Advertisement
Adam Davy

As it happened: Tottenham v Arsenal, Premier League

Tottenham took on Arsenal with plenty at stake in today’s North London Derby.

Hello, and welcome to today’s liveblog.

As always, we’d love to hear your thoughts on the game. E-mail paul@the42.ie, tweet @the42_ie, post a message to our Facebook wall, or leave a comment below.

You may need to refresh the page for YouTube videos and other elements to display correctly.

Kick of is at 4.30pm.

It’s currently Everton 0-0 Chelsea with a little over half an hour to play.

Should that score stay the same, Tottenham would have a chance to reduce the gap at the top to two points if they beat Arsenal.

Pedro has put Chelsea 1-0 ahead against Everton with a superb strike from the edge of the area.

That could be a big moment in the title race.

It’s now Chelsea 2-0 Everton.

It now seems Tottenham will need a win today to keep their faint title hopes alive.

No Mousa Dembélé for Spurs. Here are today’s teams…

Tottenham: Lloris, Trippier, Alderweireld, Vertonghen, Davies, Dier, Wanyama, Son, Eriksen, Alli, Kane.

Subs: Vorm, Walker, Wimmer, Dembele, Sissoko, Nkoudou, Janssen.

Arsenal: Cech, Gabriel, Koscielny, Monreal, Gibbs, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Xhaka, Ramsey, Özil, Sánchez, Giroud.

Subs: Ospina, Walcott, Holding, Iwobi, Welbeck, Bellerin, Coquelin.

Tottenham Hotspur v Arsenal - Premier League - White Hart Lane Merchandise for sale before the Premier League match at White Hart Lane. Adam Davy Adam Davy

Tottenham Hotspur v Arsenal - Premier League - White Hart Lane Mounted Police before the Premier League match at White Hart Lane. Adam Davy Adam Davy

Tottenham Hotspur v Arsenal - Premier League - White Hart Lane A view of the new Tottenham Hotspur stadium being built before the Premier League match at White Hart Lane. Adam Davy Adam Davy

We’re underway…

Early half chance for Spurs.

Kane gets in box and tests Cech from a tight angle.

Spurs appear to have started with a 4-3-3-1 formation, with Dier and Wanyama as the holding midfielders and Eriksen ahead of them.

Mauricio Pochettino certainly hasn’t been reluctant to switch systems this season.

Alderweireld goes close. His header from a corner is just over the bar.

Tottenham have started this match on the front foot.

Gibbs finds himself in the box and Lloris charges out and makes a risky challenge on him.

The ref waves play on and it’s the correct call judging by replays.

Tottenham Hotspur v Arsenal - Premier League - White Hart Lane A Police presence amongst smoke before the Premier League match at White Hart Lane. Adam Davy Adam Davy

It’s been pretty closely fought so far.

Neither side are dominating, with no real clear-cut chances yet.

Trippier finds himself in a promising position on the right, but woefully overhits his cross.

Tottenham have been disappointing in the final third so far.

Big chance for Spurs!

Kane breaks the offside trap. The striker’s cross deflects into the path of Dele Alli, who heads the ball wide with the goal at his mercy.

That’s an awful miss from a normally clinical finisher.

Another huge chance for Tottenham.

Son nutmegs Oxlade-Chamberlain down the left and his cross deflects to Eriksen, who blazes over when a simple tap-in is required.

That moment, coupled with the Alli miss, suggests the pressure of the title race may be getting to Tottenham a bit.

Concern for Spurs as Vertonghen is currently down receiving treatment after the defender is caught by Xhaka.

Dembele and Wimmer are among the options on the bench, though it looks like the Belgian international will be okay to continue for now.

Tottenham are looking a little short of ideas at the moment, with Arsenal happy to sit back, soak up pressure and hit the hosts on the counter-attack.

Spurs lack their usual urgency in midfield, and are clearly missing Dembele, with the defensively inclined Dier and Wanyama not offering enough in attack.

As I type, Ramsey forces a good save from Lloris with a powerful strike from distance.

