It was a tale of two halves in Sunday's North London derby. Arsenal looked completely in control early on, securing a commanding 3-0 lead before the break. The scoring was opened by a Hojbjerg own goal, followed by clinical finishes from Bukayo Saka and Kai Havertz, putting the Gunners in a strong position to cruise to victory.
The momentum shifted in the second half, starting in the 64th minute when David Raya's misplaced chip was intercepted by Cristian Romero, who slotted it into the bottom corner. The tension peaked in the 87th minute when a VAR review confirmed a foul by Declan Rice on Ben Davies, gifting Spurs a penalty that Son Heung-min coolly converted. Despite the late onslaught, Arsenal survived to reach 80 points. They now sit ahead of Manchester City, who beat Nottingham Forest 2-0, while Liverpool stays in third place, four points behind City with three matches remaining.
Knowing they needed a win, Arsenal started aggressively at their rivals' stadium. They took an early lead after just 15 minutes when a corner ended up in the back of the net via a Hojbjerg own goal. Tottenham pushed back immediately, with Romero hitting the woodwork following a cross from James Maddison. The home crowd briefly celebrated an equalizer when a Pedro Porro shot deflected off Micky van de Ven and went in, but the goal was eventually overturned by VAR for offside.
Just before the break, Arsenal widened the gap. A counter-attack caught Spurs off guard after Dejan Kulusevski lost his footing in the box, allowing Saka to score with composure. Kai Havertz then added a third with a clinical header from a corner, leaving the Spurs defense bewildered. It was a historic collapse for Tottenham, who hadn't been trailing 3-0 at home to Arsenal since 1959.
Looking to change the game, Ange Postecoglou brought on Pape Matar Sarr for Rodrigo Bentancur at halftime. The move seemed to spark a revival, and shortly after the hour mark, a mistake by Raya played right into the hands of Romero, who fired home to ignite the stadium.
The drama reached its climax in the 87th minute. While trying to clear the ball, Declan Rice accidentally tripped Ben Davies, leading to a VAR-awarded penalty. Son Heung-min stepped up and scored, turning the match into a frantic finish. Spurs threw everything forward, but Arsenal's defense held firm. In the end, Postecoglou was left frustrated by the same costly errors that have haunted his side throughout the campaign.