No Auba, no problem: How Arsenal regained the bragging rights in North London

Alexandre Lacazette

No Auba, no problem: How Arsenal regained the bragging rights in North London

By Matt Wright

It was third time lucky for Mikel Arteta against our old foes from what used to be 'The Lane', but in truth there was nothing lucky about Arsenal's 2-1 victory over Tottenham last Sunday.

Gooners watching at home, for more than one reason, must have been wondering "how the hell has this happened?" after Erik Lamela's rabona put Spurs 1-0 up after them barely having a kick for half an hour.

Thankfully, justice was done before half-time as Martin Odegaard equalised before Alex Lacazette completed the turnaround with a penalty in the second half, thanks to a tackle from Davinson Sanchez every bit as wild as the French frontman's air shot that proceeded it.

There were some nervy moments after Lamela's red card, but there's no doubt Arsenal were by far the better team and here's why they dominated at the Emirates.

Emile Smith Rowe runs the show 

As Arsenal's Twitter page pointed out, Emile Smith Rowe's four chances created was the most in a North London Derby since Cesc Fabregas' six in April 2007.

Aged just 20, Smith Rowe was one of the youngest players out there, but you would never have known that as he dictated the match from midfield.

His rasping effort that hit the bar early on was just one of the ways the Croydon De Bruyne set the tone of the Gunners having full control of proceedings.

It's no coincidence that control drifted away after he was replaced by Willian, but this was the clearest indication yet that Smith Rowe can handle himself in the big games.

Bale tied up by Tierney 

There's been a lot of talk lately about Gareth Bale being 'back' - but the Welshman might still be trying to find his way out of Kieran Tierney's back pocket.

Bale had no influence on the game and didn't even last an hour before being hauled off, having only had a slightly better time of it down the right than the hapless Matt Doherty.

Tierney also gave Bale - a left-back himself way back when - a taste of his own medicine by repeatedly leaving him for dead and causing Spurs no end of problems.

The Scot continues to make a case of being Arsenal's best left-back since Cashley, having been Arteta's most consistent performer during this up-and-down season.

Arteta stamps his authority 

We've often questioned what kind of show Mikel Arteta has been running during the campaign and him dropping Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang for poor time-keeping certainly raised eyebrows.

Auba has done a lot to keep Arteta in a job and has been back at his best in the last month or so, so this was a big gamble by the Gunners boss. It paid off.

Everyone was pulling in the same direction from the first whistle, with Lacazette leading the line superbly in Auba's absence - the latter wasn't even called upon off the bench.

This win against Spurs will go down as a big one for Arteta in more ways than one; not just for the three points against fierce rivals, as he's shown he's no longer reliant on just one player to get him results. 

Photo credit: Getty Images

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