Arsenal were only four points above the relegation zone, so their current position 12 points away from the bottom three affords Arteta some much-needed breathing space.

But this disjointed display underlined the attacking flaws that have stopped Arsenal building on last season's FA Cup triumph.

Palace have only won one of their past eight matches in all competitions and are one point behind Arsenal in 13th.