Arsenal secured a hard-fought first north London derby win over Tottenham Hotspur since December 2018 on Sunday coming from a goal down to run out 2-1 victors at the Emirates.
The Gunners played without captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang after he was left out of the starting line-up due to a disciplinary breach but were totally unfazed as they took charge of much of the first half with Emile Smith Rowe and Cedric Soares both hitting the woodwork.
However, all of their dominance and swift play didn’t mean much as they failed to score and they were behind in the 33rd minute.
Erik Lamela after coming on to replace the injured Heung-Min Son after 19 minutes, produced a spectacular drilled Rabona out of nowhere to beat Bernd Leno and find the bottom corner.
The hosts refused to let their head down and were rewarded just before the half-time interval when Martin Odegaard swept home Kieran Tierney’s cutback and they turned the game around midway through the second half when Alexandre Lacazette scored from the spot after being brought down by Davinson Sanchez.
Lamela quickly went from hero to villain 15 minutes from time as he was sent off for a second bookable offence after he threw out a stray arm to catch Tierney, while Harry Kane, who had a late header disallowed for offside, struck the post with a free-kick before Gabriel Magalhaes’ brilliant block to deny Sanchez scoring from the rebound secured Arsenal all three points.
Spurs’ top-four hopes, as a result, suffers a huge dent with Jose Mourinho’s side remaining seventh in the Premier League table, six points behind fourth-placed Chelsea.
Meanwhile, Arsenal are still 10th on the log, four points behind Tottenham but have boosted their European hopes with the massive win.
Watch the highlights of the match below
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDsZT-Ai6ek
Stats and facts from the match (Backed by Opta)
- Arsenal are unbeaten in their last 10 Premier League home games against Spurs (W6 D4), while Mikel Arteta is the third consecutive Gunners boss to win his first home league meeting with Spurs, following Arsène Wenger and Unai Emery.
- Since losing his first London derby at the Emirates in the Premier League (1-2 v Chelsea in December 2019), Arteta is unbeaten in his last five such games, picking up four victories (D1).
- Spurs have dropped 45 points from winning positions against Arsenal in the Premier League – the most of any team against a specific opponent in the competition.
- Spurs have conceded seven penalty goals in the Premier League this season, the most by a José Mourinho team in a single campaign in the competition.
- Erik Lamela became just the fifth substitute in Premier League history to score and be sent off in the same game, after David Lee (1993), Bobby Zamora (2007), Ivan Klasnic (2010) and Hal Robson-Kanu (2017).
Manager’s reactions…
Mikel Arteta, the Arsenal boss said: “Full credit for the way we have done it today after two days coming back from Europe. It was incredible. Going 1-0 down the way we were playing was disappointing and worst-case scenario against a team like Spurs. But we kept playing and deserve the win.
“Last 10 minutes we did not manage the game and we need to improve as a team. We relied on luck. With the way we played, we should have seen it out comfortably.
“We prepare the game trying to exploit areas. We had some really strong performances today. You could see the energy they were playing with.
“It is about how you react. This team have the reaction in them to not give up. We kept playing and generating chances and got rewarded. We played quite well in the previous derbies, but they are so efficient. They don’t need much to score. You see with Lamela today – a quality goal.”
Spurs boss Jose Mourinho said: “No post-match interviews for referees? That is a pity.
“We played really bad in the first half. The 1-1 was not a fair reflection of the first half. We were poor. Defending bad. No intensity or pressing. Some important players hiding. Really bad. In the second half, we only had space to improve which we did and then it is a question – but an impossible one as they don’t speak – for the referee Michael Oliver to answer. Probably Paul Tierney too, as he was the VAR. According to Kevin Friend, the referee told him he had a clear decision and the VAR does not want to go against.
“The game was under control in the second half, so we recovered. We made changes to try and win and then it is a penalty and after that, a second yellow for Lamela. It means the last 20 minutes 11 v 10, the team try to get the result.
“What I see from the bench is just a feeling at first. I am 40-50 metres away. I saw it on the iPad. Referees have a difficult job sometimes. I did not complain but when I watch back on the iPad, it is what it is. If somebody has a different opinion, it has to be one of the big Arsenal fans with a season ticket. It is the only one I accept as it is the passion speaking. Other than that, I don’t accept a different view as it is obvious.
“If the players don’t do better, it is because they can’t do better. I belong to the team, so I am as guilty for the first half as the players but the best thing is, we improve in the second half. Players get tired, coaches get tired, maybe referees get tired too. My record with Michael Oliver on penalties with Chelsea, United, and Tottenham is unlucky.”
Man Utd 1-0 West Ham: Craig Dawson own goal helps United to second in Premier League
Manchester United have moved back up to second in the Premier League all thanks to a 1-0 victory over Champions League-chasing West Ham at Old Trafford on Sunday.
The victory also came at the expense of an own goal by Craig Dawson as United were kept at bay for the better part of the match.
The home side were forced to wait until eight minutes into the second half to make a deserved breakthrough as Dawson headed Bruno Fernandes’ corner into his own net.
The result also meant United have now leapfrogged Leicester City, who had moved up to second place with a 5-0 home win over Sheffield United earlier in the day, although they are still a mammoth 14 points behind Manchester City at the top of the table.
West Ham however stay fifth, three points behind Chelsea in the final Champions League berth, but with a game in hand on the Blues.
Leicester 5-0 Sheffield United: Kelechi Iheanacho scored his first Premier League hat-trick as the Foxes ran riot
Nigerian forward Kelechi Iheanacho bagged his first Premier League hat-trick to help Leicester to a 5-0 bashing of Sheffield United as they consolidated on their place in the top four.
It was a horrible start for Paul Heckingbottom who replaced Chris Wilder late on Saturday on an interim basis, with Sheffield United mustering only one shot on target at the King Power Stadium and suffering their heaviest defeat of the season.
Iheanacho opened the flood gates up in the first half after tapping home a sweeping Jamie Vardy cross to score in three successive Premier League games for the first time.
But it was after the break when Leicester completely suppressed their opponents.
Ayoze Perez netted the FOxes second with a lovely finish, with Vardy once again setting up Iheanacho who got his second of the afternoon soon after.
The striker completed his hat-trick goal beautifully as he powered home from 25 yards out, before Vardy’s cross was turned home by Ethan Ampadu at close range to round off a bruising defeat for Sheffield United.
It’s a vital win for Leicester, who are now eight points clear of West Ham in fifth. Sheffield United remain rooted to the bottom of the table with 14 points.
Particularly happy for Mikel Arteta and the Arsenal fans. Well deserved win against Spurs.