North London Demolition: How Arsenal dominated and devastated Tottenham

Tottenham Hotspur hosted Arsenal in an important north London derby in the FA Women’s Super League. This is the second straight year that the Spurs have hosted Arsenal at their new ground, but there were no supporters in attendance, unlike last season. Arsenal came into this match looking to continue their 100% record against their north London rival, including a 2-0 victory in this fixture a year earlier.

Arsenal continue to pursue Manchester United and was boosted by a clinical 2-0 victory that kept them three points behind the Red Devils in the FAWSL’s final European slot. Earlier in the day, Manchester United had secured a rather easy 2-0 victory over a poor West Ham United side, which meant that Arsenal needed a victory against the Spurs to keep pace.

Tottenham came into this match in eighth place, five points above the relegation zone, after replacing Karen Hills and Juan Carlos Amoros in November 2020 with Rehanne Skinner. However, after replacing the pair that moved Spurs up the divisions, Skinner and Spurs have endured a horrible run of form, without a victory in their last six matches. Their last victory came on 17 January 2021- a 1-0 victory away to West Ham United.

Lineups

Skinner changed her formation from the 4-2-3-1 that drew 1-1 to Bristol City the previous weekend. Her side lined up in a more compact 4-4-2, with Kit Graham and Rianna Dean leading the line for the home side. Two changes were made in midfield, with Josie Green and Gemma Davison getting the start in the derby, while Angela Addison started the match on the bench and Ria Percival missed the match.

Joseph Montemurro stuck with the 4-3-3 that was successful a week earlier against Manchester United. Only one change was made, with Jordan Nobbs starting on the right-wing in place of Beth Mead, who missed this match through suspension after picking up two yellow cards against Manchester United.

Keys to the match

This tactical analysis will show how Arsenal was able to control the game from the beginning, forcing Tottenham to defend in a deep block. This analysis will also show how Arsenal focused their attack on Tottenham’s fullbacks, consistently able to attack into the space behind them. Finally, this analysis will look at the gaps that opened in Tottenham’s defence.

Tottenham defend deep but press their luck

Arsenal controlled this match from the beginning, as Tottenham had problems escaping their end of the pitch. Arsenal pressed very effectively, making it difficult for the home side to progress the ball up the pitch. Even with the problems, Spurs resisted the urge to play the ball long and instead continued to try and build play from the back. The result of this stubborn play was Arsenal consistently recovering the ball high up the pitch.