Arsenal vs. Tottenham result, highlights & analysis as Gunners move four points clear at the top of the Premier League

Ben Miller

•
Arsenal vs. Tottenham result, highlights & analysis as Gunners move four points clear at the top of the Premier League image

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta said his side were "phenomenal" as the Gunners moved four points clear at the top of the Premier League by inflicting a first top-flight defeat of the season on arch-rivals Tottenham Hotspur.

Thomas Partey curled in a superb 20th-minute opener and Gabriel Jesus struck in his first North London derby as Arsenal overcame Harry Kane's equaliser from the penalty spot — his 100th Premier League away goal — to earn a seventh successive home win.

"From the beginning, we went for it," Arteta told BT Sport after victory ensured Arsenal will end the weekend above second-placed Manchester City.

"We were brave, we were courageous, we were free — and that's what we encourage the players to be."

Tottenham's miserable end to their 13-match unbeaten league run was compounded when Emerson Royal was sent off for raking Gabriel Martinelli.

As dominant Arsenal sought to capitalise on their numerical advantage, Granit Xhaka continued his renaissance at the club by firing a low shot past Hugo Lloris.

Antonio Conte made five substitutions as he tried to ease the pressure being faced by his side, who remain four points clear of fourth-placed Brighton & Hove Albion and five ahead of Manchester United in fifth, both of whom have two games in hand on Spurs.

Confident Arsenal revel in revenge

Arsenal's 3-0 defeat at Tottenham in their penultimate away match of last season was a particularly bitter blow as it all but handed Spurs the final UEFA Champions League spot ahead of the team they love to beat most.

For all the progress Arsenal had shown under Arteta in 2021/22, they failed badly on a night when they could have secured a famous result with that coveted fourth spot in their sights.

Tottenham's significant spending ahead of Antonio Conte's first full campaign in charge had made them the stronger favourites to challenge before the start of the season, and Arsenal's excellent start had been tempered when their first match against heavyweight opponents ended in a 3-1 setback at Manchester United.

There were no signs of the susceptibility to stage fright of which Arsenal have been accused this time as they immediately put Spurs on the back foot by fashioning a succession of good chances.

Xhaka kept their passing flowing as confidently as he had for Switzerland during their win over the Czech Republic on Tuesday, and Gabriel Martinelli stopped only marginally short of Richarlison-style showboating as he repeatedly charged down the wing, taunting the recalled Emerson and his backtracking teammates through his speed and trickery.

"That's the way we want to play, especially against teams that can hurt you on the break," said Arteta, who will now be able to watch City host Manchester United on Sunday with no risk of his table-toppers being deposed.

Son Heung-min's four goals in his previous five games against Arsenal and the 13 scored by Kane in 18 editions of the derby did not make the Gunners fearful.

"I really liked that we didn't play with that in the back of our minds," said Arteta, having watched his players produce 22 passes on their way to that goal-of-the-season contender that broke the deadlock. "We want to control the game."

Conte criticises careless Tottenham

Tottenham had failed to win on 35 of their previous 37 visits to their neighbours and that dreadful run looked no nearer improving as Arsenal made much the brighter start in the first derby between the teams this season.

Dejan Kulusevski was ruled out through injury but an attacking line of Kane, Son and Richarlison would have made Antonio Conte hope his team would capitalise even if they had far fewer opportunities, and the Brazil attacker almost prodded in the opener shortly before Partey's strike flew past Hugo Lloris.

Spurs are rarely as quiet as they were before Kane coolly curled his spot kick past England teammate Aaron Ramsdale, and they had opportunities to go ahead before sloppily conceding again.

"We could have done much better in that situation," said Conte, discussing his players' unwise decision to allow Saka ample space inside the penalty area for Arsenal's second.

"The red card ended the game because then it was really difficult for us. We tried to play with four at the back but it was really difficult with the characteristics of our players."

Perhaps Conte had grown exasperated at Tottenham's play in the final third when he decided to make a raft of defensive substitutions within 20 minutes of full-time, including the withdrawals of Son and Richarlison for Ryan Sessegnon and Matt Doherty.

"We had the opportunity to exploit Arsenal much better in the first half," said Conte. "Instead, we kept the game in the balance and made big, big mistakes in our last passes."