Good effort from Sanchez.

A corner eventually falls to him on the edge of the box and he curls his attempt just wide.

Ramsey almost turns Trippier’s cross into his own net.

Moments later, Vertonghen tests Cech with a strong shot from the edge of the area.

HALF-TIME: TOTTENHAM 0-0 ARSENAL

Tottenham Hotspur v Arsenal - Premier League - White Hart Lane Arsenal's Gabriel Paulista (left) and Tottenham Hotspur's Toby Alderweireld jump for possession. Nick Potts Nick Potts

The second half has begun…

Spurs break at speed on the counter-attack.

There’s some good work by Son in the build-up, before Wanyama forces Cech to tip the ball over the bar.

Kane intercepts a stray pass but his powerful shot is straight at Cech.

The England international has been quiet enough so far today.

A corner falls nicely to Giroud on the volley, but the France international blazes well over.

This game remains delicately poised.

TOTTENHAM 1-0 ARSENAL (ALLI 55)

PENALTY TO TOTTENHAM!

TOTTENHAM 2-0 ARSENAL (KANE 58)

Spurs have absolutely blitzed Arsenal in these last few minutes.

First, Alli is on hand to slot home the rebound after Eriksen’s shot is saved by Cech.

Then, Kane makes the most of a clumsy dangling leg from Gabriel to win a penalty.

The England international then coolly slots home the subsequent spot kick.

Arsenal have been better these last few minutes.

The visitors are starting to enjoy a bit more possession and territory.

Tottenham Hotspur v Arsenal - Premier League - White Hart Lane Arsenal's Alexis Sanchez and Tottenham Hotspur's Eric Dier (right) battle for the ball during the Premier League match at White Hart Lane. Adam Davy Adam Davy

A cross finds Alderweireld at the far post, but his header is deflected wide.

Moments later, a curling effort by Vertonghen on the edge of the box forces a good save by Cech.

As I type, Sanchez is lucky to get away with a handball in the box as Son attempts to flick the ball past him.

There’s certainly been no let up in Tottenham’s intensity since the opening two goals, and it could get embarrassing for Arsenal if they’re not careful.

Giroud has just been booked for a stray arm that leaves Trippier holding his face.

It’s been a frustrating afternoon for the France international, who has had to feed off scraps.

Meanwhile, Gabriel been replaced by Bellerin for Arsenal.

Tottenham break and Wanyama plays through Kane.

The striker’s shot is saved by Cech, however.

Dembele replaces Son, who has been as industrious as ever today.

Arsenal have shown signs of losing their discipline in recent minutes and look a beaten team.

Arsenal make their final change.

Walcott is on for Giroud.

Walcott gets the ball on the edge of the box, but his shot is comfortably saved by Lloris.

That’s Arsenal’s fourth shot on target, in comparison to Tottenham’s 11.

Tottenham Hotspur v Arsenal - Premier League - White Hart Lane Arsenal's Danny Welbeck (left) and Tottenham Hotspur's Toby Alderweireld square up. Nick Potts Nick Potts

Trippier has been replaced by Walker for Tottenham.

This game looks well over now.

Arsenal have tried to rally in these last few minutes but haven’t really looked like scoring.

Tottenham have the best defence in the Premier League statistically and the back four has been rock solid today.

Sissoko has replaced Alli for the hosts for the final few moments.

FULL-TIME: TOTTENHAM 2-0 ARSENAL

Right, that’s all from me.

Thanks for reading and commenting. We’ll have more reaction to follow.

You can read our match report of the game here.

The42 is on Instagram! Tap the button below on your phone to follow us!

‘I was playing a team like Crewe a few months before and all of a sudden I am playing Real Madrid>

Ranking the top 10 players from the first series of League of Ireland games>

Author
Paul Fennessy
View 38 comments
Close
38 Comments
    Submit a report
    Please help us understand how this comment violates our community guidelines.
    Thank you for the feedback
    Your feedback has been sent to our team for review.