Did Arsenal really deserve more than a draw at Leicester?

At least Arsenal did not lose in yesterday’s away game against the reigning Premier League champions, although having done the double over Leicester City last season it does feel like a bit of a let down. After losing the opening game of the season at home to Liverpool, it was important not to lose again but with all of the big boys losing a win would have made us all feel so much better.

In his post match interview reported on the Arsenal website the manager suggested that perhaps Arsenal were a little unlucky not to have taken all three points, without being too bombastic about it. Arsene Wenger pointed to the Gunners having had the best of the chances, especially in the first half, and that with a bit more sharpness at the business end we would have taken at least one of them.

The Frenchman said, “We could have got more out of that but maybe we could’ve lost it in the last five minutes. Overall it was a game where we had the chances and I think overall it was a game of intensity, of quality. They were very direct, of course, as we know and we needed to have the courage to play without making mistakes at the back and giving them chances on the counter-attack. That’s what the game was about, it was a fight until the end. You could see that Leicester had some mental qualities that explained why they were champions last year.

“If you watch the game again I think we did have clear chances in this game. In the first half in the last 20 minutes we had good opportunities. I believe the chances were there. We still lacked a little bit of speed of decision, a decisive mind and a decisive ball in the final third but it’s an up already from our last game at home.”

I see his point to some degree but Wenger is conveniently forgetting that the Foxes had two claims for a penalty kick turned down and on another day they might well have got at least one of them. The pundits on Match of the Day seemed to agree that we were lucky to get away with the second one in particular.

So is Wenger right to suggest that Arsenal deserved more than our draw?