Tottenham vs Arsenal live updates: Premier League north London ...

A thumping header from Arsenal defender Gabriel Magalhaes won his side the first north London derby of the season at Tottenham.

The win lifts Arsenal to second in the Premier League table. Spurs, meanwhile, sink to 13th, with Ange Postecoglou’s side having won just one of their opening four matches.

Follow the latest reaction below.

What next for Tottenham?

Wednesday, September 18: Coventry City (A), Carabao Cup, 8pm BST, 3pm ET

What next for Arsenal?

Thursday, September 19: Atalanta (A), Champions League, 8pm BST, 3pm ET

Here is more from Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou, who was speaking to Sky Sports:

???? “It’s very disappointing in a big game for us and our supporters. We didn’t deliver so you have to take the pain from that.

“It has been the story of our season so far. We played in their half and created chances but we lack a bit of belief in the final third. That’s what we need to fix.

“It’s me who has to give the guys the way forward. It’s not for a lack of trying by the lads, we are just going through this early part of the season where we are playing well but not getting rewards for it.”

Defending against Ange Postecoglou’s Tottenham Hotspur in a low-block isn’t the easiest of tasks. The wide combinations between the winger, full-back and No 8 makes it a tedious task, and the dynamism of their movement and rotations only makes it harder.

In the first half, Arsenal’s defensive organisation limited that threat. Defending out of a 4-4-2, one of Arsenal’s wingers would drop to form a situational back five towards the side where Tottenham were trying to attack, while the other tucked in next to the double pivot to minimise the space.

Meanwhile, William Saliba and Gabriel were alert to switch markers with Arsenal’s double pivot when Dominic Solanke dropped deeper and Tottenham were searching for runners in behind the defence. In addition, Partey and Jorginho dropped to fill in the gaps in the defensive line.

In the second half it was expected that Tottenham would increase the pressure, especially after Gabriel put Arsenal in the lead, but more blocks and Raya being in position to save more shots earned Arsenal a deserved victory.

GO FURTHER

Tottenham 0 Arsenal 1: More set-piece joy for Arteta’s side in intense north London derby

There is always going to be tension when these teams meet and Jurrien Timber always seemed to be at the heart of it on Sunday.

In the first 15 minutes he had a flare-up with Brennan Johnson which ended with them both in a heap on the floor but that was nothing compared to what happened just after the half an hour mark.

The Netherlands international tackled Dejan Kulusevski while he was on the floor and then won the loose ball from Pedro Porro. Tottenham’s right-back went down in pain but Timber carried on, burst into the box and won a corner.

Guglielmo Vicario then rushed over to Timber and squared up with him. Despite Vicario’s size advantage, Timber did not back down and grabbed the goalkeeper by the scruff of his shirt. Everybody from both teams then rushed over to try to defuse the situation which ended with Vicario and Timber being booked.

As usual, the north London derby delivered on drama.

Then there was Tottenham captain Son Heung-min, who told Sky Sports after the match:

???? “We dominated the game, the football was there, we just conceded from a set-piece again.

“We did it last season and it is really frustrating. I am sure the fans are also very disappointed. We have to improve, 100 per cent, it’s a tough moment and we have to stick together.

“We are getting into the final third but the players have to take the responsibility to score. It is the hardest part of football, making the right decision and being clinical.

“We will bounce back strong, there is a long way to go.”

Maybe it’s all by design from Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta.

Arsenal’s two lowest possession averages (on record) in a Premier League game against Spurs have both come this year, and Arsenal won both matches:

As for Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta, his chat with Match of the Day after managing his side to a win at the home of their bitter rivals was a little more cheery:

???? “It’s unbelievable. I don’t know when it happened in our history. After the international break, we had a few blows. How the team reacted was magnificent. It showed a lot of maturity.

“When they get into the final third, it’s very difficult because they have a structure. We were missing vital players and we had to react to that.

“We had to adjust and use different players and qualities. I was hoping they would do something with the ball and we did it. Sometimes better than others. They are a really good side.

“When we have to defend in deeper areas, we did it really well. There are things to improve but we have another victory here and it’s huge. I know how our supporters will feel about this so enjoy it.”

Romero is the type of centre-back who catches the eye. He is aggressive. He is committed. He gets the crowd going. He puts in crunching tackles. He runs through brick walls even if the brick wall isn’t actually in his way.

But he’s also not a particularly good defender. The Argentine is a World Cup winner, granted — but it’s worth remembering that so was Leeds United flop Roque Junior.

So far in 2024-25 Romero been both outwitted and then (more embarrassingly) wound up by Leicester’s Jamie Vardy in a game Tottenham clearly should have won, but drew 1-1. In the 2-1 loss at Newcastle, he was partly responsible for both the first and second goals.

Here, his defending against Gabriel, always Arsenal’s main threat at set-pieces, was hopeless — he was the wrong side, got outmuscled and seemed to be aware of neither man nor ball.

