There is always one last chance. Spurs piled forward as they hunted an unlikely comeback goal. Son Heung-min, the scorer of a penalty that had injected a sense of jeopardy into a contest that had looked settled, whipped a cross into the box.
David Raya, who had inadvertently allowed Arsenal’s control to slip, dived to parry it and the ball bounced to a red shirt rather than a white one in the centre of a crowded penalty box. Arsenal survived and secured three vital points that keep them top of the table.
Manchester City may well still win the Premier League title but they will have to be perfect to make it four in a row. The Gunners are keeping their foot firmly pressed on the accelerator.
For a brief five-minute spell in the first half, Tottenham had Arsenal wobbling on the ropes. Had notorious speed king Micky van de Ven retreated a split second earlier or Gabriel Magalhaes added an extra 20kg to his squat in midweek, they would have cancelled out an early opener.
Instead, Van de Ven’s shoulder was marginally ahead of Gabriel’s backside, the goal was ruled out and in an instant, the complexion of the 195th north London derby, and the trajectory of both club’s seasons, had inalterably shifted. This was supposed to be Arsenal’s stiffest test of their run-in. They had to dig in at the end, but ultimately they had the points wrapped up before half-time.
For Spurs, a season that started so promisingly is in danger of petering out in disappointing fashion. In theory, fourth spot is still achievable. Continue to defend like this and it will be impossible to catch Aston Villa. Spurs have conceded 52 times this season, almost double Arsenal’s total.
Moments after James Maddison had lashed the game’s first meaningful effort over the bar, Arsenal had the ball in the net only for the offside flag to deny them. Martin Odegaard was ahead of the last defender when slipping a pass through for Kai Havertz to score, but only by a matter of inches.
It was a catalyst for Arsenal pressure nonetheless. Less than a minute later Cristian Romero was shuttling across the six-yard box to block from Declan Rice and from the resulting corner the visitors went in front.
The Gunners have been lethal from such situations this season but it was a player in white who headed in their 20th set-piece goal of the campaign. Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, the Premier League’s most used substitute, made a first start in almost three months; perhaps that lack of match sharpness contributed to his own goal, a glancing header at the near post that left Guglielmo Vicario with no chance.
After just a quarter of an hour, Spurs faced a mountain to climb, given Arsenal had gone six league away games and over nine hours without conceding a single goal.
The home side’s response was good, though. They had two set play chances of their own in quick succession, both of which fell to Romero. The Argentine nodded his first attempt fractionally wide of the far post before thundering the post when it looked easier to score with his second.
Romero’s central defensive partner Van de Ven did manage to find the net, but was ruled offside.
It was a decisive moment. Minutes after thinking they had restored parity, Spurs found themselves 2-0 down. Dejan Kulusevski tumbled inside the Arsenal area after cutting across Leandrto Trossard and despite Spurs appeals play was waved on. Just five seconds later Vicario was collecting the ball from the back of his net again after Saka had scored his trademark goal – cut inside and bend a low shot into the corner – to double Arsenal’s lead.
It was Saka’s 15th league goal of the campaign marking a personal best.
When Havertz rose to head in the third from another corner in front of the south stand the contest was effectively settled after just 38 minutes. As the German raced towards the corner flag he raised a finger to his mouth to shush the home fans. Many responded by evacuating their seats in search of solace in a plastic pint cup. Or else to cut their losses and beat the rush home. It appears good vibes alone aren’t sufficient when it comes to defending corners.
Arsenal began the second period with intent to humiliate. Only a miraculous stop from Vicario’s outstretched right boot prevented Saka from doubling his own personal tally and adding to Tottenham’s nightmare.
Spurs looked unlikely to mount a fightback without a helping hand. Raya duly gave them one, chipping the ball straight to an unmarked Romero who chested the ball down and confidently slotted a side-footed half-volley into the bottom corner as though body and mind had been temporarily taken over by Harry Kane.
It was an inexplicable mistake from the Arsenal keeper, and one that energised the home fans. Spurs began to flood forward, using the pacy Brennan Johnson as an outlet. Romero had a new role: part central defender, part central striker.
Renewed belief coursed around the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, even more so when Son brought them to within a goal of a sensational comeback from the penalty spot. Kane routinely scored from the spot in this fixture. His old strike partner carried on his legacy.
Declan Rice initially thought he had escaped sanction after volleying Ben Davies between the legs. Not in the VAR era. Michael Oliver was sent to the touchline monitor and reversed his decision with Son duly dispatching the spot-kick.
An improbable fightback was temporarily on, but didn’t materialise. This win will not secure Arsenal the Premier League title, as their 2-2 draw at the old White Hart Lane in 2004 did. But if they do on to pip City to the top prize it will have been a significant result en route to dreamland.
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