Four Things We Learned From Arsenal’s Record-Breaking Derby Win Over Tottenham

Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Sunday — Arsenal walked away with more than local bragging rights after a 4-1 demolition of their neighbours; they registered the biggest away victory over Tottenham in Premier League history and offered Mikel Arteta’s side a timely reminder of what they can be when everything clicks. Here are the four clearest lessons from a bruising north London afternoon:

1. Viktor Gyökeres and Eberechi Eze rediscovered their shooting boots the moment they saw Spurs shirts Entering the match, Gyökeres had not managed a single shot in almost three hours of league football, while Eze’s last effort on target dated back three months. Both droughts ended emphatically: the Swede rifled home either side of the restart to claim a clinical brace, and Eze danced through a depleted midfield to score twice, taking his personal tally to five goals in four appearances against Tottenham this season. The common denominator in their sudden sharpness was a Spurs rearguard that has now shipped nine goals in two derbies this campaign.

2. Tottenham’s injury crisis is now shaping matches before a ball is kicked Interim head coach Igor Tudor admitted he was without Cristian Romero, Kevin Danso and Ben Davies, leaving Radu Drăgușin to endure a torrid 90-minute duel with Gyökeres. The Romanian was repeatedly outpaced and out-muscled, underlining how thin Spurs have become at centre-back. Further up the pitch, Yves Bissouma ran out of steam after an energetic first half, and with no senior midfielder on the bench, Tudor’s only recourse was to introduce five teenagers. Randal Kolo Muani, scorer of seven goals in 13 matches under Tudor, was surprisingly left out of the squad altogether, raising questions about squad rotation and fitness management during a rare 12-day gap between fixtures.

3. Arsenal’s vulnerability after scoring remains a hidden title hazard The Gunners have now conceded nine goals within ten minutes of finding the net this season—eight of those since the calendar flipped to 2024. Declan Rice’s costly lapse, gifting possession to Kolo Muani for Tottenham’s instant equaliser, was merely the latest example. Arteta labelled composure the non-negotiable ingredient in a title run-in, yet lapses from Rice, Martín Zubimendi, Gabriel and David Raya in recent weeks suggest the issue is systemic rather than individual. Until the pattern is corrected, opponents will continue to sense blood the moment Arsenal celebrate.

4. Belief, not ability, may decide the championship race Tudor’s post-match assessment was blunt: “They believe more… that is the key.” For 20 minutes either side of half-time, Arsenal moved the ball with speed and purpose, looking every inch a squad that still trusts its method. The comfortable finish—coasting through the final half-hour with 58 percent possession—was a luxury they have not enjoyed lately. With Manchester City now only two points behind, Sunday’s statement win buys Arteta breathing room, but the psychological test will come when adversity next strikes. If the Gunners can marry Sunday’s ruthlessness with the resilience they showed in last season’s run-in, the record books may not be done being rewritten.