Tottenham Hotspur 2-0 Arsenal – Three Talking Points
Tottenham Hotspur claimed the bragging rights in North London when they defeated local rivals Arsenal 2-0 at the White Hart Lane on Sunday.
Mauricio Pochettino’s men dominated the Gunners through the course of the game and ensured three points thanks to two second half goals from midfielder Dele Alli and star striker Harry Kane. The scoreline could easily have been much worse for Arsenal if not for several missed opportunities from Tottenham in the 90 minutes.
The win sees Tottenham maintain the gap to league leaders Chelsea to four points, while Arsenal remain in the sixth position, having failed to capitalize on Manchester City and Manchester United dropping points earlier in the day.
In what could potentially be the last ever North London derby to be played at the White Hart Lane, here are three talking points from the game:
Petr Cech The Only Saving Grace For Arsenal
There have been plenty spoken about Petr Cech’s form between the sticks over the past months as it has been reported that Arsenal are lining up a summer move for Sunderland goalkeeper Jordan Pickford to take over the mantle of the No.1 from the former Czech Republic international.
But the former Chelsea man showed what he is capable of against Tottenham as he pulled off a string of impressive saves to keep the scoreline respectable for the Gunners. Cech made some excellent stops to deny the likes of Jan Vertonghen, Victor Wanyama and Harry Kane at the Lane and finished the game with a total of 9 saves. While the rest of the Arsenal team struggled poorly, Cech is the only Gunners’ player who could walk with his head held high after the defeat.
Mesut Ozil Missing – Again!
It has become a regular occurrence of late and it is not in the best interests of Arsenal – Mesut Ozil went missing once again in a big game.
The German playmaker was almost invisible on the pitch and one wouldn’t be mistaken to think if Arsenal played with just ten men against their most bitter rivals. Ozil did not have a single shot at goal in the game and made just two key passes, which did not amount to anything. Most of his touches were far from the attacking third, rendering him ineffective in a big game once again.
There has been a lot of criticism leveled at the former Real Madrid man in recent months and when his team needed him to step up as they fight for a top-four finish, Ozil was a non-entity once again.
St. Totteringham’s Day Is Cancelled
The victory for Tottenham over the Gunners officially confirmed that they will finish above their local rivals in the league table for the first time in 22 years. The last time such a feat occurred was way back in 1995.
Spurs came so very close in the last campaign, only to falter in the final steps which allowed Arsenal to end the season in the second-place ahead of them. However, the shift in power in North London is well underway as the manner of victory on the afternoon clearly underlined Tottenham’s rise to the top.
Spurs sit in the second position in the table, and still carry hopes of upsetting Chelsea to win the Premier League title. On the other hand Arsenal are languishing in the sixth place, seventeen points behind Tottenham and six points off fourth-placed Manchester City, with their Champions League hopes looking bleaker by the day.
“North London is ours,” sang the Tottenham fans as the St. Totteringham’s Day was cancelled.