Arsenal showed their hardened mentality as they beat Tottenham Hotspur in the North London Derby despite missing several key players.
Mikel Arteta’s side are challenging for the Premier League title again, but could have seen this challenge fail at the first hurdle as they were dealt a triple blow.
Martin Odegaard and Mikel Merino were ruled out with injury, whilst Declan Rice was suspended after his red card against Brighton, putting Arsenal in a very difficult position for their trip to Spurs.
Some of Arsenal’s previous trips to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium have ended badly, with a 3-0 defeat in May 2022 a disastrous one as it cost them a top four spot, and that match showed the fragile nature of Arteta’s squad.
Just over two years later at the same venue, Arsenal have now shown just how far they have come under Arteta, with star defender William Saliba highlighting their maturity.
William Saliba showed improved Arsenal mentality against Tottenham
The derby was a fiery one, as several yellow cards were shown to players on both sides, and some claimed Jurrien Timber was lucky to avoid a red for a challenge on Pedro Porro.
Saliba picked up a yellow card in the first half for delaying the restart, in a similar manner to Rice’s dismissal against Brighton.
Fans were fearing the worst as Saliba picked up this early yellow card, as given the nature of the game, a second yellow was plausible, which could have cost Arsenal both the derby, as well as their trip to face Manchester City next week.
However, Saliba stood firm and saw the game out without receiving a second yellow, whilst making smart tackles and keeping a clean sheet in a superb defensive display.
William Saliba has shown Arsenal have learned lessons from Rob Holding mistake
When Arsenal were thrashed 3-0 by Spurs, Rob Holding was sent off in the first-half after engaging with Heung-Min Son and receiving two yellow cards.
Holding got sucked into the occasion and the hostile atmosphere, and lost his cool when trying to deal with Son in that environment, and this cost Arsenal dearly.
The contrast between Holding and Saliba was clearly shown as the Frenchman still oozed composure, and despite his early booking, did not create any cause for alarm in his assured display.
It is this kind of maturity that could prove to be the difference in the Premier League title race, and Arsenal’s win was a statement that they could finally go all the way.
Receive a digest of our best Arsenal content each week direct to your mailbox
