Once again Arsenal have proven that statement which most people seem to say of them lately — “With Arsenal, you never really know.”

And with Newcastle, well whaddaya know? From losing Andy Carroll to coming back from 4 goals down is a pretty cool turnaround. And to top that, midfielder Cheik Tiote‘s first goal in English football secured an amazing point for the Magpies as they fought back from 4-0 down against a 10-man Arsenal.

Arsenal vs Wolves football odds

Arsenal – 1.27

Wolves – 16

Draw – 6.4

Cheik Tiote fired a wonder goal to give Newcastle an improbable draw

The Ivory Coast midfielder pegged back a suffering 10-man Arsenal with a stunning 87th-minute volley after Joey Barton had scored twice from the penalty spot either side of Leon Best‘s fourth goal of the season. But the story wasn’t so rosy when it started — in fact, it was abysmal for Newcastle.

Goals from a comebacking Theo Walcott, central defender Johan Djourou and a double for Robin van Persie looked to have secured the win and gotten all the points, allowing Arsenal to keep the pressure on Barclay’s Premier League leaders Manchester United. People who thought this couldn’t have been more wrong in their decision to leave the stadium early.

It started when all hell broke loose from Arsenal midfielder Abou Diaby.

Abou Diaby - he tweeted that he was "a broken man" after the draw with Newcastle

The Arsenal midfielder was sent off for a wrestling tackle that pushed Joey Barton — of all people — to the ground, after a no-holds-barred 48th-minute challenge. This became the sparkplug for Newcastle, roared on by a crowd of 51,561, and they pulled off the most unlikely of recoveries.

Life for Newcastle without Andy Carroll started off really bad at Fulham on Wednesday evening, and the mood inside St James’ was undeniably ugly by the time the 10th minute had elapsed. Arsenal were breathtaking, their pace and movement left the Magpies just ball watching at times. It’s pretty much an understatement that they met very little resistance from  a Newcastle side which had won 1-0 at the Emirates Stadium in November. This version of Newcastle-without-Carroll showed few signs of producing a similarly display on their own pitch, even with combative midfielder Tiote restored to the side after his three-match ban.

But the cracks started to appear for Arsenal — and allow me to say this, they usually do — after Diaby over-reacted to Barton’s rugged challenge and pushed him to the ground to earn an inevitable red card. Newcastle took that as their cue to step up a gear, and they got their deserved reward. Tiote saved the best for last when he lashed an 87th-minute left-footed volley into the bottom left corner to complete a remarkable repair job.

What’s next for Arsenal? Well, it was a pity that Manchester United chose this weekend to  end their unbeaten run, else it would have been “goodbye Premier League title”. They will face the Red Devils’ conquerors — in Arsenal vs Wolves, whose betting odds are even further apart than Wolves vs United.