Player ratings as Arsenal edge Tottenham in stodgy north London derby

A tense north London derby on Sunday was narrowly won by Arsenal, with Gabriel’s headed effort the only goal of the game in a 1-0 win for the away side at Tottenham.

The Gunners overcame the absence of key players Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard to battle to the huge victory, their third on the spin away at Spurs.

It was a tetchy game, mostly in the first half as seven yellow cards were shown before the break, although things calmed down a little after the interval.

It was more frustration than anything in the air in the second stanza, with Arsenal producing a steadfastly solid display and holding Tottenham at bay.

Mikel Arteta’s side were not wonderfully expansive or easy on the eye, but a set-piece winner did it for them as the game plan came off.

Here’s how the players performed…

Tottenham

Guglielmo Vicario – 5

Not always the most composed, flapping at crosses and shown a yellow card for getting in the face of Timber. A better goalkeeper at dealing with crosses may well have cut out Arsenal’s opening goal.

Destiny Udogie – 7

A booking for a late challenge on Saka within the first 30 minutes left him walking a tightrope at left-back. Kept Saka quiet for most of the game, which is no easy task.

Micky Van de Ven – 7

One of the string of players to be booked in the first half (seven!), scything down Leandro Trossard just before the break. A threat going forward as he saw a header stopped by Raya after the break. His pace is quite incredible, with forwards regularly disappointed when they think they have eluded him.

Cristian Romero – 6

Looks a really brilliant defender at times, particularly in quick succession early in the second half as he cut off Martinelli and then Timber down Arsenal’s left. However, this was undone as he lost his man and allowed Gabriel to head in the Gunners’ goal. Ventured to play up top late on.

Pedro Porro – 6

Always a threat going forward but a bit shaky at right-back, with Gabriel Martinelli looking likely to worry him at all times. Arsenal got in behind him a number of times although known of those opportunities led to anything.

Rodrigo Bentancur – 7

Harshly booked for a clumsy challenge on Kai Havertz in the first half which didn’t look like a yellow card at all. Given that he was left with a lot of work to do on his own in midfield he did it admirably, if unspectacularly.

James Maddison – 5

Tasked with unlocking the door for Tottenham and couldn’t manage it. Misplaced a few final balls and could not find his way through the stubborn Arsenal defence.

Dejan Kulusevski – 5

Had a good chance in the first few minutes which was well saved by Raya. Booked just before the interval for felling Jorginho. Didn’t offer a great deal in the second half.

Son Heung-min – 5

Looked good early on as Spurs started impressively, but could not produce much threat at all late on when his side needed to find an equaliser. As frustrated as anyone in a white shirt.

Brennan Johnson – 5

Gets into plenty of dangerous positions and looks threatening with his pace but didn’t look very convincing either in shooting or playing the final ball.

Dominic Solanke – 6

A real handful for centre-backs to deal with but wasted a good chance in the early exchanges by taking far too long to get a shot off. Saw a deft header float just wide of the post from a Maddison cross and saw another header deflected wide after the break.

Arsenal

David Raya – 7

Two sharp saves in the opening 15 minutes as Spurs started brightly. Didn’t really have a lot to do thanks to the work of his defence and midfield in the second half, but kept hold of his clean sheet.

Ben White – 7

Always solid enough at right-back, not offering much going forward, but was an important cog in the very sturdy Arsenal defensive performance.

Gabriel – 8

Scored the winning goal as he powered a towering header past Vicario, losing his marker impressively to get there. The Brazilian also defended well on a good day out for him.

William Saliba – 7

Booked early on, just 16 minutes into the game, for delaying a restart, possibly showing frustration after losing some early physical battles with Solanke. Didn’t let that get to him, though, and remained disciplined from there on in.

Jurrien Timber – 6

A concerning moment when a challenge on Porro in the first half briefly looked like it could have been a red card but was rightly only a yellow. Tottenham looked more dangerous down his flank than the other.

Thomas Partey – 7

Tottenham’s aggressive set-up looked worrying for Partey and Jorginho in the middle of the pitch, but they did their job well. Absolutely nothing spectacular was asked of Partey but he stuck to his task and completed it.

Jorginho – 7

One of the yellow cards that was unquestionably deserved was Jorginho’s for hauling down Maddison early in the second half. Having not played a minute of football this season, he performed a tough task in the middle of the pitch pretty well.

Gabriel Martinelli – 5

Spurned a good chance inside the first 20 minutes as he was in on goal but shot tamely at the goalkeeper. With rapid pace and with Porro often exposed, he should have been dangerous but never really proved to be.

Leandro Trossard – 6

Worked very hard in the middle as he and Havertz tried to lead a press and work in both midfield and on the front line. Never really provided much of an attacking threat, though.

Bukayo Saka – 6

Not his best game, but it was a day in which forward players struggled to shine. So often Arsenal’s attack is focussed through Saka but it didn’t feel like that on Sunday. Worked incredibly hard, as always, helping out the full-back behind him.

Kai Havertz – 6

It was a lot of hard work for the German, couldn’t create much or pose much of a threat but put in a lot of running for his manager.

Substitutes

Tottenham

Pape Matar Sarr – 5/10

Wilson Odobert – 5/10

Timo Werner – 5/10

Arsenal

Gabriel Jesus – 5/10

Raheem Sterling – 5/10

Ethan Nwaneri – 5/10

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