ARSENAL withstood a late rally from Tottenham Hotspur today at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to stretch their lead at the top of the English Premier League table.
The Gunners won 3-2 against their neighbours after having taken a 3-0 lead by half-time.
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg inadvertently put Arsenal in front when he headed into his own net from a corner-kick in the 15th minute to set Arsenal on the way.
Micky van de Ven thought he had brought the hosts level eight minutes after they went behind, but the goal was controversially disallowed for offside after a VAR review.
The Gunners then doubled their lead in the 27th as Bukayo Saka profited from a breakaway to fire past Spurs goalkeeper
Guglielmo Vicario from inside the box.
It was Saka’s 15th goal of the season in the competition and the winger with Nigerian heritage became the first Englishman to score 15 or more goals in a Premier League campaign for Arsenal since Ian Wright in 1996/1997.
The 22-year-old is the first Englishman to score home and away for Arsenal against Tottenham since Wright in 1993/1994.
Kai Havertz extended Arsenal’s lead even further seven minutes from half-time with a header off another corner as the Gunners looked to be cruising to a comfortable win.
Spurs got themselves back in the game when Cristian Romero took advantage of David Raya’s error to score in the 64th minute.
Things became really uncomfortable for Arsenal three minutes before the end of regulation time when Son Heung-min converted a penalty kick, but Mikel Arteta’s side weathered the storm to keep their hopes of a first Premier League title in 20 years intact.
With the victory, Arsenal have won back-to-back away games against Tottenham for the first time ever in the Premier League.
The Gunners opened up a four-point gap over second-placed Manchester City, who have two games in hand, including a clash at Nottingham Forest today.
