Kevin Whitcher
It’s been a while. Arsenal have failed to beat Spurs in the Premier League in the previous three seasons. Too long. And what was encouraging to see is how well this group of players can play. Brian Dawes, a long term Gooner contributor, mentioned to me after the game that it might have been the first occasion on which the manager’s first choice eleven started a match this season. I am sure someone will either verify that or point out the matches where the same team was put out.
Certainly, the return to the team of Mustafi turned out to be a huge boost, as the defence played with genuine intensity and commitment. It’s almost as if they had held their own private screening of the ‘89’ movie – featuring the current assistant manager. It would be nice to think of Steve Bould holding a few players up against the wall in the current day dressing room to emphasize the importance of this game to the fans. Then again, if you believe the Twitter rumours to be true, maybe Jens Lehmann is the actual enforcer on the Arsenal backroom team.
It was unexpected to see Spurs fail to perform as it was feared they might. Having overcome their Wembley hoodoo, they have looked like a side that is going places, especially given their two matches against Real Madrid. Of course, derby games can throw the formbook out of the window, and trying to predict the nature of any individual one is like taking a punt in a foxycasino. Yet, although the away side did create some chances, they were unable to beat Petr Cech, who made a couple of very decent saves. It’s uncertain how much Harry Kane was affected by his recent injury, but it made a nice change for him not to score in the North London Derby. Dele Alli was practically invisible, a major surprise.
Arsenal, on the other hand, proved more clinical. Mustafi’s goal from an Ozil free kick was fantastically placed, Hugo Lloris not even bothering to stretch his arm out to it. Not long after, Sanchez scored from close range after a Lacazette ball from wide. It was interesting to see how much danger the home side created from passes played across the line, with the ball flashing across the face of goal a couple of times before they scored.
After that, more chances came as Spurs began to chase the game more and more, thus leaving gaps and the opportunity for counter attacks. Arsenal certainly could, and perhaps should have scored more, but as long as they retained the two goal cushion, it felt like they were in control of things. It was a far more enjoyable derby, in terms of tension, than we have seen for a while.
There was a significant police presence on the streets outside the ground for this game, which has not always been the case. Sadly, a few pockets of Spurs fans intent on causing trouble chose their moments to attack when the police decided to follow others. One threw a bottle at one of The Gooner sellers. So they don’t restrict the Neanderthal behavior to their own patch. And a warning to Gooners that decide to attend the away match at Wembley – stick to Wembley Way. Away fans that have veered away from the main route have been isolated and beaten badly. The moron element amongst the noisy neighbours remains high, and this is one of the reasons it feels important to put them back in their place. Granted, they do have a large number of fans who do know how to behave. But they also seem to have a disproportionate number of knuckleheads. I suspect the toilets in the away end received the customary treatment, and that the agreement between Spurs and Arsenal means that Tottenham will cover the repair bill.
Back on the pitch, there were excellent performances all round – the back three especially, in addition to Kolasinac, all stood out. Ramsey covered a lot of ground and even Mesut Ozil showed signs of really wanting it. Of course, there is an element of headscratching when we witness this kind of desire to compete and win their duels. We saw it in the FA Cup semi-finals and final last season. We saw a committed display away at Chelsea earlier this season. But there have been occasions where the players seemed to lack in the words of Watford Troy Deeney, “cojones”. There seemed no shortage of them yesterday. A neighbour of mine described Arsenal as a “bi-polar” team, and in the past, I have often referred to them as a Jekyl and Hyde side.
So reassuring to see that the team can perform as well as this, tempered with the realization that they won’t do it often enough to challenge for the title. But the players, at least, are good enough to do it on any given day. And this was one we all enjoyed tremendously.