You suspect Conte will leave his players under no illusions about the improvements he expects to see. They travel to Eintracht Frankfurt on Tuesday with the aim of avoiding a second successive Champions League defeat.

The Sporting News followed the match live and provided live score updates and commentary.

MORE: Arsenal Europa League group draw 2022/23: Fixtures, schedule, history and odds to advance

Arsenal vs. Tottenham final score

  1H 2H Final
Arsenal  1 2 3
Tottenham 1 0 1

Goals: Arsenal – Partey (20), Jesus (49), Xhaka (67)

Tottenham – Kane (31)

Arsenal vs. Tottenham live updates, highlights from Premier League

Full-time: Arsenal 3-1 Tottenham

Arteta and Conte exchange a brief handshake as Arsenal deservedly win the derby 3-1! Thanks for following our coverage – we'll have a report, analysis and reaction above these updates shortly.

89 mins: Arsenal 3-1 Tottenham

Kieran Tierney takes aim with a thunderous drive from distance! Lloris gets down to tip the effort around his left-hand post, leaving the substitute with his head in his hands.

85 mins: Arsenal 3-1 Tottenham

Arsenal fans are making 3-1 gestures with their hands in the stands. This is closing in on being a day to forget for Tottenham, who beat Arsenal to fourth place last season.

82 mins: Arsenal 3-1 Tottenham

79 mins: Arsenal 3-1 Tottenham

Arsenal have had 81 percent of recent possession. They're looking comfortable.

77 mins: Arsenal 3-1 Tottenham

Scenes for Arsenal fans. "We are top of the league" and "we hate Tottenham" are among the chants. Kane sees a shot from distance blocked.

75 mins: Arsenal 3-1 Tottenham

Kane lumbers forward down the right, puts in a clumsy challenge on Gabriel and then goes to ground himself, having conceded the foul.

73 mins: Arsenal 3-1 Tottenham

Zinchenko offers a show of joy as the returning full-back is among the players to head off in a round of Arsenal substitutions.

If Arsenal can avoid conceding twice, they'll be out of reach for his former side, Manchester City, at the top of the table this weekend.

71 mins: Arsenal 3-1 Tottenham

Lenglet, Perisic, Richarlison and Son are among those to make way. Conte looks like he's happy to shut up shop and stem the barrage.

69 mins: Arsenal 3-1 Tottenham

Five changes are coming up for Tottenham. There's a sense of the embarrassment Arsenal tried to avoid when they lost 3-0 at Spurs at the end of last season.

68 mins: Arsenal 3-1 Tottenham

That was the latest sweeping move from Arsenal, who had already been on the front foot for much of this half and now have more space to play in with the extra man.

Martinelli approached the penalty area to the left of centre and moved the ball on to Xhaka ahead of him, who shifted his body to befuddle Dier and smashed a low shot beyond Longlet and the dive of Lloris and into the far corner of the net!

67 mins: GOAL – Arsenal 3-1 Tottenham (Granit Xhaka)

Arsenal have taken advantage since finding themselves with a man advantage and their latest attack extends their lead following a flowing move!

64 mins: Arsenal 2-1 Tottenham

"It might have been pent up frustration," Jermaine Jenas suggests about Royal's red card on BT Sport.

That's a fair assessment. Royal hadn't been doing terribly against Martinelli but he'd often been left looking like a man chasing shadows in his attempts to deal with his target's skills and speed.

63 mins: Arsenal 2-1 Tottenham

Conte is having a word with an official about something as Royal makes his way off. He might not have much of a case if he's contending that red card.

The manager makes no contact with Royal as he heads for the tunnel.

62 mins: RED CARD – Arsenal 2-1 Tottenham (Emerson Royal)

Having been restored to the starting line-up today, Royal has had a difficult afternoon against the enterprising Martinelli.

This time the youngster evades one challenge before Royal plants a powerful foot on his shin. Anthony Taylor pauses to think – then brandishes a straight red card!

60 mins: Arsenal 2-1 Tottenham

Xhaka lifts a cross towards Jesus inside the penalty area on the right, who plants a header down and into Lloris's gloves.

59 mins: Arsenal 2-1 Tottenham

Persistent menace Richarlison can't find a way through against Saliba on the right, but he goes better in the subsequent attack, setting up Hojbjerg in space on the edge of the penalty area.