GO FURTHER

Tottenham 0 Arsenal 1: More set-piece joy for Arteta’s side in intense north London derby

Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou has also been speaking to Match of the Day after the game:

???? “I thought it was a tight game all the way along. We controlled it for the most part and got off to a good start. We didn’t capitalise on the opportunities and we were unable to get on top of them.

“We lost concentration (for the goal). We’ve got some big guys in there who really attack the ball and we just switched off for a second.

“I think I’ve said my piece. For the most part we controlled the game today, had good territory and possession, but we didn’t make the most of it and we got punished.”

With Martin Odegaard, Mikel Merino and Declan Rice unavailable, Spurs had a great opportunity to beat Arsenal for the first time since May 2022.

There were some encouraging signs in the first half, but Spurs lost their momentum midway through the opening 45 and never truly looked like reclaiming it.

This was a better performance compared to the last time these two teams met when Arsenal were leading 3-0 at half-time. It will sting that Arsenal scored from another set-piece but that was more down to Cristian Romero switching off than any structural failure.

You can see that Tottenham have improved under Postecoglou but this leaves them with four points from as many games. They have lost to Newcastle and Arsenal, two teams they want to compete with towards the top of the table and for Champions League qualification.

This felt like another harsh lesson that hopefully Postecoglou’s young side will learn from.

Travelling to take on Manchester City next Sunday already four points behind would have placed a huge amount of pressure on them to avoid defeat. They know all too well that seven points is a mile back when chasing Pep Guardiola’s team.

That’s why this victory, with their entire first-choice midfield missing and the stakes already ratcheting up, was so vital.

It keeps Arsenal within touching distance and kickstarts their season after the disappointment of the 1-1 draw against Brighton before the international break.

The resilience they showed when soaking up Tottenham pressure, the work rate that both wingers put in to their defensive responsibilities and the adaptability Jorginho and Partey showed to make up for their ageing legs are intangibles that will add belief to this team.

GO FURTHER

Tottenham 0 Arsenal 1: More set-piece joy for Arteta’s side in intense north London derby

Here is Arsenal defender Jurrien Timber, who was speaking to Match of the Day after the match:

???? “You felt the excitement in the dressing room after the game. You know how bad the fans want to win this game. You prepare the same way as every game but it felt really nice winning this one.

“Credit to Spurs, they started really well but we showed again it’s really hard to score against us. We need just one goal to win the game.

“I am really, really enjoying it even with all these games coming up. The feeling of being fit is an amazing feeling. It’s a true honour.”

Arsenal's expected goals (xG) total, number of shots and shots on target total were all less than Tottenham's.

Not the one statistic that matters though.

Since the beginning of the 2023-2024 campaign, Arsenal have scored more goals from non-penalty set pieces than any other Premier League team, with 23.

Among teams in the English top-flight across last season and this season, only Nottingham Forest (23) have conceded more non-penalty set pieces than Tottenham's 18.

Today’s Arsenal captain Jorginho, in for the injured Martin Odegaard, and their goalscorer Gabriel have both been speaking to Sky Sports following their derby win.

Let’s start with Gabriel:

???? “We knew it would be a difficult game. We are so happy to win here, so let’s enjoy it now.

“It (the winning goal) means a lot because it’s so positive for the team. We had a difficult time in the game.”

As for Jorginho:

???? “In these days you have to work really hard, you have to count on your team-mates. It’s one where we stick together.

“We know we can count on each other. Now we have players who are missing but we have a total team, we know whoever is going to come on will be ready to help. As you saw today, everyone was ready.

“We are proud and happy for the team.”

That one dead centre of the six-yard box the crucial one.

A man-of-the-match performance from the Brazilian defender today.

The full time stats don’t differ too much from those we saw at half-time. Indeed, the pattern of the game rarely altered throughout, which to me suggests Arsenal had a plan and they had control.

But it was even too. Here are the final numbers…

FT: Tottenham 0-1 Arsenal

Fair play to Arsenal then, and Tottenham may still find encouragement that the game was decided by fine margins. It just felt like the game for them also lacked a lot of cohesion too, and those analytics are harder to find.

With valuable seconds ticking away, and Tottenham desperately surging forward to try to nick a late equaliser, there was a moment which adequately summarised their attacking dysfunction.

Timo Werner lost it then won it back, Spurs progressed upfield rapidly via Wilson Odobert, who found... centre-back Cristian Romero.

Romero, perhaps suffering with a metaphorical nosebleed from being so far up the pitch, got the ball tangled under his feet, did not play the return pass, then dithered further, allowing Arsenal to get back behind the ball and snuff the attack out.

It was a waste. And 0-0 would have been all Tottenham deserved, to be honest. For all their attacking riches, they were blunt and unambitious in attack.