Having become the first Gunners boss to taste three straight league wins over Tottenham Hotspur since George Graham in 1989, Mikel Arteta was delighted that he was able to once again hand our supporters the north London bragging rights.
We bounced back from falling behind through Son Heung-min’s opener to get in front with two goals in four minutes courtesy of a Dominic Solanke own goal and a Leandro Trossard strike, and continued to look solid in the second half to close the gap on Liverpool at the top of the table to four points.
Mikel requested a noisy stadium to help push us towards the vital three points, and was pleased that we repaid that with the victory all in red craved.
Revealing his emotions post-match, Mikel said: “I’m extremely happy. We have the opportunity to make a lot of our supporters very happy because it’s the most special day of the season, and I think we’ve done that.
“On top of that, I think they will feel very proud about the team and about the players that we have and how privileged we are that they are representing this football club in the way that they do.
“Today was one of the best [atmospheres] that I’ve seen. That’s what we have to do consistently, I said it in the press conference, that depends on us, nobody else. There are things that we cannot control – that one for sure we can control, so let’s make the most out of it.”
The boss was also delighted that our return to winning ways after three games without one should help build our momentum as we chase down the league leaders.
While all Gooners will toast this derby victory for a while, he feels he and his players can only enjoy it for tonight before switching their focus to Aston Villa on Saturday,
“We had two big performances, getting nothing out of them, totally undeserved, but it’s football,” he added. “Then you have to play the biggest game of the season at home and when everyone starts to question and paint who has made the mistakes, the team reacts in a way that shows real determination, real desire, goes for it, plays to hurt the opposition with and without the ball from the first minute.
“We went a goal down, totally undeserved and were still able to generate so much in the game to fully deserve to win it. The performance of the team, regardless of their results, has been incredibly good and consistent, so if we continue to be like that, we’ll be in a good place by April.
“I think the momentum is now. We put in so much effort, the recovery, the way they have to bounce back immediately and play a game of this level. They have to enjoy it, they fully deserve it. Tomorrow we start with Villa and Saturday we’ll be ready again.”
The game, and ultimately the victory, was dedicated to Gabriel Jesus who suffered an ACL injury on Sunday that looks set to leave him sidelined for several months.
It is a bitter blow for a player who'd been in sparkling form, but our squad showed their support by walking out with shirts urging him to stay strong. Mikel believes that shows the unity in our dressing room right now, and is glad that their tribute ended with the result Gabby would have wanted.
“It was a great gesture from them,” Mikel added. “It tells the story about the dressing room, spirit and culture that we have created. We really love him, it’s very unfortunate because he’s been through a lot so hopefully, he’s proud at home watching the team.”
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