Arsenal beat Tottenham 2-1 in the north London derby at the Emirates on Wednesday night.
There was a lot of pressure Mikel ArtetaThe team were beaten by Newcastle and Manchester United in north London in previous meetings, but the Gunners responded by securing three crucial points against their fiercest rivals.
January’s midweek clash was far from a classic, but Arsenal’s win meant they finally put the pressure on Premier League leaders Liverpool while heaping more misery on struggling Spurs.
How the match unfolded
The hosts wanted to put on a show before the game, and there was also a show of support for Gabriel Jesus, who was supposed to undergo knee surgery tearing his ACL over the weekend. There was an energy inside the Emirates that has failed to show in recent outings, with Mikel Arteta’s side thriving in the opening stages.
Much like here last season, Arsenal were territorially dominant and stifled Tottenham’s development. Antonin Kinsky’s coolness in possession was tested by Topnik’s ferocity, and the young goalkeeper was almost caught on several occasions.
Arsenal they were able to pick apart the Spurs midfield and carve a path to their north London rivals, but an early run of balls failed to get the first goal back. Leandro Trossard went closest after Declan Rice overpowered Pedro Porro at the back post to equalize for the Belgian, but his effort was blocked by Radu Dragusin.
After being confined to their own third for the first 20 minutes, Tottenham finally broke through thanks to runs from Ded Spence and Pape Sarr. The former created a good chance for Dominic Solanke with a sublime triple cross, but Gabriel was on hand to expertly avoid the England striker. Dejan Kulusevski saved the ensuing corner before Son Heung-min hit the post after William Saliba’s deflection to give the visitors a 1-0 lead.
The lead is often in doubt in this match, and Arsenal’s dominance on the ball was evident again when Solanke curled Declan Rice’s wicked cross into the Spurs net after Gabriel had challenged the back post.
Arsenal’s turnaround was complete before half-time when Leandro Trossard scored his first goal since the end of November. The Gunners have rarely had joy after big turnovers this season, but Trossard made Yves Bissouma pay by firing over and over the left glove of Kinsky with an emphatic finish.
Ange Postecoglou he certainly wasn’t thrilled with the slow death at the Emirates as he brought on James Maddison and Brennan Johnson at half-time in favor of Bissouma and Sarro. Bergvall moved to the base of the midfield. The Spurs immediately managed to turn a football game into a sport that is more often seen across the pond. There was a basketball atmosphere at the start of the second half, although neither side managed to create clear chances despite getting into promising positions.
Arsenal regained control after the hour mark with the visitors forced to defend as Maddison and Kulusevski were precariously positioned in front of teenager Bergvall, who struggled to get close. The Gunners made a big ground and slowed down the pace. Spurs had their moments in transition against a side that played 120 minutes on Sunday, but Arsenal proved stubborn after settling into their defensive block.
There was plenty of cheering for the hosts in the closing stages as they tried to hold on to their lead, with another toothless performance in the final period ensuring Spurs‘ the deficit was only one. The guests, however, could do nothing against the strongest defense in the league, which held on for a 2-1 victory.
Check out the player ratings for Arsenal 2-1 Tottenham here.
Liverpool proved to be superb in second half at Nottingham Forest on Tuesday night but could only muster a point thanks to some brilliant work between the sticks by Matz Sels. The draw wasn’t a terrible result for the Reds given Forest’s form, but it opened the door for Arsenal.
So far this season, any of the Reds’ setbacks, which have been few and far between, have not been exploited by Arteta. After Liverpool drew at Newcastle on 4 December, Arsenal failed to win at Fulham four days later. They were held by Everton on the same afternoon as Liverpool drew 2-2 with the Cottagers. Arne Slott’s side also faced Manchester United two weeks ago after the Gunners picked up a point at Brighton.
This time, however, Arsenal seized an opening. There was plenty of desperation in the red half of north London after back-to-back domestic cup defeats, but they are still unbeaten in the Premier League since November 2 and are now just four points behind the league leaders.
Liverpool’s game against Everton next month is nothing. The title race isn’t dead yet, folks!
Thomas Tuchel was present on Wednesday evening, a menu of England he must have been impressed by the performances of the two left backs.
Ironically, none of them are left backs by trade. Grandpa Spence broke into the second division on the opposite flank, while Myles Lewis-Skelly typically dominated in the middle of the park for Arsenal’s youth teams.
Spence has been forced into an unfamiliar role by an injury to Destiny Udogie, but Arteta has identified Lewis-Skelly as more than just an option to cover for injury-prone Riccardo Calafiori, who missed out again on Wednesday with a muscle problem.
The pair were among their team’s best players in the derby, with both showing impressive composure in possession when they found themselves in tricky situations. While Lewis-Skelly possesses a Mousa Dembele-like resistance to pressure, Spence is a skilled combiner with a quick burst of pace.
Neither of them showed any fear throughout the game and Tuchel must consider them for the international games in March. There is a dearth of high quality English left backs (although Lewis Hall is having a great season for record-breaking Newcastle United), and despite Spence and Lewis-Skelly preferring alternate roles, their current function may be their best route into the England set-up.
A 2-2 draw in this fixture last season represented an upturn in Tottenham’s fortunes at the Emirates and an indication that Spurs are heading in the right direction with their idealistic Australian manager at the helm.
The mood in Lilywhite neighborhoods has changed considerably since September 2023, with many skeptical of Postecoglou’s ability to oversee a sustainable rebuild. The Tottenham coach had to face another one injury crisis and we shouldn’t overlook the amount of fitness issues plaguing the visitors just because we’ve grown accustomed to their makeshift defense over the past month.
Despite their recent profligacy and the absence of Bukaya Saka, Arsenal were huge pre-match favorites and we’ve seen superior Tottenham teams produce far worse performances in this environment.
Wednesday’s defeat means Spurs have still not won a Premier League game at the Emirates since November 2010. Pre-match expectations were low and the table currently makes bleak reading. Ange, however, has taken some of the credit for Tottenham’s ‘success’ in the cups this term, and it is believed things will improve once he gets his defenders back.
It has to be.
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