For half an hour of the north London derby, Arsenal looked like the team who have in the past found early kick-offs a bit of a struggle.
Arsene Wenger has always dismissed any suggestion that they might find the earlier starts a problem, which may have been wise given that they often play their biggest rivals in those games.
A noon start would seem to offer an excuse for sluggishness but as Tottenham started well, Arsenal seemed to be suffering from familiar problems.
They may have been startled to see Tottenham start with three central defenders, but if Chelsea were able to capitalise on Everton’s tactical shift on Saturday, they couldn’t do the same.
If Harry Kane had been sharper, Arsenal might have been behind before they finally began to play.
Once they started cutting through Spurs, they seemed more like the Arsenal side which has been scintillating this season, but they also demonstrated another problem.
Arsenal created chances but they couldn’t score. Theo Walcott drove against the post and Alex Iwobi should have done better, but Kevin Wimmer gave them the lead when he headed into his own goal.
Arsenal have scored 24 goals this season so they are entitled to say they have no problems upfront, but they may come to regret this opportunity to knock back a Spurs side that had a tough week, which could have been tougher if Wenger’s side had been ruthless.
Olivier Giroud isn’t everybody’s idea of the centre-forward a team that wants to win the title needs. With Walcott, Mesut Ozil and Iwobi behind Alexis Sanchez, who isn’t a centre forward anyway, Arsenal have the kind of interplay that seems to be essential in the modern game.
Before the midweek match against Ludogorets, Giroud hadn’t started a game for Arsenal this season, having returned to pre-season late after Euro 2016 and then picked up a toe injury.
He has scored three times this week and he got 16 Premier League goals last season so when Wenger needed a goal in the second half, he sent on Giroud with 20 minutes to go.
By then, Arsenal had demonstrated a commitment and physicality which was encouraging for their title challenge. As the second half began with Tottenham advancing as they had in the first, Arsenal showed determination. Hector Bellerin charged across the box to make one tackle. while Nacho Monreal made a crucial challenge to prevent Harry Kane scoring.
Kane had already equalised from the penalty spot, but they haven’t scored from play since Dele Alli’s late equaliser against West Brom in mid-October.
His return may help Pochettino solve Tottenham’s struggles in front of goal, a struggle which is unlikely to be aided greatly by Vincent Janssen in the short-term.
Spurs’ defence remains their greatest asset, so they were able to keep Arsenal at bay once Wimmer had given them the lead. That resolution explains why they are the only Premier League side still unbeaten, even if they haven’t won since they beat Manchester City a month ago.
Giroud might have scored if Jan Vertonghen hadn’t skimmed a header away from him, but Giroud then headed the ball straight at Hugo Lloris in the final seconds, showing that he is not the answer if Arsenal are searching for reliability.
Kane’s return might change Tottenham’s attack and so much will depend on him over the winter months. Arsenal have a collective approach which places less of a burden on any one player, but when they needed someone to be ruthless on Sunday, they had nobody they could rely on.
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