The Title Race in the Premier League Is Alive! But Arsenal’s Key Goal in the Derby Was Controversial

The corner that led to the Gunners’ equalizer was awarded in error.

The North London Derby between Arsenal and Tottenham is always exciting and prestigious, even with Spurs’ low table position and injury crisis.

Over the past month and a half, Tottenham has lost Vicario, Davies, Romero, Van de Ven, Udogie, Forster, Bentancur, and Werner. It's been a total disaster. Unsurprisingly, the team hit a slump, with their only Premier League win since December coming against a hopeless Southampton. This left them in 13th place — still above Manchester United but far from impressive.

Arsenal isn’t without struggles either: Calafiori is injured again, and Jesus has joined Saka in the medical room. Yet the Gunners are holding on to second place, as proved by the first whistle.

Tottenham was pinned back in their half, enduring intense pressure. Even without Martinelli in the starting XI — Arteta opted for Sterling — the Gunners dominated. Sterling had a golden chance to open the scoring but lacked the finishing touch. Spurs were simply defending for their lives, with nervous moments added by Kinski’s shaky performance: he nearly gifted Havertz a goal and made questionable exits from his goal.

Spurs launched their first attack in the 22nd minute, switching sharply from defense to offense. After weathering the storm, they suddenly created three chances in quick succession. Gabriel blocked Solanke, Raya stopped Kulusevski, but Son capitalized on a loose ball after a corner and smashed it home with a low volley, assisted by a deflection off a defender. Who else but him?

What seemed more inevitable than a goal was an injury. Porro tackled Trossard, but he was outplayed by a clever move. He twisted his ankle and stayed down for a while before limping off. Fortunately, no serious consequences followed.

The goal seemed to mentally crush Arsenal, disrupting their game. In the 40th minute, a familiar weapon came to the rescue — a corner kick, one of seven in the first half. Kinski misjudged the ball’s flight, allowing Gabriel to strike from five yards out. A deflection off Solanke made it 1-1. However, the corner should never have been awarded, as the ball had gone out off Porro. But the play continued, and VAR couldn’t intervene.

Soon after, Arsenal scored again. Partey dispossessed Bissouma deep in Spurs' half. Ødegaard passed to Trossard, and the Belgian curled a close-range shot into the far corner. Just like that, the game turned on its head.

At halftime, Postecoglou substituted two defensive midfielders — Bissouma and Sarr — replacing them with Maddison and Johnson to strengthen the attack. And it worked. Spurs began the second half with more possession and attacking intent, but chances were scarce. They even came close to conceding again: Havertz missed from six yards out after a corner, and Sterling, unmarked in front of goal, failed to connect properly. A poor match for Raheem, who was replaced by Martinelli in the 61st minute.

Arsenal remained much closer to scoring. Ødegaard had a decent opportunity but couldn’t convert, leading to a tense finale. In the 90+5th minute, Porro struck the post, but Arsenal held on. Not even Richarlison’s first appearance since November could save Spurs.

The Gunners cut Liverpool’s lead to four points, with the Reds still having a game in hand. Arsenal isn’t the only team chasing Nottingham at the top.

Published by Patrick Jane
16.01.2025