Kings Of the North
Arsenal fortified their stance at the crest of the Premier League table with a dominant display and a resounding win beating their North London rivals Tottenham, 3-1 at The Emirates stadium.
The Gunners are now 4 points clear of The Lilywhites and will be full of confidence in the upcoming round of fixtures that sees them face Liverpool, Leeds United, Manchester City & Southampton.
Let's take a second glance at the thriller;
Arsenal started the game on the front foot by creating chances and spreading the play in and around Spur's low block.
Within 3 minutes, Martinelli hit a half-volley that deflected off Richarlison and came off the near post. Action!
Arsenal looked comfortable in possession and dominated the start which saw them take the lead in the 20th minute thanks to a stunner from Thomas Partey.
The Midfielder received the ball in space through the middle in front of Tottenham's penalty area. He strikes the ball first time side-footing the ball around Bentacur and into the top-right corner of the net. Stunner 1-0 to Arsenal
The spurs get onto the ball immediately, looking for the equalizer. 9 minutes later, Richarlison is brought down by Gabriel in the penalty area. The situation sees Kane step up and scores his 44th goal in a London Derby, smashing the record of 43 that was set by the great Thierry Henry. Harry Kane's strike was also his 100th Premier League away goal. Icon! Level 1-1
The referee blows the whistle, indicating the end of the first half. It's all level at the break and as the teams walk into the dressing rooms. The fans are back to where it all started 45 minutes ago, level. Arsenal had a bright start but the spurs found something towards the end. A moment of calm, before the storm.
Second Half
The second half begins similarly to the first, with arsenal applying pressure. Not long after the restart, 4 minutes in actuality. Saka receives the ball on the right, cuts inside and curls a shot towards the goal. Lloris scuffs it away but not far enough, the ball hits Romero and bounces back toward the goal getting under Lloris. Jesus, who is always hovering in and around the penalty area, pounces on the loose ball, poking it into an empty net. 2-1 The Gunners!
The game is moving past the hour mark and Arsenal still has a firm grip on the tie. Martinelli is on Arsenal's half, moving toward his goal, he skips past Emerson who launches a very late tackle, scraping his studs against Martinelli's ankle. The referee is having none of it and shows Emerson a straight red card🟥. The spurs are down to ten men.
67 minutes on the clock, Partey moves into the Spur's half with the ball, he sees Martinelli to his left and switches the play. After some tantalizing footwork by the Brazilian, he touches the ball to Xhaka. Xhaka coolly slots a precise shot under Lloris into the back of the net. 3-1 The Gunners
A man down and two goals behind, the Spurs hold the score up to the final whistle. the Game ends 3-1 the Gunners take all 3 points.
Manchester is Blue
A Nine Goal thriller at The Etihad
It's safe to say that The Manchester Derby lived up to the hype. From start to finish, the fixture served non-stop action. And 90+ min later, the two sides had scored a total of 9 goals.
Manchester City is now one point off the leaders' Arsenal
Let's take a second glance at the classic, and talk about the main topics;
A Hat Trick of Hat Tricks + Foden Hat Trick!
Erling Haaland and Phil Foden are the first players in Premier League history to both score hat-tricks in the same game against a 'Big Six' side.
Erling Haaland scored his third Hat Trick in a row at the Etihad. He also assisted two out of the three Foden goals.
Phil Foden becomes the second Man City player to score a Premier League hat-trick against Man Utd.
Erling Haaland (14) already has twice as many Premier League goals as the next-highest scorer Harry Kane (7).
Haaland's impact on the English game was expected but I bet no one expected the mind-boggling numbers the Norwegian is putting out.
At this rate, the top scorer record will be broken mid-season.
Ederson had more touches (78) and completed more passes (59) than any Manchester United player. Domineering!
Phil Foden has earmarked his position within the City team, this is more apparent by the fact that Manchester City is hopeful that Phil Foden will sign a contract extension until 2027. It should be done this week,
Defending woes + Antony & Antony Martial
Even with a goal-scoring machine by the name Erling Haaland, Manchester City seems to ease their way past the mid and defensive sectors of the Red Devils unit with ease
Erick Ten hag and his assistants will be hoping that the initial problems that ailed this Manchester United side will not be out to haunt them once again. Especially because Raphaël Varane suffered an ankle injury in the fixture.
The Varane and Lisandro Martinez partnership at the heart of the Manchester United backline had restored some much-needed calm in the backline. Luckily for Manchester United fans, the injury is short term and Erick Ten Hag was confident in his quick return.
Speaking on the MEN's exclusive, Erick confirmed that Varane will be back soon but he will have to wait a little longer for Maguire as he battles a hamstring injury.
Manchester United will be impressed by the second-half fightback which saw them win the second half 3-2. Unluckily, the damage was too far gone. Brazilian Antony scored the first for Manchester United, a stunner. a left-footed thunderbolt that curled past Ederson on goal
Antony Martial scored a brace, one was a tap-in and a penalty which he conceded. Is Martial back to his best? His display showed intent and Christiano Ronaldo will be feeling uneasy about his place in the starting lineup.
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