The shot is comfortably wide of the near post. Tottenham were under almost relentless pressure for the first 15 minutes or so of the first half, so they won't mind biding their time for more chanes here.

55 mins: Arsenal 2-1 Tottenham

A good omen for Arsenal: Jesus is unbeaten in all 50 Premier League matches in which he has scored, winning 47 of those.

53 mins: Arsenal 2-1 Tottenham

We've had an eventful few minutes since that goal. Spurs threatened at the other end, then Jesus wanted a penalty after performing a few stepovers and going down inside the penalty area.

The scorer should have at least tested Lloris again when he had a free header on the left-hand side of the penalty area, sending it comfortably wide.

Arteta won't be feeling quite as high-spirited as Jesus goes down with an apparent injury for longer than you'd expect if he's making a meal of it. He's back up in the end.

50 mins: Arsenal 2-1 Tottenham

Tottenham didn't cover themselves in glory defensively there. Saka was allowed an inviting amount of space inside the penalty area on the right, cutting back before firing in a low diagonal cross.

Lloris descended but only pushed the ball right into the path of Jesus in front of him. Romero was caught by surprise, only nudging the ricochet towards the goalline as Jesus charged past him to prod in.

Arteta indulges in some eye-catching celebrations on the touchline again!

49 mins: GOAL – Arsenal 2-1 Tottenham (Gabriel Jesus)

Arsenal retake the lead!

48 mins: Arsenal 1-1 Tottenham

Odegaard measures a cross into the penalty area from Arsenal's left. Dier heads away. It's looking like being a long half for both sets of defenders again.

47 mins: Arsenal 1-1 Tottenham

Martinelli pulls a cross from the right back into the path of the centrally-located Odegaard, whose shot is diverted away by Hojbjerg.

46 mins: Arsenal 1-1 Tottenham

Tottenham have the first sight of goal of the second half, Romero reaching a long ball on the right. Saliba stops him.

Half-time: Arsenal 1-1 Tottenham

There's a half that lived up to the billing. Arsenal dominated the early stages, only for Spurs to have the best early chance when Richarlison forced a close-range save from Ramsdale.

Partey had clearly seen enough, curling in a goal of the season contender to put his side ahead. Happily for Spurs, it's obligatory for Kane to score in this fixture, as he did from the spot after Richarlison had been brought down.

The 173 top-flight goals there have now been between these sides makes it the second-highest scoring fixture in the history of the division. If the second half is as end-to-end as the last 30 minutes or so have been, you'd expect more here.

43 mins: Arsenal 1-1 Tottenham

Jesus does brilliantly after Odegaard locates Arsenal's top scorer inside the penalty area on the left, deceiving the close attentions of Royal and Romero before poking a shot at goal that Lloris thwarts.

40 mins: Arsenal 1-1 Tottenham

Arsenal fans want a free-kick in a dangerous area after Martinelli is brought down.

Their wishes aren't granted and Gabriel ends up fouling Kane, allowing the danger to dissipate.

39 mins: Arsenal 1-1 Tottenham

Arsenal win a corner on their left. Martinelli whips it towards the middle of the six-yard box, where Romero gets distance on a clearing header.

38 mins: Arsenal 1-1 Tottenham

Lloris does well to punch Arsenal's inswinging corner from the right clear. Richarlison sets off on a counter-attack through the centre, releasing Perisic towards the penalty area on the left with a defence-splitting low pass that has a suspicion of offside to it.

Perisic hangs a cross towards the far post, where Kane heads at Ramsdale under pressure.

37 mins: Arsenal 1-1 Tottenham

Saka bursts down the left and sends in a cross, which Hojbjerg diverts behind. Anthony Taylor wants a VAR check to confirm the ball didn't hit the Spurs midfielder's arm, but there's nothing in it.

36 mins: Arsenal 1-1 Tottenham

Richarlison has an abundance of space inside Arsenal's penalty area on the right, thudding a low cross towards Kane. Arsenal clear.

34 mins: Arsenal 1-1 Tottenham

Tottenham are finishing this half strongly, winning a corner down their right.

First stat alert: Kane has surpassed the record in north London derbies of Thierry Henry, who's watching from the stands today.

