Arsenal grabbed bragging rights in the North London derby as they beat Tottenham Hotspur 2-0 to go eight points clear at the top of the Premier League standings.
Mikel Arteta’s men took full advantage of a sloppy Tottenham side as they put themselves in pole position for the League title come in May.
The Gunners went ahead in the 14th minute when Bukayo Saka’s right footed cross was fumbled into his own net by Tottenham goalkeeper Hugo Lloris.
Horrific error by Lloris
It was a catastrophic error from the Spurs captain, who given by his standards should have held on despite the ball being deflected from team Ryan Sessegnon.
Four minutes later Arsenal shot stopper Aaraon Ramsdale came up with a huge save from Hueng min Son to preserve his side’s lead.
The home side hardly got a foot into the game after that passage of play as Arsenal looked by far the better of the two sides dominating every blade of grass on the pitch. Thomas Partey almost made it 2-0 in the 24th minute but his spectacular volley from the edge of the boxcrashed off the post.
Arsenal however doubled their lead in the 36th minute as captain Martin Odegaard’s 25 yard scorcher beat Lloris once again at the far post.
Conte’s Spurs Outclassed
It was men against boys at that point as Antonio Conte’s men were outplayed and outclassed tactically. Aaron Ramsdale preserved the two-goal cushion going into half time as produced a fine save to deny Harry Kane’s swinging header.
Tottenham however came out with their guns blazing but it was Ramsdale yet again who made two brilliant saves in the space of two minutes, first parrying away Kane’s right footed effort on goal and then miraculously stretching his left leg to deny Sessegnon when the Tottenham winger was destined to score.
Eddia Nketiah should have it made it three for Arsenal in the 70th minute following a fine ball from Granit Xhaka but the forward’s poor first touch ensured Lloris could make himself big to keep it at 2-0. Spurs did threaten in the closing minutes but were unable to beat Ramsdale as Conte cut a sorry figure on the sidelines.
The result means that Arteta’s men seized the advantage in the title race after reigning Champions Manchester City lost in their locally derby on Saturday. It was also Arsenal’s first league double over their cross-city rivals for the first time since the 2013-14 campaign. Spurs meanwhile are fifth with 33 points, 5 points adrift of Manchester United for a place in the top four having played an extra game.
Photo credit: IMAGO David Klein / Sportimage
