Match Report – Match Highlights – Player Ratings – Post-Match Press Conference
Final Result: Tottenham 0-1 Arsenal (Gabriel 62′)
Arsenal XI (4-3-3): Raya; Timber, Saliba, Gabriel, White; Jorginho, Partey, Trossard (G. Jesus 80′); Martinelli (Sterling 80′), Saka (Nwaneri 86′), Havertz
The prediction for the starting lineup was close to ours, with the only omission being Leandro Trossard for Gabriel Jesus as the Brazilian wasn’t deemed fit enough to start. With the injuries sustained to Martin Odegaard and the suspension to Declan Rice, it was always going to be an uphill task in this North London Derby.
First Half Analysis
Tottenham drew first blood when Dejan Kulusevski sent in a tight shot that was parried away by David Raya. Arsenal responded with Kai Havertz, that nodded a Gabi Martinelli cross goalwards but a combination of the Tottenham defender and Gigi Vicario smothered the ball.
The game’s biggest chance arrived at Martinelli’s feet when he ran in behind Pedro Porro to latch onto Trossard’s carefully-threaded pass and with Bukayo Saka miles ahead, Martinelli chose to side-foot the ball to the goalie. The Brazilian has this knack for putting his head on the ground and if he looked up, he’d have seen his teammate that had a chance for an easy tap in. Tottenham almost had the lead when Dominic Solanke sent a looping header from a James Maddison’s cross that missed by a lick of paint. However, it looked like Solanke was offside in the buildup.
There can’t be a North London Derby without a bit of fracas and it arrived when Jurrien Timber legitimately won the ball with a crunch tackle on Porro but the Spaniard hit the deck like he had been shot with a sub-machine gun. Vicario left his goalkeeping duties and grabbed Timber’s jersey and within seconds, it turned into a swarm of Tottenham and Arsenal players at loggerheads. The man with the whistle, Jarred Gillet, brandished cards to both players and things calmed down eventually.
Second Half Analysis
Like a big bad wolf, Tottenham huffed and puffed but hit a massive Arsenal brick defensive wall. However, Arsenal got the lead when big Gabi evaded Cristian Romero to fire a thumping header past Vicario from a sumptuous Saka in-swinger. The defending from Tottenham was quite shocking and I loved the bit of deja vu, as Arsenal scored a header from similar circumstances against the same opposition last season, but it was Havertz that rose the highest on that occasion.
Ange Postecoglou responded with a series of substitutions with Pape Sarr and Wilson Odobert coming on for Rodrigo Bentancur and Brennan Johnson. It was more of the same and Arsenal responded to every threat Tottenham poses and excelled. Timo Werner came on for the ineffectual Maddison and Arteta responded with the newly braided Gabriel Jesus and a debut for Raheem Sterling. Close shaves here and there but the ref’s whistle closed proceedings as Arsenal left Tottenham’s Stadium with three valuable points.
Key Takeaways and Conclusion
- David Raya played a massive role in calming the storm, making many claims and hitting the deck to allow the pressure on his team die down, giving Arsenal a chance to recover.
- The combination of Thomas Partey and Jorginho should never be repeated in a big game and both elder statesmen were run ragged by the energetic Tottenham midfield and I’m so elated to know that Rice will be available for the Manchester City game.
- Saka was substituted late on for what seemed to be an injury and I hope it’s not a long term issue, but he will be absolutely vital for our Champions League opener against Atalanta and the crunch clash with Manchester City.
- Gabriel and William Saliba are absolutely amazing, and it seems like Gabi’s goal spurred him on to put up a monster performance. As Arseblog rightfully said, if Gabriel was Popeye, scoring Tottenham was his spinach, as he went into beast mode afterwards. His interception from that sloppy Partey clearance in the box was top notch.
This was a great testament of the depth of the squad with the injuries prior to the game and we can bask in the euphoria of an amazing win against our rivals, Tottenham.
