Premier League Result: Arsenal triumphs over Tottenham Hotspur with a 3-2 victory
The tale of that iconic Premier League win 20 years ago, right at White Hart Lane, was fresh in the minds of Arsenal fans going into the match against Tottenham Hotspur. As articulated by Mikel Arteta, there was a desire to carve out a fresh glory at the same place, and to continue putting Manchester City under pressure who would later play Nottingham Forest in a late Sunday match.
In their battle to keep their title aspirations flickering, Arsenal succeeded, thanks to an outstanding first-half display that allowed them to clinch a 3-0 lead against Tottenham Hotspur. The power, smoothness, and confidence oozed by Arsenal was remarkable, even though no one foresaw the suspense that would unfold in the second half.
Pivotal in their victory were set-piece threats, culminating in Pierre-Emile Højbjerg ironically scoring an own goal on a corner, and Kai Havertz converting another with his head. In between, Bukayo Saka landed a fatal counterattack, and one could already picture Arsenal’s triumphant celebrations in front of their fans.
And celebrate they did, but only after surviving a scare sparked by David Raya’s catastrophic passing mistake that enabled Cristian Romero to make the score 3-1. The situation got even more dire when Son Heung-min netted a penalty late in the game, following Declan Rice’s foul on Ben Davies, sending pulses racing amongst the travelling Arsenal fans. Was their team about to squander the lead?
Fortunately, the answer was no. Despite an admirable show of tenacity, Spurs gained no points and failed to dent Arsenal’s title hopes. Even after several close calls in the first half and a spirited fight towards the end, Spurs were unable to avoid a second consecutive home defeat against the team they passionately detest.
The atmosphere in the stadium was intensely electrifying at the start of the game, thanks to its fantastic acoustics and the exciting subplots. Arteta continued to pick Thomas Partey over Jorginho in the midfield. However, it was Ange Postecoglou’s choice of Højbjerg instead of Yves Bissouma that was telling. The decision indicated a practical approach rather than sticking to the core tactics of Postecoglou.
Indeed, the Spurs fans showed concern on Højbjerg’s participation fearing the worst and were dismayed when their fears come to life with the midfield player making a glaring mistake in the 15th minute.
In contrast to their strong start in the match, Spurs gently conceded a corner after a futile attempt to play from the back. Saka took advantage of the situation, whipping the ball over to Højbjerg, who unfortunately found himself poorly positioned against Takehiro Tomiyasu. In a valiant attempt to save the day, Højbjerg ended up heading the ball directly into his own net.
Spurs had begun the match with great zeal, soaking up the energy of their home crowd and winning early battles. However, the game took a shift around the 10th minute when Partey received the ball in a compromising position. With incredible agility, he smoothly turned away from James Maddison, kick-starting Arsenal’s momentum. Maddison had a tumble in the meantime.
Arsenal experienced what could be termed as a squall, but managed to ride out the storm. They narrowly missed a goal just prior to their breakthrough one, with Martin Ødegaard setting up Havertz. Unfortunately, an offside flag was raised, much to the disappointment of Spurs who were still nursing their wounds from a harrowing first half.
The first half saw Romero missing his shots from a Maddison set-piece, hitting the pole on one occasion. There was a moment when Spurs believed they had levelled the game after Pedro Porro’s shot ended up at Micky van de Ven’s feet following a semi-cleared corner. Unfortunately, the VAR disagreed due to Van de Ven being slightly offside.
Arsenal’s fans erupted into cheer and they celebrated once again when Havertz managed to find Saka in an open field with a flawless diagonal shot, followed by unsuccessful penalty appeals from Spurs. Both Dejan Kulusevski and Maddison believed they were brought down by Leandro Trossard and Rice respectively, but there was no case to be made. Saka outsmarted Davies, who had chased after him, ultimately shooting a low left-footed goal past Guglielmo Vicario.
The interval saw a chorus of boos from Spurs fans, who had just witnessed Son’s ill-fated attempt on Porro’s overhead pass, leaving their team 3-0 down. Havertz cleverly placed himself between Van de Ven and Romero to head in Rice’s corner, a move that was undeniably effortless and further deepened Spurs’ miseries.
For the first time since their 4-0 loss to Newcastle on April 13th, Spurs took on Arsenal, who’d had five matches since their April 14th 2-0 home defeat to Aston Villa. This scenario sparked a debate regarding which condition was more beneficial—recuperation or staying in form?
The second half served as a litmus test for Spurs’ mindset, though not exactly in the way Postecoglou had predicted. The team had to demonstrate passion for their emblem. Meanwhile, a soaring header by Tomiyasu went high, and Vicario executed an impressive foot save on a volley from Saka, assisted by Havertz. Had it succeeded, the score would have become 4-0.
In spite of adverse circumstances, Spurs held their ground – notably Romero. He made a vigorous dash from the rear on the 51st minute, keeping forward as the ball was passed to Raya. His efforts paid off when the Arsenal goalkeeper flubbed an over-ambitious lofted pass aimed at Partey, Romero capitalized on the misstep by smashing it past him.
Postecoglou had just slotted in Richarlison as striker, shifted Son to the left wing, and designated the indefatigable Kulusevski as attacking midfielder. Could a comeback be within Spurs’ reach?
Spurs fans’ hopes escalated when Davies claimed a loose ball on the fringes of the Arsenal box before Rice could and was fouled by the Arsenal player in his clearance attempt. Son coolly converted the resulting penalty to instigate nail-biting final moments for Arsenal, heightened when Vicario pushed forward for a desperate, last-ditch corner. Arsenal managed to just barely secure the victory. – Guardian