Arsenal and Tottenham played out a thrilling 2-2 draw as the two sides shared the spoils in the north London derby.
Mikel Arteta’s side come into this derby on the back of an impressive win over PSV in the Champions League in midweek.
But they faced a resurgent Tottenham side who needed a 100th-minute winner to beat Sheffield United last weekend.
Spurs enjoyed a lot of the ball early on but it was Gabriel Jesus who had the first real chance as the Brazilian striker forced a great save from Guglielmo Vicario.
Arsenal now had the upper hand and took the lead in the 26th minute when Bukayo Saka’s cross was met by Cristiano Romero who turned the ball into his own net.
Indeed, the Gunners should have doubled their lead early on, but Gabriel Jesus fired wide after a mistake by James Maddison on the edge of his own area.
The Spurs were not to be, however, as Brennan Johnson forced a superb save from David Ray before Heung-min Son equalized three minutes before half-time.
Arsenal were awarded a penalty immediately after the break as Romero’s bad days were made worse by his handball in the area. Saka stepped forward and fired.
An amazing performance was made even better just moments later when Son scored Spurs’ next goal after Jorginho was caught in possession.
Arsenal player ratings (4-3-3)
GK: David Raya – 6/10 – Awesome footwork helped deny Johnson but could have helped Arsenal avoid the first equaliser.
RB: Ben White – 5/10 – Didn’t look to get round the outside that often and had a few unconvincing moments on the ball.
CB: William Saliba – 7/10 – Had some gorgeous moments in possession. Caught out and left stranded when Jorginho lost the ball for Son’s second.
CB: Gabriel Magalhaes – 6/10 – Not always dominant in the air but was pretty much fine otherwise.
LB: Oleksandr Zinchenko – 6/10 – Kulusevski drifted away from Zinchenko intermittently but the Ukrainian was sharp and precise in the build-up.
CM: Martin Odegaard – 6/10 – Not at his most influential, though some good pressing helped Arsenal win the ball back.
CM: Declan Rice – 6/10 – Recovered the ball well and wasn’t wasteful in possession. Half-time substitution came as a massive shock.
CM: Fabio Vieira – 5/10 – Was dispossessed a few times and never quite got up to the pace of the game.
RW: Bukayo Saka – 7/10 – Got the better of his interactions with Udogie before his deflected strike went in. Bagged the penalty but his influence drifted in the second half with less service.
ST: Eddie Nketiah – 5/10 – Had one shot on target but struggled to force himself into the game.
LW: Gabriel Jesus – 6/10 – Had to put Arsenal 2-0 up when he shot over. Did all the defensive work expected of him.
Substitutes
Jorginho (46′ for Rice) – 3/10 – Dispossessed far too easily by Maddison after Arsenal went ahead.
Kai Havertz (46′ for Vieira) – 5/10
Reiss Nelson (77′ for Jesus) – 6/10
Emile Smith Rowe (90′ for Saka) – N/A
Subs not used: Mohamed Elneny, Cedric Soares, Jakub Kiwior, Takehiro Tomiyasu, Aaron Ramsdale
Manager
Mikel Arteta – 6/10 – Faced with more of a difficult Spurs side to break down, Arsenal got their breaks from a deflection and penalty and didn’t get behind the visitors as much as they would have liked.
Tottenham player ratings (4-2-3-1)
GK: Guglielmo Vicario – 7/10 – Couple of sharp stops were required in the first half to keep the game scoreless. A sound first north London derby.
RB: Pedro Porro – 5/10 – Not the flashiest contribution in the final third and was caught high up.
CB: Cristian Romero – 3/10 – Couldn’t get his positioning right when Saka’s strike deflected off him and was perhaps unfortunate to be penalised for handball at close range.
CB: Micky van de Ven – 7/10 – Had better luck than Romero and kept Arsenal away from Spurs’ box well.
LB: Destiny Udogie – 6/10 – Got booked early after a few fouls and nearly gave Arsenal a second with a poor back pass. Recovered well enough.
CM: Pape Matar Sarr – 5/10 – Had a couple of wild shots and just lacked composure in possession.
CM: Yves Bissouma – 7/10 – Got more of a footing in the second half and started to become more influential, easing opponents off the ball and moving forward with confidence.
RW: Dejan Kulusevski – 6/10 – Didn’t get many chances to shoot but his weight of pass was spot on at times.
AM: James Maddison – 7/10 – Almost gifted Jesus Arsenal’s second but showed his quality with two assists for Son.
LW: Brennan Johnson – 6/10 – Searing pace was an evident threat on occasion. Arguably should have scored when Raya sprang to save his central effort.
ST: Son Heung-min – 9/10 – Struggled to hold the ball up at times and was caught offside but finished brilliantly from Maddison’s pull-back.
Substitutes
Manor Solomon (63′ for Johnson) – 5/10
Richarlison (77′ for Son) – 6/10
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg (77′ for Maddison) – 5/10
Subs not used: Alejo Veliz, Oliver Skipp, Ben Davies, Emerson Royal, Eric Dier, Fraser Forster
Manager
Ange Postecoglou – 7/10 – Spurs were much more composed in the second half and controlled the game well in spots. Will be pleased his side showed character to get a point.
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