Tottenham Vs Arsenal: tottenham vs arsenal ends 4-1 as Gyokeres and Eze score two each
Arsenal beat rivals Tottenham 4-1 in the north London derby as Viktor Gyokeres and Eberechi Eze each scored twice, restoring a five-point gap at the top of the Premier League. The result left Tottenham and new boss Igor Tudor with a painful afternoon while Arsenal returned to winning ways.
Tottenham Vs Arsenal match overview
The final score was 4-1, with Viktor Gyokeres and Eberechi Eze both scoring two for Mikel Arteta's side and Randal Kolo Muani netting Tottenham's solitary goal. The win restored Arsenal's lead at the top of the Premier League to five points.
Goals and sequence of events
Eberechi Eze put Arsenal in front from close-range after 32 minutes. The teams were level at half-time. Eze scored either side of the interval and Viktor Gyokeres added two goals, with Viktor Gyökeres having made it 4-1 late enough that home fans poured out after that goal. Randal Kolo Muani netted for Spurs in Igor Tudor's first match in charge; his goal was Tottenham's only reply in the contest.
Arteta's reaction and quotes
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta praised his players' response and described the performance in stark contrast to the midweek setback. He said: "That's football. When you watch the game back against Wolves, how the hell do you drop two points there, nobody can explain it but this is the beauty of it. It looks like it's the end of the world and then you look at your players and how they react and how much they want it and I said it, I feel very, very privileged to work with them every day. I knew they were going to react. In football you can win draw or lose but the attitude we showed today, the desire, the dominance, it was really impressive, so I'm happy. "
On when he realised his team would respond, Arteta said: "Immediately after that [result against Wolves] because I saw their reaction and what it means. When it's a job you don't react like this, when it's your passion and you love the game that's something else, it hurts you in a different way and I know what it means to them and how much they want it. And we're certainly going to try our best. "
He also singled out Declan Rice for his reaction during the match: "We said at half-time, we carry on playing, and talk about the attitude. What Declan [Rice] has done today, He made an error, the way he played afterwards, that's attitude, and to have personality, and courage and to stand up in a difficult moment. " On Viktor Gyokeres he added: "I think so. I think his overall play was incredible, the efficiency, the goals that he scored. He was really, really good today. " On starting Eberechi Eze he commented: "One of them because the recent past against them he was really positive. I made some decisions and I changed him at half-time [against Brentford] and you see how people react and when they have a point to prove. I know we are understanding how Ebs needs to perform at the level that he can. " On the title race he said: "One at a time. It's going to be a long one because we have the cup games on top of that and Champions League, so it's going to be a long marathon for all of us, but let's enjoy it. "
Tudor, Spurs and the atmosphere
The match was Igor Tudor's first in charge and the day proved difficult for Tottenham. Commentary on the match noted Tottenham's haplessness prevailing over the narrative that Arsenal might be inevitable bottlers. Pre-match rabble-rousing from Spurs' on-pitch announcer Paul Coyte focused on the possibility that something remarkable could happen, transforming "a small flame" into "a roaring fire", which helped create a raucous early atmosphere.
There was also a note that the only real positive for Tudor at the weekend was that none of West Ham, Nottingham Forest or Leeds won either. The gap to the relegation zone is down to four points. Observers warned that Tottenham retain quirks and foibles: there were spells when the side struggled to stop waves of Arsenal attacks, and there were moments of profound carelessness.
Wider implications and stats
Analysis highlighted that Arsenal outplayed Tottenham for long periods, creating 20 chances to Spurs' six and that Arsenal could easily have won by more. Pressure had been on Arsenal after they lost a two-goal lead at Wolverhampton Wanderers in midweek, and Manchester City had closed the gap with victory over Newcastle United on Saturday evening. Eberechi Eze was described as Tottenham Hotspur's tormentor again and as The Gunners' spearhead, having previously scored a hat-trick in Arsenal's 4-1 derby win in November. It was noted that Eze had been on the point of joining Spurs when Arsenal clinched a £60m deal with Crystal Palace in August.
Commentary from Phil McNulty at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium emphasised that the win was a title statement of intent as Arsenal restored their lead at the top of the Premier League to five points. Observers also pointed out recurring defensive fragility: Arsenal had conceded within 10 minutes of scoring for the third league game in a row, and the fourth time in the past six.
Declan Rice's match saw a notable emotional arc: he went from pointing at his temples to urge teammates to stay switched on after taking the lead, to waving his hands in apology after giving the ball away as Spurs equalised. One commentator suggested he might win player of the season while also warning the campaign could be defined by images of him shaking his head sadly.
Additional context underlined the rivalry's recent history: the run of six seasons in which Tottenham finished above Arsenal only came to an end in 2022. A detail about the stadium noted that when River Plate refurbished El Monumental during lockdown they imported exactly the same specification of seats from British suppliers; those seats were admired as home fans left after Viktor Gyökeres had made it 4-1.
Randal Kolo Muani's goal stood as Tottenham's single reply; the final margin left Arsenal five points clear at the top and left Tottenham and their new manager facing urgent questions.
