Arsenal overcame the absence of key midfielders Declan Rice and Martin Ødegaard to win the North London derby at Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday and move into second in the Premier League ahead of next week’s clash with leaders Manchester City.
Gabriel’s 64th-minute header was enough to seal a 1-0 win against Ange Postecoglou’s team, who are now languishing in 13th position after winning just once in four games this season.
The Brazilian defender was left free to bullet home a header from Bukayo Saka’s right-wing corner on 64 minutes as Mikel Arteta’s side once again demonstrated their quality at set pieces.
The Gunners had gone into the game without the suspended Rice and injured Ødegaard at the heart of their midfield, boosting Tottenham’s hopes of a first home win against Arsenal since 2022.
But Jorginho and Thomas Partey stepped into the void and proved Arsenal have the squad to compete for the title as they produced a gritty and resolute performance to claim victory against their local rivals.
While Arsenal hammered out their title credentials, the picture looks less promising for Spurs, however.
Postecoglou’s team has now lost seven of their past 11 Premier League games, winning just three — a dismal sequence that will place the former Celtic manager under pressure unless he is able to oversee a quick turnaround in results.
They were without regular corner-taker Rice and also Ødegaard, but Bukayo Saka’s delivery was pinpoint for Gabriel to capitalise on poor Spurs marking.
Tottenham had 64% of the possession and more shots (15-7) but only managed a fractionally higher expected goals figure of 0.77 to 0.73.
Although there were times when Partey and Jorginho were unable to stem the flow of Tottenham attacks — particularly early in the first half — Spurs gradually ran out of ideas and were unable to move the ball quickly enough to dislodge the Gunners from their disciplined shape.
Postecoglou responded to Arsenal’s goal by introducing Sarr and winger Wilson Odobert for Bentancur and the ineffective Brennan Johnson, but by then it felt as though the opportunity had been missed, because the visitors could concentrate on shutting down space and protecting their lead rather than chase a second goal.
Gabriel’s winner moved up to second place in the Premier League table with a hard-fought 1-0 victory.
It capped a resilient, organised display from The Gunners, who sat deep and threatened on the counter attack, thwarting Spurs continually and making light of the absence of key midfielders Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard.
Tottenham had started brightly but fit-again summer signing Dominic Solanke wasted a good early opportunity while David Raya kept out Dejan Kulusevski.
The result sees Arsenal move up to second place, two points behind leaders Manchester City. Tottenham sit 13th with just four points from their opening four top-flight games.
Next up, Spurs travel to Coventry in the League Cup on Wednesday night prior to hosting Brentford in the Premier League on Saturday.
Arsenal are at Atalanta in the UEFA Champions League on Thursday and then visit Premier League champions Manchester City in a crunch encounter next Sunday.
