LONDON — Arsenal held on to beat Tottenham 3-2 in an epic North London Derby on Sunday, as the Gunners remain top of the Premier League table.
Relief was in the air from Arsenal’s fans at the final whistle as their players and staff celebrated with them wildly. They knew how big this victory was.
Mikel Arteta’s side were 3-0 up at half time after an Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg own goal, plus goals from the brilliant duo Bukayo Saka and Kai Havertz, put them in a commanding position. But Spurs, much to their credit, created chances throughout as VAR and the post denied them in the first half but Cristiano Romero and a Heung-min Son penalty kick made it 3-2 and set up a wild finale.
Spurs couldn’t find the goal which would have dented Arsenal’s title hopes as Arteta’s side went all out with their celebrations at the full time whistle. Arsenal remain top of the Premier League table on 80 points with three games to go.
Tottenham remain fifth with 60 points, seven back of fourth-place Aston Villa with two matches-in-hand on Unai Emery’s men.
Ruthless Gunners take the next step
Last season Arsenal would have drawn this game. They didn’t. Just. And the word to sum up their display at Tottenham on Sunday was ruthless. They were 3-0 up at half time despite only having 28 percent possession. They took their chances, put their foot down when the moment arrived and held on. It seemed like they enjoyed the scrap to stay ahead late on too. That is the big difference this season. Arsenal have the ability to be clinical, dogged and have shown a different way to play. This was a similar display to when they ground out a draw away at Manchester City earlier in 2024. They sat in, picked their moments and made them count. That is progression. That is maturity. That is the step forward Arteta has been looking for. Yes, they made two big mistakes late on (Raya’s poor pass to Romero and Rice’s challenge on Davies) to give Tottenham a sniff of getting a point, but that was it. They hung in there, suffered and came out on top. Arsenal are still second favorites in the title race but with three games to go they’re still in it and if Man City slip up they know this time Arsenal will be ready to make the most of it.
Tottenham vs Arsenal player ratings
Here are our marks out of 10 in full from what we saw at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
What’s next?
Tottenham head to Liverpool on Sunday, May 5, while Arsenal host Bournemouth on Saturday, May 4.
How to watch Tottenham vs Arsenal live, stream link and start time
Kick off: 9am ET Sunday
TV Channel: USA Network
Online: Watch online via NBC.com
Tottenham vs Arsenal live updates! - By Joe Prince-Wright at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
Tottenham vs Arsenal final score: 2-3
Romero 64', Son 87'; Hojbjerg OG 15', Saka 27', Havertz 38'
Full time: Tottenham 2-3 Arsenal
The Gunners held on and there was huge relief for them. Tottenham pushed hard but came up just short. Arsenal have three games to go in the title race and this win felt like a huge moment in their season.
Penalty to Tottenham! Son scores - Tottenham 2-3 Arsenal (87th minute)
Ben Davies gets there first and Declan Rice just volleys him in the box. VAR has a look and tells Michael Oliver to go to the screen. He gives a penalty. Son smashes home. 2-3. Wow. Three minutes plus stoppage time to go.
Tottenham pushing for a second but leaving gaps
This game is back in chaos mode now. Spurs throwing everything at Arsenal but leaving almighty gaps on the counter. Van de Ven’s pace is getting Tottenham out of trouble.
Game on!? Raya with an awful mistake as Romero scores - Tottenham 1-3 Arsenal (64th minute)
Horrendous mistake from David Raya who clips the ball straight to Cristian Romero, who was for some reason playing at center forward for Spurs, and the Argentine finishes. 25 minutes to go. Game on!? Romero could have a hat trick today. What a bonkers game.
Not a lot going on here
Arsenal are keeping the ball and waiting for Spurs to make mistakes now. Cries of ‘hit him, hit him’ from a Spurs fans as Saka wriggles free once again. Saka has been sublime. Martinelli is now on for Trossard for Arsenal. Richarlison and Bissouma on for Maddison and Hojbjerg for Spurs.
Second half is underway and it’s more of the same
Tomiyasu heads over the bar as Arsenal look to wrap this one up early in the second half.
Half time: Tottenham 0-3 Arsenal
Well, Arsenal have only had 28 percent possession but they’re 3-0 up and in a word they’ve been clinical with an own goal, Saka and Havertz putting them in a commanding position. Tottenham had a goal ruled out by VAR, hit the post and went close to another couple, but Spurs haven’t taken their chances and Arsenal have been ruthless.
Son is played in over the top and is clean through but he lifts his shot horribly over
That was a big chance before half time for Spurs. Son is played in over the top and Raya rushes off his line to close down the angle, but Son should do better. He lifts his shot way over. Head in hands moment for the Spurs skipper.
