Before we go to the NEWSWIRE reports I'd like to share with you a
message I received from Stephen Ornadel who has a Wolves-supporting
friend.  This friend sent him a brief appraisal of Palace's intended
new signing Jamie Smith.........

    "Smith is a young defender who probably does show promise (he
    was in the England U21 squad.) He's a bit lightweight but fairly
    quick,   he was a winger in the youth side. He loves to get
    forward, his   crossing is inconsistent. This also means he
    sometimes gets caught  out of position. I think you are probably
    buying him for potential more than anything else. I have to say
    overall I think we've had  the better of Palace with player
    deals this year."
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Now here are the NEWSWIRE reports.......

from PA Sports....

COPPELL HAPPY WITH PLAYERS AND REF
**********************************

By Bill Pierce, PA Sport

Crystal Palace boss Steve Coppell did not agree with Arsenal
counterpart Arsene Wenger that the goalless draw at Selhurst Park was
over physical. 

Referee Steve Dunn booked six Arsenal players including Dennis
Bergkamp after the 11-goal striker reacted to a challenge by
Palace's Icelandic defender Herman Hreidarsson who had given him a
rough ride throughout a fiercely-fought London derby.

A fifth yellow card of the season means a three-match ban that will
keep the Dutch star out of the crucial clash with champions
Manchester United on November 9.

Wenger insisted he did not know why Bergkamp was booked. 

Wenger said: "I could not see why he was booked but I can understand
his frustrations. You see so many things which are done to him but
are not punished."

"Time after time the No 22 (Hreidarsson) had both arms around him for
up to six or seven seconds. He committed so many fouls on him without
a free kick being given."

"Of course, it is a concern to me that Dennis will be suspended but
it is also a concern that so many players can foul him and escape
punishment."

"It was a very physical game out there because you could see at the
end that (Attilio) Lombardo could hardly walk off for Crystal Palace.

They defended very well with a high level of physical commitment and
picked out individuals for the marking. It was too physical at
times."

"Players have to stay calm but they are not robots, they are just
men."

Told that Wenger thought the game was too physical, Coppell said: "He
would do, wouldn't he?

"Herman marks me in five-a-side training the way he did Bergkamp, but
I'm always too sharp for him."

"We had a game plan and it worked well. But I'm sure Bergkamp has
had tougher treatment than that. He has been exceptional in recent
weeks and we had to try and keep him quiet."

"We had to cut down Arsenal's attacking options and having done that
we relaxed a little and forced a few situations from which we might
have got something."

"So I'm pleased with our performance. It helps our confidence but it
is a matter of one brick at a time in the wall. I think we are
learning what is required in the Premiership."

Arsenal stayed a point clear at the top of the table after United
were held to a 2-2 draw at Derby but Coppell said: "Having played
United in our previous game I have to say they look sharper than
Arsenal.

"But on the other hand we played better today than we did at Old
Trafford."
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From Soccernet.....

An afternoon of seething frustration for Arsenal. Not only did they
miss a significant chance to insert some room at the top, they also
lost Dennis Bergkamp for three crucial matches. 

The Dutch striker was booked for dissent after an hour - one of five
Arsenal bookings and six overall - and will miss the games with
Derby, Manchester United and Sheffield Wednesday. 

Once again, a palpable lack of discipline threatens to cost Arsenal
dear as they assemble their championship challenge. In Steve Dunn,
they had encountered a referee who distributes cautions with
blissful abandon, yet still they could not control their instinctive
unruliness. 

It will surprise nobody, least of all Arsenal's closest contenders,
to learn that Ian Wright was also booked for dissent, while Patrick
Vieira's booking leaves him one short of a suspension total. It seems
that Arsenal never learn. 

In fairness, Palace had well deserved their point after the effort
they had poured into a sunlit afternoon. Theirs was a largely
defensive effort, since their League position does not allow for
excessive adventure, but they marshalled their forces with cool
expertise, and with Arsenal rarely rising above the indifferent, the
Palace task was far easier than it might have been. 

Arsenal have known far better days this season, and will do again;
but in truth it was difficult to discern a title-winning side in this
earnest scuffle at Selhurst Park. 

Palace had not managed a home win all season, but they began with
that narrow-eyed belief that hard work could take them to places
that simple skills would never reach. And it worked. They did their
running, made their challenges and never allowed Arsenal the luxury
to dwell on the ball. 

Marc Edworthy's work rate in midfield stood out even in such
industrious company, and if Paul Warhurst and Neil Shipperley were
frequently marooned at the front, the sheer ferocity of the
collective effort seemed to unhinge the League leaders. 

Soon, that frustration started to show in their play. Attilio
Lombardo, travelling nowhere important, was absurdly tripped by
Vieira. But if foolishness was afoot, then Wright would not be
outdone. He took it into his head to protest about the Vieira
booking; shouting, whining and gesticulating until, three minutes
later, referee Steve Dunn quite properly lost patience and booked the
striker. 

In truth, Wright was experiencing an indifferent afternoon. His touch
was as indifferent as it had been all too frequently in Rome last
Saturday, and his running was not seriously troubling the Palace
defence. He was allowed a double opportunity a few moments before
half time, but his finishing was woefully unequal to the task. The
second half brought no great improvement in Arsenal's fortunes or
their temper. Palace, remarkably, lifted their running to still more
fervent levels, while the class with which Arsenal are supposed to
burnish their skills never raised its voice. 

