Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 Arsenal - 5 Talking Points

Tottenham players celebrating after an emphatic win over their rivalsSpurs recorded an exciting victory over their local rivals Arsenal at White Hart Lane as they rode on Harry Kane’s brace. The manner in which the hosts won was more noteworthy as they tranquilized their rivals with aplomb.Arsenal looked in philosophical no man’s land as they failed to figure out the game in its entirety. Mauricio Pochettino made some startling selections, but all his gambles seemed to pay off today as whatever he touched today turned to gold.So here are the five talking points of this thrilling North London derby where the game was end to end throughout the 90 minutes:

#5 Missing Alexis Sanchez

One man that has taken both Premier League and the Emirates by storm is Alexis Sanchez. The Chilean has been immense for the Gunners as he has brought a new dimension to this cute Arsenal attack.

He has been out due to a hamstring injury for almost two weeks and his absence was felt in today’s derby defeat. The false winger has always been there putting in a shift down the flanks and also chipping in with crucial goals and assist.

Today he could have given Spurs’ fullbacks a torrid time because of his ability to run at the defenders and also to draw them at him. Arsenal at the moment lacks players of such ability. Today, Danny Welbeck was deployed in the similar role but wasn’t even half as effective as the former Barcelona man as both of them are basically different breed of players.

Monsieur Wenger must be hoping that his talisman is back on to the pitch as soon as possible as their bid for a top-four finish is slowly slipping out of their hands. Arsenal is currently in 6th place behind Spurs.

#4 Arsenal\'s tactical chaos

Arsenal has always been known as the patrons of the beautiful football. This has evoked strong reactions from the pundits who have blamed them lacking steel in their approach.

But Arsene Wenger surprised one and all with his tactics at the Etihad where they looked like the Gunners of the yore. The days when they had that grit and steel in their approach, the ability to dig deep for a result which was missing seemed to have returned. In short, it was said that they found their mojo back.

But today they looked completely clueless as far as their tactics were concerned. At times for no reason they defended so deep that it gave Spurs an easy entry into Arsenal’s half. Or else they went so bullish on the front that they were left naked at the back, which invited the hosts to hit them on the break.

Spurs, in fact, were never made to toil for this win as the Gunners were too busy in self destructing themselves. The Lilywhites must be shocked to see the visitors to go on the backfoot after conceding the first goal. It seemed Wenger’s boys were never in this game for the three points.

Their defensive approach invited unnecessary pressure on themselves as they let Spurs back into the game at 1-0. It seems that Arsenal is still struggling to come grips with this new tactic as they still clearly are yet to find the perfect blend of both the approaches.

#3 Arsenal\'s lack of width

Arsenal started the game in a manner similar fashion the way they played at the Etihad but sadly they lacked any sort of width which was supposedly to be provided by their full backs.

Arsene Wenger had chosen his line up in the way where all his attackers were supposed to cut inside by drawing opposition full backs along with them, which in turn would give their full backs acres of space on the overlap. Danny Welbeck’s versatility gave them another dimension as he gave them width as well as an inverted winger’s activity.

But his versatility was blunted by his own teammate as Arsenal’s full-backs were caught out of position in order to provide any sort of width. The spaces that were at times left behind the attacking wide men was too hard to ignore as it gave Spurs’ wide men Lamela and Eriksen acres of space to cut in.

Later on, in the game even their fullbacks were drawn inwards for some reasons only known to them. The old ghosts came back to haunt them as once again they were caught napping in the wide areas.

#2 Spurs\' midfield domination

Today was a day when Spurs’ boyish midfielders turned into men. Ryan Mason and Nabil Bentaleb were the silent heroes of this crucial derby win. Bentaleb was particularly more effective in the second half where he was visible in the Arsenal half more often.

But one guy who caught our eye today was Ryan Mason. The Englishman always passes under the radar but is an important cog in this Spurs midfield machine. He does all the dirty work for the team which gives the platform to the most flamboyant players like Eriksen, Chadli and Lamela.

Today both the guys worked in tandem as they dismantled the Arsenal troika of Coquelin, Ramsey and Santi Cazorla. The way Bentaleb and Mason took Cazorla out of the game was noteworthy as the Spaniard was in sublime form coming into this fixture.

Mason made some last ditch efforts to prevent Arsenal attackers from getting behind his defense as he shielded them and destroyed the opposition like a tank. And Bentaleb’s assist for the winner was simply a touch of class. The Algerian justified the manager’s decision to draft him straight into the starting lineup on his return from Afcon.

#1 King Kane

It was a dream derby for this 20-year old striker from North London. Not only he scored a brace, but he also scored the winner. Harry Kane was at his imperious best today as he simply ran past the Arsenal backline at will.

He was deployed as the lone man upfront and he performed his role with some panache. His link up play with Eriksen and Lamela was magical at times. He tested the Arsenal keeper quite a few times and was unlucky to not score a hat-trick as he was denied by Ospina on quite a few occasions.

He held the ball high up the pitch when Spurs rearguard hoofed the ball up the pitch. He displayed the qualities which were displayed by erstwhile Spurs great Dimitar Berbatov. The effusiveness of this praise may sound over the top to some but if he keeps going with his current form.

The Englishman has scored 22 goals in all competitions for the Spurs this season. This is arguably his breakthrough season where he has announced himself to the world in style. It wouldn’t be surprising if some of the big boys come knocking at the Spurs door for the services of this wonder kid.