A derby to forget as weakened Arsenal implode, with a little help from Mike Dean

Tottenham Hotspur 3 Arsenal 0 
Premier League 
Thursday 12th May 2022  7.45pm   

Arsenal have enjoyed some memorable matches at the Lane, and not always for the right reasons. Last night’s was definitely one all Gooners would prefer to forget. That might be easier if they are still above Spurs in the table in 10 days time, although the concern is that this season, their bad results have often come in threes, and if they fail to win at Newcastle on Monday, their Champions League hopes may no longer be in their own hands. Yes, Spurs are playing Burnley the day before, but at this stage, we have to prepare for the likelihood that the momentum of Antonio Conte’s team will see them win their last two fixtures.

It was the first time that a full house, with away support had witnessed a North London derby since the stadium opened over three years ago. And let’s not pretend here – even if the area is a dump, you cannot argue with the quality of the stadium – a real contrast to the old White Hart Lane. Spurs had more room to work with in the construction both in terms of surface area and height, and have used it well. Contrast the experience of getting into the game at Southampton – this is a genuine 21^st century stadium and given it was built 13 years after the Emirates, you'd expect it to be better. Even the food knocks spots off Arsenal’s as does the speed of the queues to buy it. Of course, some things don’t change and outside the ground, the atmosphere was predictably menacing, with a large police presence at least better organized than the days of old. I’ve been to the Lane enough times to have learned how to avoid both police escorts and any trouble, so although I didn’t see anything, there were a few incidents I heard of. Of course, things would have been far worse after the final whistle in the event that the home side had failed to win.

As for the match itself, it was settled effectively by two sides of Heung-Min Son. The penalty decision after a promising opening 20 minutes for the Gunners was an example of a player conning the ref. The contact with Cedric was almost non-existent, and had no influence on Son’s fall to the ground after failing to get his head on a cross. The real question here is how the VAR official Mike Dean allowed the on-field decision to stand. Dean has celebrated Spurs’ goals in the past when officiating and there were concerns as soon as it was announced he would be involved in this match – although I admit, I thought that he was appointed as the actual referee when I first got wind of it. As it was he played a pivotal role in the game.

Mikel Arteta would have seen the replays of the penalty incident on the bench and was predictably livid after the game. He really reminded me of Pep Guardiola when I saw his post-match interview on Sky. As for Rob Holding’s red card for two yellows, that was more difficult to argue with. Son won four fouls against him and the final one bordered on assault as Holding pretty much took him out with a no-nonsense block. It was the kind of thing Steve Bould would have got away with 30 years ago, but the game has moved on. Funnily enough, the dominant derby in my thoughts before this game was the 0-0 at the Lane in the title-winning 1990-91 season. Spurs had match-winning players that day in the form of Gascoigne and Lineker, but Arsenal held firm and got out of there with a point. It was that kind of display that was required last night, but Arsenal’s team 31 years ago was a far more resilient one. 

Ultimately, the loss of key players in the shape of Tierney, Partey and Ben White weakened Arsenal sufficiently to allow a Spurs team much nearer full strength to get the result they were looking for, and once Holding was dismissed, at a goal down, the situation felt nigh on impossible as it was. Ben White was being prepared to come on, but four minutes after Holding’s dismissal, he wasn’t on the pitch as a Spurs corner was converted by an unmarked Harry Kane at the back post. If Leeds’ goal last Sunday was the first conceded by the Gunners from a corner this season, the fact that a second followed in the very next match is a worry, although hopefully a statistical freak. We’ll know soon enough. It was effectively game over though, and Arteta then decided to preserve White for Monday at Newcastle, a decision that subsequently looks prurient after Gabriel limped off with suspected hamstring troubles in the second half. White’s presence on the pitch after it went to 2-0 with ten men was not going to create a turnaround.

Arsenal did attempt to make a fist of the game in the first half. Martinelli showed spirit, and Eddie Nketiah forced a decent save from Lloris before the interval, but they were the flickers of a dying flame. With ten men it was as much about damage limitation as anything and when Son scored early in the second half, you feared the kind of humiliating scoreline that might be talked about for years to come. Finishing the game with a backline of Saka, Cedric, Tomiyasu and Tavares highlighted the risky decisions around squad management made in the January transfer window. Initially the lack of a striking acquisition cost points, but now we are considering the wisdom of selling both Mari and Chambers whilst William Saliba is tearing up trees in France. Arteta might get away with it – he has to match Spurs’ results in the next two games, but going to Newcastle, if Gabriel is injured, then it’s going to be a vulnerable defence. He would presumably play either Tomiyasu or Elneny next to White, but either way, one of Tavares or Lokonga is going to start. I’m not sure how either will perform in front of a revived Newcastle crowd in their final home fixture of the season. Let’s hope Gabriel recovers sufficiently. 

If Arsenal do fall short, it will be because of the lack of depth in the squad. They have done well to get results in the trio of matches against Chelsea, Manchester United and West Ham. Those nine points have put them where they are now – still in control of their own destiny. But the absence of Tierney was a contributory factor to the trio of defeats that preceded those games, and Partey was injured at Palace. Arsenal struggled to score in those three losses as well, as Arteta persisted with Lacazette up front, before Covid gave Nketiah the chance to get minutes under his belt at Southampton, which resulted in his ability to contribute in the subsequent victory at Stamford Bridge.

Arteta is still learning for sure. Monday evening’s game could arguably be the most important of his managerial career, depending on how you view an FA Cup final in this day and age. Everyone knows the importance of the Champions League in terms of the financial benefits as well as a club’s status. Spurs desperately need to be in it to realize their ambitions and it is the reason that they hired Mourinho to replace Pocchetino (a results manager at odds with the Spurs ethos) and didn’t hang around in dismissing Nuno Espirito Santo in the autumn. Antonio Conte is a more modern version of Mourinho, with a better feel for handling his players, but ultimately a coach who knows how to get results. He was aided by a terrible decision last night, but you know what? That Son v Holding battle was never going to end well, and in honesty, Spurs would likely have won the game anyway, even if Arsenal had eleven on the field. This due to the simple fact that Spurs had a stronger team on the night, on top of home advantage. In the reverse fixture back in September, Arsenal’s backline was Tomiyasu, White, Gabriel and Tierney, with Xhaka and Partey in front of them. 

So now it’s over to the manager. He has to prepare a team to win a match at Newcastle on Monday night. And if by some slim chance Spurs do go Spursy on Sunday at home to Burnley, it might actually make the Arsenal v Everton game more difficult, depending what happens to Leeds and Everton themselves in the meantime. A lot of ifs and buts, but if Arsenal win their next two matches, they will finish fourth. It’s a big test for the manager, and last night’s horrorshow can be quickly forgotten if he passes it. Let’s hope the lack of squad depth is not the determining factor in the Gunners’ fate this season.

One positive – we’ll surely never have the Spurs-loving Mike Dean involved in any further Arsenal matches. 

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