In the end, all that matters is that we took the three points.
After a lousy few weeks littered with bad results and bad injuries, it was a relief to finally get a win under our belts again, even if it wasn’t the picture perfect result we were looking for.
We’d already passed up two opportunities to put pressure on Liverpool at the top of the Premier League table but there was to be no repeat this time. We moved to within four points and at last started to exert something like pressure.
But victory over Spurs didn’t do a great deal to alleviate all of the issues we are facing at the moment, least of all our finishing. As in matches against Newcastle and Manchester United, we were shockingly wasteful in the final third while our opponents, for the most part, were not.
I think we all hoped the derby would offer an opportunity at redemption for our faltering front line but it didn’t do much more than confirm that we need at least two attacking reinforcements in this transfer window. One player isn’t going to move the dial.
For all their hard work off the ball and, make no mistake, their contribution to the team effort is immense, Kai Havertz, Raheem Sterling and Gabriel Martinelli are lacking the killer instinct we are desperate for. Leandro Trossard, usually an extremely efficient finisher, is also suffering this season.
Time and again, we have had to be bailed out by players in other areas of the pitch and so it was again last night as Gabriel Magalhaes rode to our rescue. In fact, at both ends of the pitch, he was gargantuan. He has fast become the best central defender of this Arsenal generation.
Spurs, shorn of almost an entire first choice back line, really should have found themselves three or four goals down before the 70-minute mark but we conspired to make a game of it and keep them alive. We showed immense composure and character to recover from a goal down (and, as I said, the win is all that matters) but we made it a lot harder for ourselves in the second half that we needed to.
Excellent chances for Havertz, Sterling and Odegaard all went begging in key moments while, at the other end, the match started to open up as Ange Postecoglu decided to double-down and go for a result.
Thankfully, their attack was largely snuffed out but, as we have seen to our cost in recent weeks, it could so easily have been different.
It’s worth noting, though, that in plenty of other aspects our play was excellent. Declan Rice in midfield, especially, rose to the occasion. Indeed, alongside Thomas Partey, our midfield was so dominant it forced Spurs to withdraw their own two centre midfielders at half-time and think again. That was quite the humiliation for the Spurs pair.
Elsewhere, Miles Lewis-Skelly continues to burnish his fast-growing reputation. The Hale End graduate is strong, composed and has all the instincts of a player 10 years his senior. He has a bright future at the club.
In fact, in terms of the machine as a whole, there isn’t much to complain about. We have dominated for long periods of all of our recent games, defending well and controlling the play. The missing part, however, continues to be of concern.
The weekend sees the visit of Aston Villa to the Emirates in a scenario that will suit Unai Emery to a tee. His sides are made to sit deep and break quickly and there is no better side to face at the moment if you’re strengths lay in that area. If we’re going to avoid another ignominious afternoon, we have to find a way to improve our efficiency in front of goal because you can be certain the likes of Duran and Watkins won’t need half-a-dozen chances each to find the net.
For now, though, let’s bask in the glow of another north London derby win. It’s been a long time since we’ve had anything other than bragging rights against a Spurs side that is going backwards. Lovely stuff.
Blog on You Gunners 