Arsenal needed a last gasp equalizer to maintain their position at the top of the Premiership table when they were held to a 1-1 draw by Aston Villa on Saturday.

Arsenal looked well below their best as Villa matched their opponents on all areas of the pitch and took a deserved lead in the 27th minute when Philippe Senderos inadvertently turned the ball into his own net. Manuel Almunia pulled off some good saves to keep Arsenal in the game and the Gunners grabbed a point when Nicklas Bendtner scored the equalizer in the dying seconds of the match.

It all started brightly for Arsenal with Theo Walcott forcing Scott Carson into an early save as the hosts started the match intent on preserving their three point lead at the top of the table. Senderos then had a great chance to put his side in the lead but his volley from a rebound was off target.

The miss proved costly as Aston Villa took the lead at the other end when Agbonlahor raced down the left flank before crossing the ball into the area only to see Senderos deflect the ball into his own net. Martin O'Neill had to make two changes in space of six minutes when Nigel Reo-Coker and Curtis Davies limped off the field due to injuries.

Arsenal pressed forward in search of an equalizer but Villa held strong at the back and could have doubled the lead when a swift counter attacking move found Maloney near the edge of the area but Almunia pulled off a great save to deny the shot.

Arsenal stepped up the gear in the second half with Flamini, Gael Clichy and Bendtner all having decent chances but with no luck. Just when it looked like Villa had pulled off a memorable victory, Bendtner latched on to Adebayor's flick on to smash the ball past Scott Carson to grab a point for his side.