Not happy ... Jack Wilshere gives it to Kevin Mirallas after he copped a spray.Source:AFP
If Jack Wilshere was frustrated at Arsenal?s inability to break Everton down, Kevin Mirallas did nothing to alleviate the Gunners midfielder's concerns.
The two were involved in a heated bust up at the Emirates Stadium after Belgian Mirallas cheekily squirted water on Wilshere as the pair walked towards the tunnel at half-time.
The Gunners young gun, who was making his return from injury, took exception, grabbing Mirallas as players from both sides rushed in to separate the pair.
It was a frustrating night for both teams, a draw doing nothing for either’s UEFA Champions League aspirations.
Gunners boss Arsene Wenger wasn't happy with the Merseysider's physical approach to the crunch match.
"They decided to make it very physical and sometimes went over the edge, but the referee had to make the right decision," he said.
"But if we win our remaining games we’ll get into the Champions League."
Everton manager David Moyes was quick to dismiss his counterpart's complaints.
"Do you mean when we were a little bit rough with the tackling? Up north we do that quite often. That’s actually allowed in football." Moyes said.
Wayne Rooney ... will miss Manchester United's clash against QPR.Source: Mike Egerton / AAP
Manchester United will be without Wayne Rooney and Phil Jones as they aim to stretch their lead at the top of the English Premier League to 15 points with victory against stone-last Queens Park Rangers.
Rooney, who has scored 10 goals in his past 11 starts, has a sinus problem, while Jones injured his ankle in Monday's 2-1 win at home to Reading in the FA Cup fifth round.
With progress in the FA Cup secured and a healthy 1-1 draw recorded in last week's trip to Real Madrid in the Champions League last 16, United can re-focus their attention on the quest for a 20th English league crown.
United face five consecutive games against sides in the table's bottom half, before a potential title decider at home to nearest rivals Manchester City on April 8.
With City facing an awkward game at home to third-placed Chelsea on Sunday, a United win at QPR could represent a decisive blow in the title race.
However, having seen his side squander an eight-point lead over City last season, United manager Alex Ferguson has warned his players to concentrate on the task at hand.
"The only way we can approach it is by taking care of each game and eventually we run out of matches,'' he said.
"I can understand from Manchester City's point of view why they are talking about us dropping points. But the fact of the matter is they will drop them as well.''
City have all but given up hope of retaining the title, after a run of three games without victory - culminating in a woeful 3-1 defeat at Southampton in their last league outing - dropped them 12 points off the pace.
They find themselves under pressure from Chelsea, who capitalised on City's defeat at St Mary's by crushing Wigan Athletic 4-1 to close within four points of Roberto Mancini's side.
Arsenal have endured a bleak week, crashing out of the FA Cup to second-tier Blackburn Rovers and then losing 3-1 to Bayern Munich in the Champions League, but they have plenty of incentive to beat Aston Villa on Saturday.
Tottenham Hotspur enjoy a four-point lead over Arsenal in the final Champions League spot but, with Spurs not in action until Monday against West Ham United, a win for the Gunners will give them renewed hope of overhauling their derby rivals.
QPR go into the weekend seven points adrift of safety at the foot of the table, but second-bottom Wigan and third-last Reading are within touching distance.
Swansea City's meeting with fourth-tier Bradford City in the League Cup final on Sunday means neither the Welsh club nor scheduled opponents Liverpool are in league action this weekend.
In other games, Fulham host Stoke City, Norwich City are at home to Everton, Wigan Athletic travel to Reading, West Bromwich Albion await Sunderland and Southampton are on the road to Newcastle United.
