Arsenal vs Spurs: The response that was needed

Arsenal completely blitzed Tottenham during yesterday’s 2-0 win in the North London derby and it’s exactly what every Arsenal fan and player needed.

Leading up to the North London Derby against bitter rivals Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal were given little chance to produce a positive result. Pundits and journalists had predicted a Spurs win with Dele Alli, Harry Kane and Christian Eriksen all expected to dominate, while Hector Bellerin and Alexis Sanchez were the only two Arsenal players included in the combined North London XI.

Apart from individual opinions, the Gunners were leading up to the game in poor form following a miserable defeat to the current league leaders, Manchester City, in a 3-1 away loss that had very questionable decisions on behalf of the officials. Reports of in-house bust-ups between goalkeeping coach Jens Lehmann and star forward Alexis Sanchez were also not the news fans wanted to hear before a huge derby game.

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Spurs, on the other hand, were coming off of a sensational 3-1 victory against Real Madrid, in which they completely annihilated the European Champions, and a hard fought 1-0 victory against fellow London rivals Crystal Palace.

So, sitting four points below the North London rivals, a win was not only beneficial, but wholly necessary. Wenger decided, this time out, to play his best players in their best positions, starting Sanchez, Mesut Ozil and Alexandre Lacazette as a fluid and dynamic front three. The decision paid off.

What makes the victory so sweet is that every single player was fully committed to the cause, something that has been a criticism levelled at many of them. Sanchez, in particular, was extremely passionate. He played with vigour and intensity, chasing every cause, pressing relentlessly, and scoring the game-ending second goal shortly before half-time.

Arsene Wenger would be delighted to see his players respond after the defeat to City. There were questions of a lack of desire and interest. But his display showed Wenger that his players do care. They have the ability to respond with a world-class performance. They also have the attitude. None more so than Mesut Ozil.

The German hasn’t been shy of criticism from many, including legends of the club. Laziness was the most prominent charge. But on Saturday, Ozil put in a world-class performance in which the World Cup winner was superb in both attack and defense. He was named Man of the Match, began to silence some of his critics, and left many asking for more of the same in the future.

Center-back Shkodran Mustafi, who had just returned from a long injury, also played phenomenally. Prior to the Spurs game, the defense hadn’t kept a clean sheet since October 1st. But Mustafi was commanding, making his presence. That is something that has been painfully absent for some time.

Overall, this was a performance everyone at the club needed. The players needed to rejuvenate themselves and regain their confidence on the pitch. The manager needed his players to respond. The fans needed to gain some sort of hope amid fears that this could be yet another throwaway season after just 12 games.

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I have been very critical of the team as a whole, and, in a sense, it’s because of performances like Saturday’s. I criticize the team for not giving it their all because I know what the players are capable of when they do give it their all. I myself doubted whether Arsenal could beat a rampant Spurs team too. Thankfully, they proved me, and many others, wrong.