Arsenal 2 (Lacazette 45+1, Aubameyang 71) v Tottenham Hotspur 2 (Eriksen 10, Kane (pen) 40), attendance 60,333, played Sunday 1 September 2019, at the Emirates Stadium.
The Premier League London derbies have really kicked off with a frenetic, old-fashioned north London tribal affair which neither team could afford to lose, and did not! If the first 40 minutes belonged to Spurs, the rest saw the Arsenal’s epic comeback, and overall 55% possession, but Spurs somehow managed one more shot on target (9 v 8) than Arsenal. No controversies about the goals: Christian Eriksen pounced on the ball spilt by Bernd Leno to score his 50th Spurs goal; Harry Kane’s penalty was clinical; Alexandre Lacazette’s power and persistence put Arsenal back in the game; Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s finish was as good as the pass from Matteo Gendouzi deserved; and Arsenal’s “third” was flagged off-side. No need for VAR to rescue Spurs this week! Harry Kane’s penalty goal equalled the record of10 goals in north London derbies by Spurs’ Bobby Smith and Emanuel Adebayor who played for both clubs. Kane will surely break the record, but strange no Thierry Henri there too. Spurs won the fouling contest 19 to 13, and with 5 yellows to 3. Granit Xhaka has now conceded 5 Premier League penalties making him top equal with Jose Fonte of West Ham. Both Bernd Leno and Hugo Lloris made excellent saves and Lloris is now top goal saver in the Premier League with 19 already. The final word must go to Arsenal who have become the first club to spend 100 years in top-flight divisions since their game on 30 August 1919! Some achievement whatever you thought about this game and its result.
Until the next match, Andrew at PLDs.