Tottenham Hotspur suffered a disappointing 1-0 defeat at the hands of rivals Arsenal in the north London derby on Sunday. Ange Postecoglou’s side were unable to outsmart the Gunners’ weakened squad and failed to score past the formidable defensive pairing of William Saliba and Gabriel.
Micky van de Ven was sometimes a little shaky when passing out the back but otherwise a major threat for Spurs’ side. His recovery pace was firmly on show against Arsenal, as was his ability inside the box. The defender made sure to get himself in the right place at the right time to snuff out Arsenal’s attack and proved to be calm when in possession. The result didn’t favor Spurs, but Van de Ven’s performance was worthy of an applause.
Dominic Solanke finally got the chance to make another appearance for his new north London side after missing the last two games with an ankle injury – yet he was unable to etch his name onto the scoresheet. It was still a promising performance from Solanke, who held the ball up well against Arsenal’s colossal defense. Solanke also came close to earning a chance in front of goal - but seemed to be caught up over whether to shoot or pass. It won’t be long before Solanke earns his first goal for Spurs.
Brennan Johnson was part of an attacking lineup who failed to create anything of note as Spurs were unable to score anything past David Raya. Johnson symbolized one of the weaker players in Spurs’ attack, failing to cause any real problems for Gunners. Jurrien Timber handled any of Johnson’s pursuits with ease and he did not utilize any space on offer him.
Cristian Romero decided defend in kamikaze style against Arsenal: fast, loose and somewhat crazy. He often lunged into challenges, rushed out of defensive line for no real reason and ran around pitch with no real aim.The Spurs defender also allowed Gabriel head Arsenal winning goal after failing completely mark his man.His hot-headed mentality reared itself on pitch – with Romero carelessness symbolizing some worst parts Tottenham defense
