Arsenal secured a narrow 3-2 victory against Tottenham, maintaining their lead at the Premier League summit in a thrilling North London derby. The Gunners, determined to stay ahead of Manchester City, quickly quieted the home crowd with an impressive trio of goals before the break.
An unfortunate own goal by Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg gave Arsenal the lead, followed by strikes from Bukayo Saka and Kai Havertz, putting Arsenal firmly in control. Arsenal secured the win, despite goals from Cristian Romero and Son Heung-min in the second half.
With this victory, Arsenal are now four points ahead of City, who have a later match against Nottingham Forest. If City wins their remaining five games, they will secure a fourth consecutive English title. However, Arsenal is intent on keeping the pressure on, especially after last season’s disappointment of losing an eight-point lead.
Following a tough loss to Aston Villa and an exit from the Champions League, Arsenal has shown resilience with a strong comeback. Mikel Arteta urged his team to demonstrate their desire for success, and they answered emphatically, highlighted by a 5-0 thrashing of Chelsea earlier in the week.
Arsenal’s win at Tottenham’s stadium adds to their history of significant victories at their rival’s ground, though it wasn’t enough to secure the title this time. Nonetheless, it was their fifth win in the last seven derbies, keeping their title hopes alive after two decades.
For Tottenham, the loss is a severe setback, leaving them seven points behind fourth-placed Aston Villa, though they have two games in hand in their quest for a Champions League spot.
Despite a rest period since their defeat at Newcastle, Tottenham seemed outpaced by an Arsenal side that had played four times in the same span. Arsenal took the lead through Hojbjerg’s misdirected header, and despite Tottenham’s efforts, including a disallowed goal by Mickey van de Ven due to offside, Arsenal extended their lead with Saka’s precise strike and Havertz’s header from a corner.
Tottenham’s persistence paid off with Romero capitalizing on a mistake by Arsenal’s keeper, and Son converting a late penalty, but Arsenal managed to survive the late surge.
In another match, Bournemouth triumphed over Brighton with a 3-0 scoreline, thanks to goals from Marcos Senesi, Enes Unai, and Justin Kluivert.
Reported By AFP.
