14 things we learnt as Harry Kane beat Arsenal in the north London derby

07 February 2015 15:16

It was the Harry Kane show at White Hart Lane as he fired Tottenham to a 2-1 win over Arsenal in the Premier League.

Here’s what we learnt from watching the north London derby…

1. All Arsenal line-ups feel a bit like reserve teams at the moment

Hector Bellerin playing for Arsenal against Tottenham
(Alastair Grant/AP)

Partly because Alexis Sanchez isn’t in it, and partly because the likes of David Ospina, Francis Coquelin and Hector Bellerin – who you’re more used to seeing on the bench – are, the team feels like it ought to be turning out in the Capital One Cup.

2. Michael Owen’s been working on his vocab

3. People love talking about Harry Kane

BT Sport devoted much of their build-up to talking about the young Tottenham striker, and he almost showed why when he brought a fingertip save out of Osipna in the opening moments.

Arsenal, Tottenham or neutral – fans seem to love talking about him..

4. Olivier Giroud’s shots are better passes than his passes

Mesut Ozil celebrates scoring for Arsenal against Tottenham
(Alastair Grant/AP)

Mesut Ozil’s opener for Arsenal came from what appeared to be a wayward shot from Olivier Giroud, which turned into a perfect cross.

5. Defending seems to be optional for full-backs

There were long periods when Danny Rose was Tottenham’s most dangerous player. But he was also one of Arsenal’s most dangerous players. And Bellerin looked a little out of his depth…

6. Aaron Lennon is gone but not forgotten

7. Moussa Dembele may just be the single most frustrating player in the world

8. The new Arsenal style needs some tweaking

Remember that Manchester City game, when they gave up possession and came out 2-0 winners? It was kind of like that. Not as successful, obviously – partly because Santi Cazorla didn’t run things like he did on that occasion – but similar.

9. Ryan Mason is either very good or very bad

Tottenham's Ryan Mason tackles Danny Welbeck of Arsenal
(Adam Davy/EMPICS)

The midfielder was absolutely everywhere – particularly in the first half. What he did when he got there sort of depended on your point of view.

10. Yeah, Kane? He’s pretty good

Tottenham's Harry Kane celebrates scoring against Arsenal
(Alastair Grant/AP)

Inevitably it was Kane who got the equaliser, ghosting in at the back post to fire home after a corner.

11. But he used to play for Arsenal

If you didn’t know that before today, you certainly do now.

12. And he’s not perfect…

13. Well, okay – he’s almost perfect

14. Piers Morgan only has himself to blame

Are you sure about that, Piers?

Source: SNAPPA