Arsenal won 1-0 against Tottenham on Sunday, overcoming the absences of key midfielders Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard to maintain their north London derby dominance. Gabriel Magalhaes scored the winning goal.
Mikel Arteta’s side were missing skipper Odegaard due to an ankle injury sustained on Norway service, while Rice was suspended for his red card against Brighton.
Arsenal’s loss of two such crucial players appeared to leave them vulnerable on their trip up the Seven Sisters Road to face their bitter rivals.
However, the Premier League title hopefuls dug deep with a tough performance, benefiting from Tottenham’s latest show of wayward finishing before Gabriel scored the winner in the second half.
The Brazilian defender’s first goal since February extended Arsenal’s unbeaten streak to three wins in four league games as they seek their first trophy since 2004 after finishing second twice.
Arsenal has now won their previous three visits to Tottenham, losing only once, in May 2022, in their last eight meetings with their bitter rivals.
The second-placed Gunners are two points behind Manchester City as they prepare for their Champions League opening against Atalanta on Thursday before flying to face Pep Guardiola’s champions next weekend.
The 196th north London derby demonstrated Arsenal’s toughness and determination, but they also required a dose of good fortune after Tottenham let them off the hook in the first half.
Tottenham’s inability to convert dominant stretches into goals has become a recurring theme this season, as Ange Postecoglou’s side was once again let down by a lack of cutting edge.
Tottenham’s second consecutive defeat leaves them with only one win in four games, a concerning start to the season for Postecoglou after their late collapse last season denied them a top-four spot.
When Arteta replaced Rice and Odegaard with Jorginho and Gabriel Martinelli, he challenged his players to demonstrate the “resilience, depth, and hunger” required to overcome their selection troubles.
Set-Piece Specialists
Arsenal had to rely on all of those talents during Tottenham’s explosive start, with David Raya making a wonderful save at his near post after Son Heung-min’s pass set up Dejan Kulusevski for an instinctive shot.
Raya had to make an even more athletic stop when Kulusevski’s cross zipped through a swarm of players and into the far corner, where the Spaniard swiped it away at full stretch.
William Saliba had to make a key last-ditch block to deny the unmarked Dominic Solanke, who took too long to fire inside the box after Son forced Arsenal to concede possession.
Tottenham’s profligacy gave Arsenal hope, as Kai Havertz rose highest for a close-range header that required a fine stop from Guglielmo Vicario, who was also equal to Martinelli’s curler seconds later.
Solanke was picked out by James Maddison’s cross and did well to fend off Gabriel, but his looping header went just wide.
The simmering derby heat reached a boiling point as Jurrien Timber’s tackle on Pedro Porro left the Tottenham right-back writhing on the turf.
Vicario attacked the Arsenal defender, and both players were booked following a scuffle including a plastic bottle hurled from the seats.
By the time Kulusevski viciously upended Jorginho on the stroke of halftime, seven players had been booked in a furious clash, including five Tottenham players.
Micky van de Ven’s looping shot challenged Raya just after the break, but toothless Tottenham were dealt a nasty sucker punch in the 64th minute.
With 23 goals from set pieces since the start of last season, Arsenal has become dead-ball specialists, and this was another expertly executed routine.
Saka’s in-swinging corner found Gabriel, who escaped with a shove on Cristian Romero before smashing his header past Vicario from five yards.
Tottenham trapped Arsenal in the closing stages but were unable to get through as Kulusevski shot narrowly wide.