Arsenal 0 Middlesbrough 0

The result was enough to take Arsene Wenger’s side to the top of the Premier League table, but it was Boro who emerged from the Emirates with most credit as they defended superbly.

They also carried a significant threat on the counter-attack, and would have claimed all three points had it not been for a superb display from Petr Cech, with the Arsenal goalkeeper producing four magnificent saves to twice deny Adam Traore and also thwart Alvaro Negredo and Gaston Ramirez.

With Ramirez also striking the woodwork, Boro can count themselves extremely unfortunate not to have become the first side to have beaten Arsenal since the opening weekend of the season.

Having promised his side would carry an attacking threat in the build-up to the game, Aitor Karanka tinkered with his formation and lined his side up in a conventional 4-5-1 system.

Adam Clayton came in to bolster the central area, with debutant Traore and Ramirez given a fair amount of freedom in the wide positions.

The hope was that the system would enhance Boro’s counter-attacking threat, and it eventually turned out that way. Initially, however, the visitors found their backs to the wall as Arsenal completely dominated possession in the opening 15 minutes.

Boro were regularly forced to pull nine of their outfield players into their own penalty area, but for all their early superiority, the hosts never really looked like unlocking their opponents’ defence.

Mezut Ozil curled a free-kick over the crossbar, and Mohamed Elneny hammered a long-range shot wide, but Boro’s defence held firm. It was to provide the platform for a radical change in the game.

The visitors had barely been in the Arsenal half in the opening 19 minutes, but should have claimed the lead with their first attack as Traore’s pace proved crucial.

The former Aston Villa winger, who made a deadline-day switch to the Riverside as Albert Adomah moved in the opposite direction, nipped ahead of Laurent Koscielny to latch on to Negredo’s flick-on.

His shot was saved by Cech, with the Arsenal goalkeeper going on to produce a superb double save as he also kept out Negredo’s rebound effort. With plenty of time to pick his spot, the Boro striker should really have done better.

Suddenly, though, it was Boro in the ascendant, and Ramirez came within inches of opening the scoring as he rattled a free-kick against the crossbar. Lining up his set-piece from the corner of the box, Ramirez beat Cech, only for the ball to rebound off the woodwork.

Alexis Sanchez saw a free-kick of his own saved by Victor Valdes, but Boro continued to threaten on the break and Cech was called into action again shortly after the half-hour mark.

The dangerous Traore crossed from the left, Negredo flicked the ball on, and Cech did superbly to keep out Ramirez’s back-post header as he scrambled across his goalline.

Arsenal were fortunate to be level at the interval, and Wenger’s side immediately displayed some increased intensity at the start of the second half.

They almost broke the deadlock four minutes after the break, although Boro were their own worst enemies as Valdes’ failure to claim the ball inside his own six-yard box almost proved catastrophic.

Valdes collided with Daniel Ayala, the ball dropped invitingly for Walcott, but the England international’s chip was marginally too high for Laurent Koscielny to convert.

Valdes was at fault on that occasion, but the Spaniard redeemed himself five minutes later as he made arguably his best save in a Boro shirt.

Elneny teed up Alexis Sanchez, and the Chilean’s shot was creeping into the bottom right-hand corner until Valdes flung himself to his left to turn the ball around the post.

It was a case of both goalkeepers keeping their teams in the game as shortly before the hour mark, Cech was producing his fourth telling save to once again thwart Traore.

Clayton won possession in his own half and released Traore down the right. The winger surged on the outside of Nacho Monreal, but Cech produced a great fingertip save to tip his low shot around the post.

With the game flowing from end to end throughout the second half, Valdes was called into action again in the 67th minute to save from Sanchez.

Arsenal brought on Lucas Perez and Alex Oxalde-Chamberlain in an attempt to change things, but with Ben Gibson performing heroically at the heart of the back four, Boro continued to hold firm.

Indeed, it with the visitors who almost claimed a winner with one minute left, but while Negredo was afforded a clean run on goal as he raced on to Traore’s through ball, he opted to turn inside rather than shoot and was tackled by Koscielny.

Arsenal (4-2-3-1): Cech; Bellerin, Koscielny, Mustafi, Monreal; Elneny (Oxlade-Chamberlain 74), Coquelin; Walcott, Iwobi (Perez 67), Ozil; Sanchez.

Subs (not used): Ospina (gk), Gibbs, Gabriel, Reine-Adelaide, Maitland-Niles.

Middlesbrough (4-5-1): Valdes; Barragan, Ayala, Gibson, Friend; Traore, de Roon, Clayton, Forshaw, Ramirez (Downing 84); Negredo (Stuani 90).

Subs (not used): Guzan (gk), Fabio, Espinosa, de Sart, Nugent.