Ramsdale paws the corner to safety from under his crossbar. Spurs have a throw-in deep in Arsenal's half on the left, which is repelled.

32 mins: GOAL – Arsenal 1-1 Tottenham (Harry Kane)

Kane and Ramsdale have spent plenty of time together on England duty since these sides last played but the goalkeeper doesn't appear to have any inside info on how his Three Lions skipper might take this penalty, diving to his right as the ball hits the net near enough down the centre.

That's 100 Premier League away goals for Kane – and we're about to be inundated with stats, no doubt, about his formidable record in this fixture.

29 mins: Arsenal 1-0 Tottenham

Penalty to Spurs! It's not a contentious call as Gabriel brings Richarlison down inside the penalty area on Tottenham's right.

Harry Kane steps up...

28 mins: Arsenal 1-0 Tottenham

Spurs finally break up these Arsenal attacks, playing the ball from right to left inside the opposition half. Perisic is in plenty of space outside the penalty area, advancing before cracking his shot well wide – to cheers from the home fans.

27 mins: Arsenal 1-0 Tottenham

Martinelli and Jesus play a sharp one-two inside the penalty area on the left. Royal pinches the ball from Jesus's foot just before he tries to pull the trigger.

23 mins: Arsenal 1-0 Tottenham

There were 22 Arsenal passes before that superb opening goal by Partey. Slick.

22 mins: Arsenal 1-0 Tottenham

It was notable that Xhaka gathered the Arsenal players in a Steven Gerrard-style huddle immediately after the goal.

Perhaps a little cringeworthy, but also understandable given the need for the hosts not to get carried away with the dominant start they've made.

21 mins: Arsenal 1-0 Tottenham

That was one hell of a strike by Partey – some goal to start the Premier League weekend!

Saka teased Son and Perisic on the edge of the Spurs penalty area on the right, then cut the ball back to Ben White in a more central position.

The defender fed Thomas Partey further away from goal, who curled in a glorious first-time strike that dipped too quickly for Lloris to have had much chance of keeping it out at his near post!

20 mins: GOAL – Arsenal 1-0 Tottenham (Thomas Partey)

Arsenal lead with a wonderful strike from Partey! Arteta rushes towards his staff to exuberantly celebrate!

17 mins: Arsenal 0-0 Tottenham

Fifty-two percent of play has taken place in Tottenham's defensive third. Arsenal are dominating here – it'll have to be a smash-and-grab for Spurs if this continues, which they've shown they're capable of with that Richarlison attempt.

15 mins: Arsenal 0-0 Tottenham

Granit Xhaka was excellent in Switzerland's win at home to the Czech Republic on Tuesday. He canters forward here, approaches the penalty area and drills a low diagonal shot just wide of Lloris's left-hand post.

14 mins: Arsenal 0-0 Tottenham

Ben White advances, receives a low pass from Partey outside the penalty area on the right and lashes a shot comfortably over the target. He'll feel he should have hit the target.

14 mins: Arsenal 0-0 Tottenham

The returning Odegaard takes aim from well outside the penalty area, sending a low shot into the arms of Lloris.

13 mins: Arsenal 0-0 Tottenham

Ramsdale denies Richarlison! Son swings the free-kick into the penalty area, where Kane applies a touch to send the ball into the feet of the Brazil livewire, who stabs a shot towards the far post.

Arsenal's goalkeeper is down quickly to paw the danger away. Best chance to Tottenham, so far!

12 mins: Arsenal 0-0 Tottenham

Kane wins a free-kick almost midway inside Arsenal territory on Tottenham's right. Could this be the first chance Spurs create?

10 mins: Arsenal 0-0 Tottenham

Martinelli is full of pace and trickery as he sets off on a lightning run down the left, evading Royal and trying to flick the ball between his marker and the backtracking Richarlison.

The Brazilian concedes a free-kick for over-earnestness in the end but that was an enjoyable piece of old-fashioned wing wizardry.

8 mins: Arsenal 0-0 Tottenham

Tottenham's quiet start won't discourage them against opponents who've gone eight Premier League matches without a clean sheet here.

Conte, as you'd probably expect, is already off his feet and beyond the confines of his technical area to offer instructions.

6 mins: Arsenal 0-0 Tottenham

Dier goes down after a challenge with Jesus. There didn't appear to be much in that.

