Tottenham Hotspur won the North London derby on Thursday. Antonio Conte’s team had to win against Arsenal to keep their chance of a Champions League ticket and succeeded with verve. Two goals from Harry Kane and a goal from Heung-Min Son determined the final score at 3-0. Arsenal played an hour with ten men after a clumsy red card from Rob Holding. The Gunners Tottenham are still one point behind in fourth place and will probably have to win the last two games to keep the arch-rival in fifth place.
Holding probably wouldn’t have been on the field if Ben White had been fit to start in the warm-up. However, it was decided to let White start on the bench, having just returned from injury. Tottenham also struggled with personnel problems in the back. Cristian Romero had to pull out at the last minute and was replaced by Davinson Sánchez. Steven Bergwijn only came in for the home team in the final phase, which remained unchanged, just like Arsenal.
wow?? Arsenal are not only looking at a backlog, but also have to continue with ten men… Rob Holding gets his second yellow card ??#ZiggoSport #PremierLeague #TOTARS pic.twitter.com/EpBWFpglZy
— Ziggo Sport Football (@ZS_Voetbal) May 12, 2022
Arsenal started the game strongly, but failed to link that directly to a big chance. The Gunners helped the home team into the game after twenty minutes through a stupid foul by Cedric, who ran into the back of Heung-Min Son during an aerial duel. The penalty that followed was calmly finished by Harry Kane: 1-0. Holding made it much more difficult for Arsenal by running into a yellow card twice within seven minutes. In the latter, Holding blocked the deep Son, who, however, had never been able to reach the long pass from behind. Just before half time, Kane increased Tottenham’s lead by finishing a headed corner at the far post: 2-0.
† † † † † Harry Kane further weighs in on Arsenal. Tottenham already lead 2-0 ?????#ZiggoSport #PremierLeague #TOTARS pic.twitter.com/jjz6BoSh88
— Ziggo Sport Football (@ZS_Voetbal) May 12, 2022
The Spurs two minutes after the break put an end to any illusions that Arsenal might have had. Kane was stopped with difficulty in the penalty area, after which the ball came in front of Son, who alertly shot in: 3-0. Arsenal combined via Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli to create an excellent opportunity for the former, who saw his shot end on a block. Tottenham, however, were much stronger and created even better opportunities. Emerson Royal’s header was nicely turned, while Son just didn’t come out well to tap in a cross.
Son was taken off after seventy minutes to his great frustration, while at Arsenal a little later Gabriel was forced to leave with an injury. A nice combination by Arsenal led to a free shooting opportunity for Martin Ödegaard, who did not aim enough in the corner after a low cross.
| No. | Team | m | W | G | V | † | Pnt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manchester City | 36 | 28 | 5 | 3 | 72 | 89 |
| 2 | Liverpool | 36 | 26 | 8 | 2 | 65 | 86 |
| 3 | Chelsea | 36 | 20 | 10 | 6 | 42 | 70 |
| 4 | Arsenal | 36 | 21 | 3 | 12 | 11 | 66 |
| 5 | Tottenham Hotspur | 36 | 20 | 5 | 11 | 23 | 65 |
| 6 | Manchester United | 37 | 16 | 10 | 11 | 1 | 58 |
| 7 | West Ham United | 36 | 16 | 7 | 13 | 11 | 55 |
| 8 | Wolverhampton W. | 36 | 15 | 5 | 16 | -3 | 50 |
| 9 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 36 | 11 | 14 | 11 | -4 | 47 |
| 10 | Leicester City | 35 | 12 | 9 | 14 | -4 | 45 |
| 11 | Crystal Palace | 35 | 10 | 14 | 11 | 4 | 44 |
| 12 | Aston Villa | 35 | 13 | 4 | 18 | -1 | 43 |
| 13 | Brentford | 36 | 12 | 7 | 17 | -8 | 43 |
| 14 | Newcastle United | 36 | 11 | 10 | 15 | -21 | 43 |
| 15 | Southampton | 36 | 9 | 13 | 14 | -20 | 40 |
| 16 | Everton | 35 | 10 | 6 | 19 | -19 | 36 |
| 17 | Burnley | 35 | 7 | 13 | 15 | -17 | 34 |
| 18 | Leeds United | 36 | 8 | 10 | 18 | -38 | 34 |
| 19 | Watford | 36 | 6 | 5 | 25 | -38 | 23 |
| 20 | Norwich City | 36 | 5 | 6 | 25 | -56 | 21 |