Mikel Arteta Hails ‘Unbelievable’ Arsenal Defence In North London Derby Win

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta praised the mental strength of his team after they overcame the loss of two key players to claim a third consecutive league win at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Without the suspended Declan Rice and the injured Martin Odegaard, as well as missing Riccardo Calafiori and Oleksander Zinchenko, both with calf problems, Arsenal won 1-0 thanks to thanks to Gabriel Magalhaes’ second-half header.

“After the international break, we had a few blows,” said Arteta. “How the team reacted was magnificent. It showed a lot of maturity from the team.

“The resilience we showed. We knew it was going to be a really tough match, a great atmosphere but we knew we had a big threat on set-plays.”

Arteta expressed his frustration with how Arsenal played as their possession dropped to 36.3 per cent, but saved his praise for his defence.

“We weren’t the best on the ball today but the way we defended was top-drawer,” he said. “When they get into the final third, it’s very difficult because they have a structure. We were missing vital players and we had to react to that. I’m very pleased.

“We had to adjust and use different players and qualities. I was hoping they would do something with the ball and we did it. Sometimes better than others. They are a really good side.

“When we have to defend in deeper areas, we did it really well. There are things to improve but we have another victory here and it’s huge. I know how our supporters will feel about this so enjoy it.”

‘We are a total team’
Jorginho, who captained Arsenal in the absence of the injured Odegaard, also praised the commitment of the whole team.

“We had to work really hard as you saw, we knew it was going to be a difficult game,” he told Sky Sports. “On these days you have to work hard and we know we can count on each other as team-mates.

“At the end it paid off and we are so happy that we won. We had key players missing but we are a total team, the whole squad. We know that whoever comes on will be ready to help the team. We are really proud of the team.”

Spurs rue missed chances
Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou rued a loss of focus for the only goal and missed chances for his team.

“I thought it was a tight game all the way along,” he told BBC’s Match of the Day. “We controlled it for the most part and got off to a good start. We didn’t capitalise on the opportunities and we were unable to get on top of them.

“We lost concentration [for the goal]. We’ve got some big guys in there who really attack the ball and we just switched off for a second.

“I think I’ve said my piece. For the most part we controlled the game today, had good territory and possession but we didn’t make the most of it and we got punished.”

‘Spurs did not do anything special’
Premier League Hall of Famer Alan Shearer felt that Spurs did not do enough to earn an equaliser and a point.

“When you go one-nil down against this Arsenal team you have to do something very special to get back,” he said. “They’ve got the best back four in the Premier League.

“Tottenham ended up lumping balls into the box which they love – it’s meat and drink.”