A defensive performance more gritty than an HBO drama, with particularly heroic performances from the BFG and Koscielny was enough to secure all three points following Rosicky's 2nd minute thunderbastard.
It was our least convincing victory over Spurs this season but completed a clean sweep of three wins which will hurt for Spurs fans who've sat through 270 minutes against Arsenal without a single Spurs goal. They will be looking at Chadli for not changing that but I guess if you have players as bad as Chadli in your team, it serves you right. It was actually our first win in the league at White Hart Lane since 2007; far too long to go without a win there but it's great to put that one to bed.
Rosicky's early goal was a thing of beauty; as sweet a hit as you'll see and it continued his habit of scoring against Spurs - his third goal against them in the last two seasons - what a very good habit to pick up. The lovely, floppy-haired hero had this to say:
“It’s one of the best…against Tottenham for sure. I’m delighted by a goal like that. Most importantly, we won the game.” - Tomas Rosicky. Source: SkySports
We really should have gone two up but first the referee's assistant wrongly flagged Podolski offside when he and Giroud had a 2 on 1 against Lloris and then Oxlade-Chamberlain wasted an excellent chance on the break with a dink gone wrong. At this point Tim Sherwood suddenly realised how ridiculous his gillet looked and threw it on the floor. Perhaps he realised that it was most likely his last North London derby and he shouldn't make himself look like a bit of a boob. Something he remembered until a late handbaggy incident with a puzzled/unmoved Bacary Sagna.
In fairness to Tim Sherwood I think he did learn his lesson from the last North London derby and set his team up much better; not allowing them to get overrun in midfield. Spurs lacked incisiveness though and for all their possession and hard work they failed to create any good chances with the highly-rated Christian Eriksen anonymous. The vast majority of their shots were hopeful and Szczesny had no difficult saves to make. He did however drop two clangers in the second half in quick succession, the second of which, but for an excellent block from Koscielny, would have cost him his clean sheet. He was all smiles and selfies after the game but those lapses in concentration must stop.
We weren't particularly adventurous in the second half and made some defensive substitutions as we looked to hang on to our lead rather than extend it. Mike Dean and his assistant somehow failed to see some Vertonghen grappling in the box and Podolski lashed a shot into the side-netting. Our best chance of the second half fell to Per Mertesacker whose spinning shot was excellently saved by Hugo Lloris. It was a shame as Per's performance meant he would have deserved that moment. The team worked extremely hard and whilst being unimpressive going forward were strong in the challenge. Santi Cazorla for example completed 4 tackles and 8 turnovers - an unexpected bonus.
The big positive from the game was the performance of the centre-back partnership. They were under quite a bit of pressure at times, particularly from Emmanuel Adebayor who was obviously desperate to make a difference but they stood tall (bloody tall in Per Mertesacker's case). Koscielny made a crucial block from Chadli, passed the ball extremely well, made 3 tackles and 15 clearances. Per made 3 blocks and 20 clearances, including a staggering 17 with his head and he also won 7/8 of his aerial duels. It's a partnership that has grown into something rather special.
In fairness to Tim Sherwood I think he did learn his lesson from the last North London derby and set his team up much better; not allowing them to get overrun in midfield. Spurs lacked incisiveness though and for all their possession and hard work they failed to create any good chances with the highly-rated Christian Eriksen anonymous. The vast majority of their shots were hopeful and Szczesny had no difficult saves to make. He did however drop two clangers in the second half in quick succession, the second of which, but for an excellent block from Koscielny, would have cost him his clean sheet. He was all smiles and selfies after the game but those lapses in concentration must stop.
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| The BFG. Is he really only 6'6''? He played like he is at least 8 feet tall... at least |
The big positive from the game was the performance of the centre-back partnership. They were under quite a bit of pressure at times, particularly from Emmanuel Adebayor who was obviously desperate to make a difference but they stood tall (bloody tall in Per Mertesacker's case). Koscielny made a crucial block from Chadli, passed the ball extremely well, made 3 tackles and 15 clearances. Per made 3 blocks and 20 clearances, including a staggering 17 with his head and he also won 7/8 of his aerial duels. It's a partnership that has grown into something rather special.
"They were exceptional for the whole game... Today you needed to be top because Adebayor was sharp and up for it, like he always is against us. He had a great game and overall we needed a good defensive performance and that of course goes through our two centre backs." - Arsène Wenger on Laurent Koscielny and Per Mertesacker. Source: Arsenal.com
Elsewhere, just one word on Manchester United: lol.
Men of the match: Per Mertesacker & Laurent Koscielny. Near perfect.
Men of the match: Per Mertesacker & Laurent Koscielny. Near perfect.
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