Arsenal kept their Premier League title hopes alive, surviving a nervy ending to claim a thrilling 3-2 win at north London rivals Spurs.
Mikel Arteta’s side knew a victory was imperative to keep the pressure up on champions Manchester City and they looked to be cruising to all three points as an own goal by Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and strikes from Bukayo Saka and Kai Havertz gave them a 3-0 lead at half-time.
But an awful error from David Raya gifted the hosts a lifeline on 64 minutes, when he passed the ball straight to Cristian Romero, who finished well.
Declan Rice then gave away a penalty when he kicked Ben Davies, allowing Son Heung-min to reduce the deficit even further with just three minutes remaining, but Arsenal managed to withstand a series of set pieces in stoppage time to claim another crucial win.
GOAL rates Arsenal’s players from the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium…
Goalkeeper & Defence
David Raya (5/10):
Got away with one rush of blood early in the second half when he came out and got nowhere near Romero, who headed over. But was made to pay by the Argentine soon after for his horrendous clearance that gifted Spurs a lifeline. To his credit, he responded very well and had an excellent final 20 minutes, claiming every cross that came his way.
Ben White (8/10):
Really strong performance, first against Werner and then against Johnson. A player in top form.
William Saliba (7/10):
Solid enough game. Both he and Gabriel dealt with the pressure well for the majority of such an intense contest.
Gabriel Magalhaes (7/10):
Looked largely comfortable, aside from a couple of set pieces in the first half.
Takehiro Tomiyasu (7/10):
Dejan Kulusevski caused him some problems early on, but he settled into the game well. Could have done better with a header he put over early in the second half.
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Thomas Partey (7/10):
Grew into the game as it went on. Arsenal looked at their best when he managed to beat the Spurs press and get the team moving forward.
Declan Rice (7/10):
Superb corner for Havertz’s goal. Didn’t stop running. Looked calm early on when others looked nervy. Gave away the penalty late on when he didn’t see Ben Davies coming.
Martin Odegaard (7/10):
Couldn’t get on the ball anywhere near as much as usual, but when he did get it he looked threatening. Worked his socks off.
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Bukayo Saka (8/10):
Superb touch and finish to make it 2-0. High class stuff from the winger. It was his corner that led to the own goal as well. Excellent performance.
Kai Havertz (9/10):
Magnificent pass to send Saka away for the second goal, then rose highest to make it 3-0 from Rice’s corner. Another game when he’s made a huge impact. Led the line superbly.
Leandro Trossard (6/10):
Got caught in possession a few times in the first half, looked a bit off the pace of the game.
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GettySubs & Manager
Gabriel Martinelli (6/10):
Had a couple of openings after coming on which maybe he could have done better with. The end product just isn’t quite there with him at the moment.
Jakub Kiwoir (N/A):
Came on late on to help try and see the game out.
Mikel Arteta (7/10):
Arsenal’s manager will be delighted with the result, that’s all that matters at this stage of the season. He got the team right. Could maybe have brought Jorginho on to steady the midfield.
Source People.com
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