Harry Kane’s fine season continued in Saturday’s 174th north London derby as he struck twice after the break to earn his side a 2-1 win over Arsenal at White Hart Lane.
Arsenal, who were without their injured top goalscorer Alexis Sanchez, were on course for their first back-to-back victories at Spurs since the late 1980s after taking the lead in Arsene Wenger’s 700th Barclays Premier League match in charge. However, Kane, who was rewarded with a new contract at the beginning of the week, had other ideas as he turned the occasion on its head following Mesut Ozil’s opener to give Spurs a first derby win in five attempts.
Despite the hosts making the early running, Ozil opened the scoring 11 minutes in after an incisive break, with Spurs initially frustrated in their attempts to get back on level terms. The hosts’ pressure eventually told when Kane grabbed his first derby goal to level in the 56th minute, and the England Under-21 forward took his tally to 11 goals from his last 14 Spurs appearances with a superb header late on. This ended Arsenal’s five-match winning run in all competitions as their north London rivals leapfrogged them into the top four ahead of the afternoon’s other kick-offs.
Mauricio Pochettino’s side edged a cagey opening, with David Ospina forced to tip Kane’s early effort wide before the Colombian easily collected Danny Rose’s disappointing delivery from the left. However, in Arsenal’s first purposeful foray forward, the recalled Danny Welbeck burst past Rose to square for Olivier Giroud in the centre. The Frenchman helped the ball on to Ozil, who angled his body and volleyed past Hugo Lloris to score with a first-time shot for a third match running.
An increased intensity from both sides led to more chances before the half-hour, with Rose threatening Ospina’s goal twice more down the left. However, the Arsenal defence stood firm to soak up Spurs’ pressure, wasteful finishing from Christian Eriksen and Ryan Mason helping their opponents’ cause.
Welbeck was required to clear Eriksen’s dangerous free-kick late in the first half and Spurs started the brighter after the break. A lack of cutting edge in the final third continued to prove their downfall until Kane drew his side level with a cool finish at the back post after Ospina had failed to palm Erik Lamela’s corner out of danger. The goal was no more than Spurs’ pressure deserved but Welbeck almost put Arsenal back in front soon after, his curling effort kept out at full stretch by Lloris.
Ospina was called on again to deny Kane. having initially saved from Nabil Bentaleb, but the 21-year-old would not be denied as he further cemented his status as Spurs’ latest fan favourite. Kane’s 22nd goal in all competitions came courtesy of a wonderful arching header from Bentaleb’s cross as the striker impressed again in front of the watching England manager Roy Hodgson.
Tottenham Hotspur head coach Mauricio Pochettino: “It’s a special moment because always when you play the derbies it’s about more than just one game. It’s special for our supporters. I’m very happy and I congratulate my players for the performance. We played with our brain but also with the heart. We showed passion and emotion. [Kane] showed his quality and potential is massive. He can improve and this is the idea, to help him improve.”
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger: “We defended quite well, but offensively what we produced was not our standard and not good enough. For me, they [Spurs] created more chances and overall we cannot argue too much that they won the game. The regret we have is that we gave the goals away, the first and the second. We had put so much effort in but of course when you put so much in and you lose the game it is difficult.”
source:premierleague.com
STUDIO 3 NEWCASTLE AUSTRALIA 