How Gunners beat fierce rivals to keep title dreams alive
Premier League leaders Arsenal survived a second-half scare at Tottenham to hold on for a 3-2 north London derby victory that cemented their place at the top.
A 23-minute first-half blitz saw the Gunners race into a 3-0 lead through a Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg headed own goal, Bukayo Saka finish and Kai Havertz header.
But with Arsenal in total control, a 64th-minute howler by goalkeeper David Raya allowed Cristian Romero to pull one back.
An 87th-minute Heung-Min Son penalty then set up a nervy finish for the Gunners, who withstood Spurs' late pressure to hold on to move four points clear of Manchester City and keep their hopes alive of a first Premier League title in 20 years.
Tottenham, meanwhile, suffered a second consecutive defeat to fall seven points behind fourth-placed Aston Villa in a further blow to their hopes of Champions League qualification.
Arsenal made the short trip to the Tottenham Hotspur stadium full of confidence after the midweek thrashing of London rivals Chelsea, but amid an electric atmosphere it was Spurs who made a bright start
The Gunners, though, weathered the early pressure to take the lead in the 15th minute when Hojbjerg headed into his own net from Saka's cross.
Spurs responded well as Cristian Romero headed against the post five minutes later and then in the 22nd minute the home side thought they had levelled when Micky Van de Ven hammered home, only for the goal to be disallowed by VAR for a tight offside call.
Spurs then had two penalty claims denied in quick succession in the 27th minute as Dejan Kulusevski fell to a Leandro Trossard trip before James Maddison went down under a Declan Rice tackle.
The home side's frustrations were immediately compounded as Arsenal launched a devastating
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