The narrative in North London is slowly starting to shift. For at least the last three seasons Arsenal have been seen as soft and lacking in the ability to dig in when they need a result in tough matches. On the other side of North London, however, Spurs have been the resilient and streetwise neighbours with the ability to win close matches when their backs are against the wall.
This season though with the Spaniard Unai Emery in charge we are seeing a different side to Arsenal. It is one that they certainly lacked during the final years of the tenure of the French coach Arsene Wenger, with their willingness to work and fight in order to force a positive result. This was certainly the case here where the home side went 1-0 down in the second half before quickly fighting back and finding an equaliser. The goal itself was a clear example of what was discussed above. There was fight and tenacity but it was combined with subtle, technical brilliance as French striker Alexandre Lacazette found a way to goal.
One key change in the Arsenal midfield this season appears to have been the catalyst for this shift in mentality. This is the introduction of the Uruguayan midfielder Lucas Torreira, signed from Sampdoria in the summer. Despite his small stature, he has quickly made a significant difference to his teammates and for Arsenals regular fans. With Torreira as part of a double pivot in midfield with Granit Xhaka there is a sense that the attacking players finally have a platform from which they can perform going forwards.
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In this match we saw Arsenal continue in their 4-2-3-1 shape that we have seen Unai Emery prefer in his time at the club. German goalkeeper Bernd Leno was again preferred over Peter Cech. Indeed, Leno feels like a better fit to the proactive playing style that Emery prefers. The central defensive partnership seemed slightly makeshift with Rob Holding partnering the German international Shkodran Mustafi.
At the base of the midfield Lucas Torreira continues to hold his place as part of the double pivot with Granit Xhaka.
Ahead of the midfield duo, Pierre Emerick Aubameyang continued to play from the left side of the attack as Alexandre Lacazette keeps his pace leading the line as the lone striker.
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