Tottenham staged a thrilling comeback on two occasions to secure a hard-fought draw in the north London derby against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.
In an intense clash, Arsenal took the lead in the 26th minute when Bukayo Saka’s shot deflected off Spurs defender Cristian Romero into his own net. Arsenal’s manager, Mikel Arteta, made a bold decision by keeping David Raya in goal instead of Aaron Ramsdale, and Raya justified that decision with two excellent saves to deny Brennan Johnson as Spurs pushed for an equalizer.
However, Raya should have done better just three minutes before halftime when he could only parry a cross, allowing an attack to continue, ultimately resulting in James Maddison setting up Son Heung-min for an exquisite finish, leveling the score for Spurs.
Arsenal regained their lead in the 54th minute when Romero was penalized for handball after a VAR review, leading to Saka converting from the penalty spot. Spurs, showing their newfound positive approach under manager Ange Postecoglou in his first north London derby, responded quickly. Jorginho, who came on as a halftime substitute for the injured Declan Rice, lost possession to Maddison, who then played in Son for another composed finish.
The match ended in a draw, with Arsenal left frustrated at not securing the win. One pivotal moment came when they were leading 1-0, and Gabriel Jesus missed a golden opportunity to extend their lead by shooting wildly over the bar with only Spurs keeper Guglielmo Vicario to beat.
Despite a somewhat disjointed performance from Arsenal, they were unable to secure a late victory, even with 10 minutes of added time, settling for a point against their arch-rivals.
On the other hand, Tottenham displayed signs of progress under their new manager, Postecoglou, maintaining their positive and entertaining style of play from the beginning of the season. They faced a significant test in the post-Harry Kane era but demonstrated resilience by twice coming back from behind to earn a point.
After the final whistle, it was clear which set of supporters were happier, as manager Postecoglou showed his appreciation to the Spurs fans in a corner of the Emirates Stadium.