5 mins: Arsenal 0-0 Tottenham

Spurs haven't come anywhere near enhancing this stat – yet.

4 mins: Arsenal 0-0 Tottenham

Arsenal look much more intense than Spurs during these opening stages. Saka finds Xhaka at the far post with a cross from the right, who can only flick out a leg and divert the ball behind.

Plenty for Lloris to be worried about within the opening five minutes. Can Arsenal keep up this pace?

3 mins: Arsenal 0-0 Tottenham

Saka scampers down the right and evades Perisic with a cross towards the far post, where Richarlison can't stop Martinelli from firing a half-volley towards goal.

There's a bit of confusion as to whether the effort comes off the post, is parried behind by Lloris or a combination of both. A corner is awarded, from which Martinelli wastes a cross, blazing it behind.

2 mins: Arsenal 0-0 Tottenham

Xhaka flicks the throw-in back towards the centre of the penalty area from the near post. Tottenham send the danger behind. Lloris punches the ensuing corner away. An encouraging start from Arsenal!

1 min: Arsenal 0-0 Tottenham

Tottenham, attacking from right to left, start us off, attempting an attack down the left in the opening minute. Then Arsenal win possession back and set off through the middle with Jesus and Odegaard, winning a throw-in in a useful position on the left.

3 mins from kickoff: The teams have emerged from the tunnel! Influential Arsenal mascot Gunnersaurus was to their left as they strode out.

5 mins from kickoff: Cesc Fabregas is - to some - royalty in this rivalry, and the former Arsenal midfielder has been standing on the pitch sharing his reflections.

"It's difficult," he tells BT Sport of preparing for the game. "You know exactly what is coming. You don't need any special team talk.

"I was just driving around the streets and you miss the feeling of these kinds of games. We play football for days like this. You don't feel the adrenaline like you do on days like today very often."

15 mins from kickoff: Spurs manager Antonio Conte has had a chat. "This is an important north London derby for the present, the future, for us and for Arsenal," he tells BT Sport.

"I pick the formation that is the best to start this run of 13 games [before the World Cup] – we have to play in the Champions League in three days."

Conte says Kulusevski has a muscle problem and needs an MRI scan. "We have to try to recover Ben Davies," he adds.

"Lucas Moura is out and I'm really worried about his situation because he's not recovering. Richarlison had a good time with the national team and he's in good form so it's right for him to start."

30 mins from kickoff: Arsenal are warming up in their eye-catching training tops - surely beloved of Magic Eye fans - in front of an Emirates Stadium that is gradually filling.

Want more stats ahead of kick-off? Check out this thread from Sporting News Football Club. And make sure you give us a follow – your perfect companion for the Premier League and beyond.

45 mins from kickoff: For Arsenal, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Martin Odegaard are in for Kieran Tierney and Fabio Vieira.

Perhaps a little harsh on Vieira after his spectacular strike at Brentford last time out, although captain Odegaard was never going to be left out when fit. Tierney's early departure from Scotland's match against Ireland with suspected concussion has likely given Arteta extra reason to restore Zinchenko - so impressive in his early appearances for the club before suffering an injury - from the start.

60 mins from kickoff: Tottenham have arrived! The visitors make three changes today: Son, Romero and Royal replacing Kulusevski, Sessegnon and Sanchez. The Sweden playmaker's absence through injury could prove a significant setback for Spurs but the combination of Son and Richarlison, both of whom scored on international duty during the week, should make for entertaining viewing.

One added incentive for Spurs is the the opportunity to go 14 Premier League games unbeaten for the third time in their history if they avoid defeat today, having previously set and equalled their record during the 2014-15 and 2017-18 seasons.

75 mins from kickoff: Team news is imminent here. In the meantime, here's Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta's insights from his pre-match press conference on the signing of top scorer Jesus, who has a record of one goal, four wins and four defeats in 10 meetings with Tottenham.

90 mins from kickoff: The permutations, then: Tottenham will go top of the pile if they improve on their dismal record at Arsenal by winning.

Arsenal will move four points clear of Spurs and Manchester City with victory. A draw would send them two above City and retain their one-point lead over Tottenham, whose six-goal inferiority to the reigning champions means they would be equal on points but remain third.

115 mins from kickoff: The record of the away teams in this fixture is as terrible as the form of Harry Kane and Son Heung-min is brilliant.

