Mikel Arteta joins THIS epic club where Arsene Wenger missed out on Tottenham’s win in Premier League
It was a frantic day in the Premier League title race after both Arsenal and Manchester City registered wins to keep pace at the top while Liverpool’s hopes are all but done. On Sunday marked by the North London Derby at rivals Tottenham Hotspurs’ territory, the Gunners continued their impressive form with a 3-2 win. The result had a significant meaning on Mikel Arteta as he overshadowed Arsene Wenger in an impressive tally to keep the Gunners in the race for the title.
Arteta joins the unique club
In a match that had all, Arsenal emerged victorious after a topsy-turvy affair with a score of 3-2. This meant that Arteta became the first manager since the 1988-89 season to win back-to-back North London Derbies on away territory. During Wenger’s 22-year stint as Arsenal manager between 1996 and 2018, Arsenal never won back-to-back matches on the opposition territory. However, that run was brought to an end on Sunday (April 28) as they won a significant match to keep their title dreams alive.
The scoring was opened by an own goal from Pierre-Emile Højbjerg in the first half with Bukayo Saka then doubling Arsenal’s lead controversially. The lead was then tripled by Havertz before the break after he scored from a corner in the 38th minute. The second half saw Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya make a sloppy mistake to hand Spurs a lifeline after his mistake allowed Christian Romero to score Spurs’ first while Son converted a late penalty to make it 3-2.
Arsenal top of Premier League standings
However, there was no way back for Spurs as they failed to find the equaliser with Mikel Arteta’s sides holding firm for the three points. With the win, the Gunners go on 80 points from 35 matches while champions Manchester City are now on 79 points from 34 matches. Interestingly, Arsenal will face City’s bitter rivals Manchester United in the penultimate weekend while City face Arsenal’s arch-rivals Spurs in 48 hours during the final match week.
Arsenal next face Bournemouth on Saturday in an early kickoff who are already preparing for the next season having ensured safety with a record points tally. Arteta’s side then travels to Manchester United before facing Everton on the concluding day of the Premier League season. The Man Utd match will be the only significant match where Arsenal could fumble and suffer a blow in the title challenge.
ALSO READ