Arsenal emerged victorious 2 – 1 over Tottenham in Sunday’s North London Derby at the Emirates Stadium.
The pregame was dominated by the absence of Arsenal captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who was omitted from the starting lineup. According to manager Mikel Arteta, the striker was late for a team meeting, and not for the first time.
Had Arsenal lost, we would be discussing the decision ad infinitum. Fortunately for Arteta, a mostly convincing win has rendered it amazing management.
Arsenal outplayed their rivals for the majority of the North London derby. That is, until Erik Lamela was sent off for Spurs, leading to a nervy last 15 minutes for Arsenal.
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Spurs didn’t turn up in the first half of the North London Derby, sitting off the Gunners. Arsenal enjoyed the brighter moments of the half, without looking too much like scoring.
They were slapped in the face when Tottenham scored with their first shot of the game. Erik Lamela scored with an audacious rabona into the bottom corner.
Arsenal’s response was excellent, and they equalized shortly afterwards through Martin Odegaard. The effervescent Kieran Tierney cut the ball back to the penalty spot, and Odegaard’s deflected shot went past Hugo Lloris.
1-1 at halftime, and Spurs came out better in the second half. The game was in the balance until Arsenal were awarded a penalty by the VAR.
Nicolas Pepe played a fantastic pass to Alexandre Lacazette on the edge of the box. He fluffed his shot, but Davinson Sanchez clattered into him with a late challenge.
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After a VAR review, Lacazette dispatched confidently from the spot. Arsenal continued to dominate until the 75th minute, when Lamela elbowed Kieran Tierney in the face. He was shown a second yellow card and Spurs were down to ten men.
However, rather than capitalise, Arsenal appeared paralyzed. With a significant derby win within their grasp, they played within themselves. Harry Kane had a header disallowed for offside, and cracked the post with a free kick.
Arsenal held out for a symbolic win over Tottenham. It rounds of a great week for the Gunners, who face Olympiacos in the Europa League on Thursday, already 3 – 1 up from the first leg.