One of the last 23 top-flight meetings has been won by the visitors, when Arsenal prevailed 1-0 at White Hart Lane in March 2014.

Arsenal must loathe Kane, who's scored 13 times in 17 games against Arsenal. Son has four in his last five Premier League matches against these opponents.

120 mins from kickoff: Hello and welcome to our coverage of the first north London derby of the season. From the identity of the prime minister to the UK's perception as a financial embarrassment across the world, much has changed since Arsenal last played at home. One constant will always remain, though: the animosity and intensity between Gunners fans and their arch-rivals, Tottenham.

Arsenal are top of the table. Spurs are unbeaten. Does something have to give, or would both sides be happy with a point that would allow Manchester City to go top when they host Manchester United on Sunday? We'll find out in around two hours' time.

Arsenal vs. Tottenham predicted lineups

As usual after an international break, both managers have fresh injury concerns. Defenders Kieran Tierney (concussion) and midfielder Thomas Partey (knee) are minor doubts after sustaining problems while playing for their countries but full-back Oleksandr Zinchenko and captain Martin Odegaard are expected to return.

Defender Cedric Soares is said to be out for at least a week with a knock picked up during a training session, while midfielders Mohamed Elneny and Reiss Nelson are both out with thigh problems.

Arsenal announced on Thursday that midfielder Emile Smith Rowe has had surgery on a groin issue and will not return until December.

Arsenal lineup (4-2-3-1): Ramsdale (GK) — White, Saliba, Gabriel, Zinchenko — Partey, Xhaka — Saka, Odegaard, Martinelli — Jesus

Attacker Lucas Moura missed Tottenham's 6-2 win at home to Leicester with a calf injury and it is unclear whether the Brazilian will return this weekend.

Argentina defender Cristian Romero and Colombia centre-back Davinson Sanchez are unlikely to both be ready to play 90 minutes after each featuring for their countries in South America on Wednesday night.

Captain Hugo Lloris pulled out of international dutry with France because of a thigh injury and defender Ben Davies was absent for Wales with a hairline fracture of a bone under his knee. Both are still thought to be in contention to play.

Spurs manager Antonio Conte has a decision to make over forward Son Heung-min, who scored a 14-minute hat-trick after coming off the bench against Leicester.

Son's record against Arsenal is only bettered by Harry Kane among current Spurs players and the South Korea talisman scored the only goal of the game for his country against Cameroon in Seoul on Tuesday.

He could replace Richarlison, who scored for Brazil against Tunisia at the Parc des Princes on the same night.

Tottenham lineup (3-4-2-1): Lloris (GK) — Romero, Dier, Lenglet — Perisic, Hojbjerg, Bentancur, Royal — Richarlison, Son — Kane

What time is Arsenal vs. Tottenham?

Arsenal play host to Tottenham at the Emirates Stadium in London, England. It kicks off at 12.30 p.m. BST on Saturday, October 1.

  UK USA Canada Australia
Date Saturday, October 1 Saturday, October 1 Saturday, October 1 Saturday, October 1
Time 12:30 BST 07:30 ET 07:30 ET 21:30 AET

How to watch Arsenal vs. Tottenham

  UK USA Canada Australia
TV channel BT Sport 1, Bt Sport Ultimate USA Network, Telemundo, Universo - -
Streaming BTSport.com, BT Sport app USA Network, Telemundo, Universo, fuboTV fuboTV Optus Sport

UK: The match will be shown on BT Sport 1 which is also available to stream on mobile devices.

USA: Select matches are televised on USA Network (English) and Telemundo or Universo (Spanish), and all three channels can be streamed on fuboTV. The rest of the matches are streamed on NBC platform Peacock for subscribers.

Canada: Every Premier League game streams live and on demand exclusively via fuboTV.

Australia: Fans in Australia can stream matches live and on demand on Optus Sport. 

Ben Miller

Ben Miller Photo

Ben Miller has been writing about sport for 25 years, following all levels of football as well as boxing, MMA, athletics and tennis. He’s seen five promotions, three relegations, one World Cup winner and home games in at least three different stadiums as a result of his lifelong devotion to Brighton & Hove Albion. His main aim each week is to cover at least one game or event that does not require a last-minute rewrite.