Arsenal held on to a much-needed 2-1 victory at home to Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday night.
Mikel Arteta called the north London derby “the nicest game of the season to watch”. The neutral – if such a thing exists in the modern game – would have certainly enjoyed this midweek offering of chaos-ball, a contest littered with more moments of calamity than quality.
Arsenal started much the brighter of the two sides, charging at their fearsome rivals to the backdrop of a raucous crowd which Arteta had spent all week geeing up. However, Son Heung-min silenced the Emirates in the 25th minute.
Tottenham’s captain was first to a half-cleared corner, controlling a low volley into a crowded box which veered off William Saliba’s toe and beyond David Raya.
The Gunners, fresh from consecutive cup defeats in front of their own fans against Newcastle and Manchester United over the past week, could very well have wobbled. In reality, Arsenal only had to hold out long enough for Tottenham’s own insecurities to take hold.
Spurs – and the rest of the division – will have been well aware of the threat Arsenal, and in particular Gabriel, pose from corner kicks. Yet the Brazilian centre-back – who scored the winner in the reverse fixture – still found room at the back post to head the ball over the line via Dominic Solanke’s midriff in the 40th minute. Before the half-time whistle could be blown, a trio of Tottenham errors afforded Arsenal the lead as Leandro Trossard pierced through the visitors’ soft centre.
Ange Postecoglou is nothing if not a manger who lives by the sword and dies by the sword. The half-time interval prompted the arrival of James Maddison and Brennan Johnson, hollowing out Tottenham’s midfield in search of an all-important equaliser.
That dramatic alteration served to expose rather than enliven Spurs. The visitors didn’t force Raya into a single second-half save, and remained just as susceptible to bizarre lapses in concentration with the ball in their own half.
Arteta – who responded to Postecoglou’s all-out attack by pivoting to a system with two left-backs – watched on as his side once again missed a glut of presentable chances. Unlike Arsenal’s last two opponents, Spurs couldn’t punish the Gunners’ profligacy and were consigned to a second derby defeat of the league season.
*Ratings provided by FotMob*
|
Player |
Rating |
|---|---|
|
GK: David Raya |
7.3/10 |
|
RB: Jurrien Timber |
7.5/10 |
|
CB: William Saliba |
7.5/10 |
|
CB: Gabriel |
7.2/10 |
|
LB: Myles Lewis-Skelly |
7.5/10 |
|
CM: Martin Odegaard |
8.4/10 |
|
CM: Thomas Partey |
7.2/10 |
|
CM: Declan Rice |
7.3/10 |
|
RW: Raheem Sterling |
7.0/10 |
|
ST: Kai Havertz |
6.3/10 |
|
LW: Leandro Trossard |
8.2/10 |
|
SUB: Gabriel Martinelli (61′ for Sterling) |
6.3/10 |
|
SUB: Kieran Tierney (77′ for Trossard) |
6.2/10 |
|
SUB: Oleksandr Zinchenko (87′ for Lewis-Skelly) |
N/A |
|
SUB: Mikel Merino (87′ for Rice) |
N/A |
Subs not used: Neto (GK), Jakub Kiwior, Jorginho, Ismeal Kabia, Nathan Butler-Oyedeji
*Ratings provided by FotMob*
|
Player |
Rating |
|---|---|
|
GK: Antonin Kinsky |
6.6/10 |
|
RB: Pedro Porro |
6.5/10 |
|
CB: Radu Dragusin |
6.1/10 |
|
CB: Archie Gray |
5.9/10 |
|
LB: Djed Spence |
5.8/10 |
|
CM: Pape Sarr |
5.4/10 |
|
CM: Yves Bissouma |
5.0/10 |
|
CM: Lucas Bergvall |
7.3/10 |
|
RW: Dejan Kulusevski |
6.8/10 |
|
ST: Dominic Solanke |
5.2/10 |
|
LW: Son Heung-min |
7.1/10 |
|
SUB: James Maddison (46′ for Bissouma) |
6.7/10 |
|
SUB: Brennan Johnson (46′ for Sarr) |
6.0/10 |
|
SUB: Richarlison (78′ for Son) |
6.1/10 |
Subs not used: Brandon Austin (GK), Malachi Hardy, Callum Olusesi, Sergio Reguilon, Mikey Moore, Will Lankshear