And it's Arrr-seee-naaal, Arsenal FC, we're by far, the greatest team, the world has ever seen! Repeat continuously until the next North London Derby.
Nothing feels better than a victory over Spurs. This current Arsenal team are most probably the weakest to have lined up in a NLD since the latter part of the George Graham days. Especially when compared against the best Spurs team in centuries. However, they somehow managed to put in one of the most professional displays you're likely to see all season.
This was a grown up performance from a proper mature team. This is not a phrase that's often been used to describe an Arsene Wenger team, but it perfectly encapsulates this performance. Here are aspects of the performance that got me so excited:
Played to a plan
The Arsenal tactical plan over the years has become a byword for amateurism. Sure, when you have the best players in the league you don't have to spend too much time on a game plan. But non the less, it does help to have a plan and for the players to go out and execute that plan. In this game there was clearly a plan to prevent Spurs from playing out from the back into the midfield. Maybe Arsene Wenger used the international break to get hold of some special edition Spurs DVD's in order to come up with this masterstroke.
Defensive Shape
It was pleasing to see us maintain our defensive shape on numerous occasions during the match. Watching our three at the back morphing into a five at the back when Spurs had the ball brought back memories of the Tony Adams days.
Runs between and through the lines
This is one aspect of the game am baffled we don't utilise more often. With Ozil in the team I would have expected us to make more runs in the gaps between the opposition players. During the game, Lacazette et al caused Spurs quite a few problems by finding such gaps. In fact the build up to the second goal scored by Sanchez started from such a move.
Team Performance
Virtually the whole team gets a 8/10 for their performance. They pressed as a team, closed down as a team and attacked with intelligence as a team. They even kept some players back when we had corners. The only blot to this strong team performance was Ramsey who unnecessarily lost the ball on too many occasions and in dangerous positions.
So, Arsenal have proven they can turn up on a damp, blustery day, after the clocks have gone back, against a top six side. But can they string enough of these performances to once again win the coveted top four trophy?
Next Up
Trips to Koln in the Fairs Cup on Thursday, followed by Burnley in the Premier league on Sunday.