3 positives & negatives as depleted Arsenal claim North London Derby win

Supporters will find it hard to recall north London derbies from which they emerged with greater satisfaction than Sunday's 1-0 victory in N17.

Arsenal were depleted for the latest iteration, yet they waltzed into the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and claimed their third successive victory in Spurs' fancy amphitheatre.

The Gunners embraced the ugliness of the fixture and eventually outwitted their toothless hosts, who enjoyed much of the ball but failed to test David Raya after a bright opening. Gabriel's second-half header ultimately proved the difference, and given that we've had a little while for the result to settle, we can now assess the contest with a more balanced eye - picking out a few negatives, too.

So, without further ado, let's get into the positives and negatives from Sunday's North London Derby win.

1. What you're looking at is the masterplan

Mikel Arteta has long been regarded as a Pep Guardiola disciple, but this was a victory one of his former managers would've been immensely proud. Sunday's derby win was a bit of David Moyes, that's for sure.

The manager lauded his players' ability to win "ugly", but this was never going to be about glamour and style in the absence of Martin Odegaard. Arsenal, though, did not merely aim to contain their hosts. They sought to win possession high up the pitch in the first- half, switching between their man-oriented 4-4-2 press and a centrally compact mid-block which forced Tottenham into wide areas.

Their plan wasn't the most comprehensive, but it was necessary. The visitors successfully tamed a fervent home crowd but taking their time from restarts, sought to get up the pitch via Kai Havertz in the air, and backed themselves to shut out a blunt Tottenham attack. As the contest wore on, it seemed as if Arsenal would always get a moment, and they did from a set-piece just after the hour.

Raya made a couple of smart early saves, but the Spaniard was barely tested thereafter - although, it's worth noting that poor Spurs decision-making and execution limited their ability to get off higher-quality shots. The hosts' 15 shots mustered a grand xG of 0.7.

Arsenal were not perfectly defensively, with their half-space coverage particularly poor, but they had no issues dealing with Spurs' crossing barrage with William Saliba and Gabriel exceptional when defending their 1-0 lead.

2. Ben White out of sorts

This was an excellent defensive Arsenal performance with Saliba, Gabriel, and Jurrien Timber rightfully getting plenty of plaudits. However, down the right-hand side, White endured an off day.

The full-back has been a model of consistency this calendar year, but the Englishman was what the kids might call an unforced error 'merchant' in the derby. His technical level was low, with White turning the ball over on several occasions. One of his loose giveaways should've been punished by Dominic Solanke early in the first half.

Spurs also had some joy getting in behind White to start the contest, with Son Heung-min, Destiny Udogie, and Solanke combining well. Perhaps they would've been better served testing out White more as the game progressed rather than focussing their attention on the carded Timber down the opposite flank.

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