The pattern held to the end; chances were rare and incidents were
rarer. But when it was over Palace had survived. With more comfort
that anybody could have forecast. 

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From Carlingnet....

Arsenal's Ian Wright and Patrick Vieria were both booked along with
ex-Gunner Andy Linighan in a rugged first half at Selhurst Park. 

Dutch star Dennis Bergkamp soon became a target for the close
attentions of the Crystal Palace defence. It was Palace, without a
home win in the FA Carling Premiership this season, who had the first
shot. 

Italian midfielder Attilio Lombardo fired over the bar from 30 yards
after Paul Warhurst provided a vital touch that took Steve Bould out
of the action. 

But then Palace were on the back foot for a long spell as Bergkamp
master-minded some lively Arsenal raids. 

Twice he almost put Ray Parlour through only for Andy Roberts and
former Gunner Andy Linighan to come to the rescue. 

Then Bergkamp looked menacing again after Gilles Grimandi won a
tackle near the halfway line and sent him racing towards goal. 

Once more the determined Roberts stepped in to cover the danger. 

Palace briefly lost midfielder Jamie Fullarton after he crashed to
earth in an aerial collision with Patrick Vieira and had to go off
for treatment. 

Vieira, a dynamic presence in the Arsenal midfield, was booked on 14
minutes for tripping Lombardo after the Palace player burst away
across the halfway line when an Arsenal corner was cleared. 

Tony Adams had got his head to it but could only direct his downward
header into the arms of goalkeeper Kevin Miller. 

Arsenal's Ian Wright, playing against his former club was also shown
a yellow card in the 16th minute, apparently for a foul, although he
and Bergkamp vigorously disputed referee Steve Dunn's decision. 

Bergkamp continued to complain furiously about the treatment he was
getting from Roberts and Icelandic defender Herman Hreidarsson. 

When the Dutchman tried an overhead kick from Parlour's cross in the
23rd minute he crashed down in the area in a tangle of legs with
Roberts and both players lashed out in full view of the linesman, who
did nothing to attract the unsighted referee's attention. 

Then Bergkamp was fouled again by Hreidarsson and Wright foolishly
tried to exact revenge with a full stretch lunge at the defender
after the ball had been put back in play from the free kick. 

He was lucky he did not make contact having collected a yellow card
only a few minutes earlier then Parlour was also fortunate to avoid a
card of any colour when a late tackle brought down Fullarton. 

A good ball by Fullarton opened up a chance for Neil Shipperley in
the 26th minute but, having got on the other side of Bould, he could
only screw his angled shot across the goal mouth and wide of the far
post. 

Lombardo briefly had to leave the field for attention to a damaged
wrist. Then Linighan became the first Palace player booked for a bad
tackle on, almost inevitably, Bergkamp. 

Nigel Winterburn, on his right foot, struck a powerful effort in the
36th minute which was heading for the top corner until it flew off
Hreidarsson's head and beyond the far post 

Then Bergkamp, lurking out side the area for a half cleared Arsenal
corner curled the ball back into the box aiming for the head of Adams
and Linighan was there just in time to get in a vital deflection
again at the expense of a corner. 

Two minutes before the break Linighan's poor clearance rebounded off
Vieira and ran perfectly into the stride of Wright who moved inside
the box before unleashing a low drive that Miller could only push
away at full stretch. 

The Palace defenders should still have cleared it but in fact only
managed to put Wright back in posession and this time his shot
appeared to strike Lineghan's hand although referee Dunn waved away
all appeals for a penalty. 

Just before the break Palace applied some strong pressure and Arsenal
keeper David Seaman was relieved to see Dean Gordon's cross from the
left drop the wrong side of the far post from Palace's point of view.
------------------------------------------------------------

From Teamtalk.....

The London rivals drew a blank in a game that will be fairly easily
forgotten. There were chances for both sides to have taken all three
points but a draw was a fair outcome. 

Bright moments from both sides saw Adams have a header saved and
Lombardo shoot too high in the early exchanges, but neither side
could break the deadlock. 

Ian Wright earned a yellow card on 16 minutes for a foul, with Denis
Bergkamp protesting loudly over the decision. Shipperley shot wide
midway through the first half when he might have done better. Ian
Wright's shot just after the interval was saved by Miller but the
match continued to be interrupted by fouls and bookings. 

The Gunners could have wrapped up victory on 68 minutes but Petit
wasted the opportunity set up by Wright's dummy. In the end the
scrappy match petered out into a goalless draw.

Palace had new signing Ivano Bonetti on the bench for the visit of
the Gunners, while Attilio Lombardo came through following his
recent calf injury. Neil Shipperley earned the nod ahead of George
Ndah.

Arsenal gave a Premiership debut to Luis Boa Morte in the place of
Marc Overmars, who missed out through an ankle injury. Lee Dixon was
another to miss out, with Giles Grimandi being given a chance. Vieira,
Parlour and Petit came through injury scares, the last two having
recovered from injuries picked up playing for France.

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