Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Football London
Football London
Sport
Kaya Kaynak

What Arsenal did to Spurs players pre-game, Xhaka reaction to Partey goal, Smith Rowe tribute

Arsenal are still top of the league after beating Spurs 3-1 in the North London Derby. They begun the game superbly dominating Spurs and pinning them back in their own box. That dominance eventually told as Thomas Partey curled home a stunner from the edge of the box.

Spurs began to fight their way back into the game though and had a few chances on the counter. A catalogue of errors from Aaron Ramsdale, Granit Xhaka and Gabriel ultimately saw the Gunners concede a penalty that Harry Kane was able to slot home as he always seems to do in North London Derbies.

Almost immediately after the break Mikel Arteta's side found themselves back in front however, as Hugo Lloris jumped over Cristian Romero's touch back to him after he had been unable to hold a Bukayo Saka shot, leaving Gabriel Jesus to gratefully scramble home.

The visitors were then reduced to 10 men as Emerson Royal was shown a straight red for an appalling challenge on Gabriel Martinelli that raked down the Arsenal winger's ankle and could have done some serious damage. Arsenal quickly took advantage of the space left by the Spurs wingback as Granit Xhaka surged forward to finish calmly in the box and make it three. Here football.london takes a look back at some of the moments you may have missed from the game.

READ MORE: Arsenal player ratings vs Tottenham as Xhaka and Saliba are immense and Saka superb

Arsenal make Tottenham wait

These games are often as much about the psychological battle as they are about the actual game and we've already seen that Mikel Arteta is willing to do anything he can to get the upper hand. The Spaniard has had the club photographer Stuart McFarlane do the team talk before to give his side the edge and had another tick up his sleeve for this derby.

Antonio Conte sent his Spurs side out to the tunnel ahead of the game on the referee's whistle but they were forced to wait there a good few minutes before the Gunners showed up. When they did arrive there was no pre-match pleasantries or handshakes. Everyone stared dead-eyed straight ahead. You can tell these players know what the derby is all about.

Nice Smith Rowe touch

It's been a frustrating start to the season for Emile Smith Rowe who was forced to miss pre-season with a groin injury and broke down in the cool down at Old Trafford after having come on as a sub. This week it was announced that the player had decided to bite the bullet and get surgery on the issue that is set to keep him out until after the World Cup, but Arsenal are determined to make sure he still feels involved during that time.

The club took a conscious decision to make sure a picture of his celebration of his goal in this very fixture last season was on the front cover of the matchday programme to offer him some support. On top of that Smith Rowe was in attendance at the team to return the favour by cheering on his teammates in the derby clash.

Xhaka's team talk

Thomas Partey's goal had been coming in many ways. After two years of watching the Ghanaian sky shots from the edge of the box he finally netted with his 65th attempt to put Arsenal 1-0 up.

Cue pandemonium from the Emirates Stadium, but while everyone was going wild, one man was able to keep a cool head. Granit Xhaka screamed at all his teammates to quickly gather in a huddle and reminded them to keep their heads. It didn't do the trick for Gabriel who went on to commit a costly foul for the Kane penalty, but still was a good sign of the leadership role Xhaka has in this team.

READ NEXT:

Arsenal line-ups vs Tottenham as Partey starts, Odegaard returns, Tierney or Zinchenko decision

What happened in Arsenal training as Mikel Arteta continues mind games with Antonio Conte

Dusan Vlahovic rejection, Bukayo Saka’s North London Derby task and Arsenal criticism peaks

Paul Merson and Chris Sutton agree on Arsenal vs Tottenham score prediction

Mikel Arteta can unleash Arsenal's own Kevin De Bruyne in North London Derby vs Tottenham

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.