Character was key, says Leon
26th March
Leon Britton felt Swansea's show of character was key as they battled to a 2-2 draw with Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.
After Wilfried Bony had give the Swans an 11th minute lead, two second-half goals in the space of 66 seconds saw Arsenal turn the game on its head when Lukas Podolski struck before Olivier Giroud prodded home the host's second, with 18 minutes left on the clock.
But Garry Monk's side fought valiantly to find a way back into the game and were rewarded for their efforts with a late equaliser when good work by Britton led to an own goal by Mathieu Flamini.
The 31-year-old midfielder did superbly to worm his way into the oppositon penalty area before the ball ricocheted off of Wojciech Szczesny onto Flamini and into the net.
And Britton, who was as instrumental as ever at the heart of Swansea's midfield, felt the late equaliser was no less than they deserved.
"I don't think I'll be claiming the goal," joked Britton. "I went through on goal, there was a ricochet and the next thing I know, I'm eating grass and the ball's in the back of the net.
"Overall, I felt we did well. In the first-half, we got the goal and defended very well.
"It was frustrating to concede the equaliser and then just seconds later to find ourselves 2-1 down.
"It is difficult against a side like Arsenal, but we showed great character to keep going.
"We didn't fall away and lose the game by three or four goals, we kept digging in and got the equaliser right at the death.
The deserved point takes the Swans five points clear of the relegation zone, and Britton feels further performances of tonight's quality will ensure the club maintains their Premier League status.
"There's still a lot of points to play for, so we're not safe yet," admitted Britton. "But I think the performances over the last few weeks have been good.
"If we can cut out conceding silly goals and the defensive mistakes we make as a team, and continue to play like that, then I'm sure we will get the wins that we need."