It is all over here, surely... Havertz heads home from a corner - Tottenham 0-3 Arsenal (38th minute)
Well, that is shocking marking from Spurs. A corner is whipped in and Havertz walks about three steps and heads home from two yards out. So easy for Arsenal, who are flying. The Gunners fans in the away end are having a lovely day out: ‘Tottenham get battered everywhere they go!’ is their current song of choice...
Chaos continues as Saka curls home calmly - Tottenham 0-2 Arsenal (27th minute)
At one end Spurs want a penalty but there’s no foul there as Kulusevski’s heel flicked Trossard’s knee. Arsenal play on and the ball breaks to Havertz who then pings a perfect ball across to Bukayo Saka. He takes his time, cuts inside and finishes calmly into the bottom corner. Moments later Timo Werner has to go off with an injury, as Brennan Johnson is on.
No goal! Van de Ven’s effort ruled out by VAR
Tottenham thought they were level as a corner is half cleared and a ball back in finds Micky van de Ven and he finishes. The home fans go wild. But hang on. VAR is getting involved. Van de Ven is just offside. That is a really close call. I was right in line with that here at the stadium and it looked like Micky van de Ven was onside. It all happened so fast but the lines don’t lie.
It should be 1-1! Romero heads inches wide, then against the post
Romero heads a corner wide. He should score. Odegaard went down just before Romero headed wide but there wasn’t much in it. Moments later Romero then heads against the post as Maddison’s beautiful free kick found him at the back post.
Hojbjerg heads into this own net - Tottenham 0-1 Arsenal (15th minute)
Exactly what Arsenal wanted. A corner from Saka is whipped in to the near post and under pressure from Tomiyasu, then ball flicks off Hojbjerg’s head and goes in.
Brilliant pressing from Spurs and Maddison fires over
Tottenham force Tomiyasu into a mistake and the ball eventually finds its way to Maddison on the edge of the box but his curled shot is high, wide and not at all handsome. Still, that kind of situation is very promising for Spurs.
Frantic start, especially in midfield
Spurs are targeting Thomas Partey and have already won the ball back from him on a few occasions. Arsenal are still trying to gain some rhythm and Tottenham are forcing them in to mistakes. As expected, a very tasty start here.
Hello and welcome to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for a truly massive north London derby!
Spurs are scrapping for the top four. Arsenal for the title. Does it get much bigger than this? Aside from these two being locked in a battle for the title, nope, it doesn’t. There is passion, tension and optimism in the air in equal amounts here in north London. By the way, the DJ is really cranking out the techno here and everyone is fired up. Even more so than they already were.
The team news is intriguing with Partey in for Arsenal in midfield, which should give them extra defensive cover to stop Spurs’ counters. Tottenham have gone with Hojbjerg in midfield alongside Bentancur, while Werner, Maddison, Kulusevski and Son start in attack. This should be a very open, exciting game.
🚨 Top 4 chasing Tottenham against title chasing Arsenal. As #NorthLondonDerby’s go, doesn’t get much bigger than this. Intrigued by Hojbjerg + Partey starting.
— Joe Prince-Wright (@JPW_NBCSports) April 28, 2024
WATCH LIVE + analysis, reaction, videos & more ➡️ https://t.co/pyDHyvtQSB
My thoughts ahead of #THFC vs #AFC ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/q1FPhhSt2V
Tottenham lineup
Vicario; Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Davies; Hojbjerg, Bentancur; Kulusevski, Maddison, Werner; Son
Arsenal lineup
Raya; White, Saliba, Gabriel, Tomiyasu; Odegaard, Partey, Rice; Saka, Havertz, Trossard
Tottenham Hotspur focus, team news
OUT: Destiny Udogie (thigh), Manor Solomon (knee), Ryan Sessegnon (thigh), Fraser Forster (foot) | QUESTIONABLE: Oliver Skipp (knock)
Arsenal focus, team news
OUT: Jurrien Timber (torn ACL - out for season)
North London derby history — Tottenham vs Arsenal all-time series, facts
Matches played (all competitions): 194
Arsenal wins: 81
Tottenham wins: 61
Draws: 52
Here are some interesting stats from Opta:
- Tottenham have won just one of their last six Premier League games against Arsenal (1D-4L), with their four defeats in this run as many as they’d suffered in their previous 16 against the Gunners (6W-6D).
- Heung-min Son’s brace in the reverse fixture makes him the sixth-highest scorer in North London derby history across all competitions. The only player to score multiple goals in both north London derby matches in a league season was Arsenal’s Ted Drake in 1934-35.
- Saka could become the first English player to score home and away for Arsenal against Spurs in a league campaign since Ian Wright in 1993-94.
