Arsenal has just gone through 2 very unfortunate draws against Brentford and especially Wolves. Therefore, the North London Derby last weekend was a good opportunity for Mikel Arteta's team to recover and continue to keep the distance from Man City who are showing signs of close pursuit.
In the draws against Wolves and Brentford, Arsenal often played slowly after taking the lead and in the end they all left with only 1 point. Mikel Arteta's team was criticized for their pragmatic and excessively careful playing style. The moment Wolves equalized in the 90+4 minute was Arsenal's most expensive price to pay at Molineux stadium.
To improve that immediately, Mikel Arteta fielded a very strong squad in the North London Derby. If they continue to lose points, being ridiculed is only a small matter, possibly losing the top spot is a big matter and Arteta is forced to change. This is a match where people considered supporting roles or in poor form such as Eberechi Eze or Viktor Gyokeres were started from the beginning. They all shone with a double and left positive signals, helping the coaching staff feel somewhat more secure in the remaining journey.
In the resounding victory over Spurs, captain Bukayo Saka did not score but left a very positive performance. Saka's willingness to rush, finish continuously and constantly compete in duels is a great motivation for Eze or Gyokeres to play more effortfully. In a match where Saka did not have the support of Martin Odegaard behind him from the beginning, the England international had a very good coordinated match with his compatriot Eze. This is also a suggestion for Arteta to solve the problem for Saka and Eze themselves if these two stars start together.
One of the most positive aspects in terms of spirit to maintain Arsenal's attacking game was the moment after Declan Rice made a mistake leading to Randal Kolo Muani's equalizing goal. That was the moment just 2 minutes after Eze opened the score but Arsenal did not fluctuate at all. Rice immediately signaled to reassure his teammates and everyone rushed back to attack. Thanks to that, The Gunners did not lose the game they had created from the beginning and avoided a collapse at Tottenham Stadium.
After taking a 2-1 lead from Gyokeres, Arsenal continued to direct all the balls towards the opponent's goal in the second half. They played with a seemingly endless source of energy with absolute concentration. Both goals by Gyokeres were very beautiful and decisive, proving that the "Gunners" were not at all shaken. Meanwhile, Eze's "juggling" also showed the great inspiration of this striker.
Destroying Tottenham brings positive signals for Arsenal. Remember in the first leg in November 2025, after defeating Spurs with a score of 3-1, The Gunners continued to win big against Bayern Munich 3-1 in the UEFA Champions League qualifiers. Therefore, after this victory against their arch-rivals, Arsenal is expected to continue to sublimate in the match against Chelsea this weekend. Everyone must be very well prepared to aim for the decisive match against Man City on April 18.
