Arteta hails team's 'great energy'

LONDON - Former Arsenal captain and goalscorer Granit Xhaka said his team were the better side in the north London derby "from the first second" as they meted out their usual punishment to Tottenham Hotspur at the Emirates Stadium, with goals by him, Thomas Partey and Gabriel Jesus sealing a 3-1 win to keep them top of the Premier League on Saturday.

The Gunners have lost just one of their last 30 Premier League home clashes against their local rivals and are unbeaten in their last 12 against them at the Emirates since a 3-2 defeat in November 2010.

Xhaka told BT Sport: "We didn't have a lot of weeks to prepare because of the international break, but we saw yesterday in training that we were ready.

"From the first second I think we were the better team. After we conceded we were struggling a little bit, but in the second half we were much better and I am so happy to score... my first derby goal in England."

Harry Kane's leveller for Tottenham saw him set yet more scoring records, but his side self-destructed after half-time as their 12-year wait for a league win at the Emirates continued.

It was the England captain's 100th Premier League away goal and his seventh successful penalty against the Gunners, the joint-most any player has scored against an opponent in the competition.

Mikel Arteta's Arsenal have now won seven of their opening eight games and lead the standings by four points, with second-placed Manchester City facing Manchester United on Sunday.

Jesus told BT Sport: "It's the second time I scored in a derby. The first was for Brazil against Argentina... The way the team played from the first minute showed how we wanted to play. We deserved to win, I don't know how many chances we created."

Arteta praised the Brazilian, telling BT Sport: "It's his winning mentality, the way he trains every day, it brings confidence to the team and he has taken us to a different level."

An absorbing derby with top spot up for grabs was evenly poised after Partey's sublime 20th-minute opener was cancelled out by Kane's penalty just past the half-hour mark.

But Arsenal were gifted back the lead in the 49th minute when a dreadful mix-up between Spurs goalkeeper Hugo Lloris and defender Cristian Romero allowed Jesus the easiest of tap-ins.

Emerson Royal was then sent off for the visitors in the 62nd minute for a needless kick out at Gabriel Martinelli deep in Arsenal's half, and five minutes later Xhaka swept in Arsenal's third to leave Spurs reeling.

Tottenham boss Antonio Conte told BT Sport: "I think the first half was in the balance. We had many chances to score. We made a big mistake with the last pass because we had great space. In the second half we conceded a second goal early and we could do much better.

"With the red card, the game (went). It was a really difficult game after that. We had to change totally... I repeat that I think we made big mistakes in the last pass and with easy passes."

There was a celebratory mood around the stadium after that as Arsenal moved to 21 points.

Said Arteta: "We created great energy in the stadium and deserved to win... We can attack in different ways. We were free, courageous and brave."

Previously unbeaten Tottenham could have gone top with a win but are third with 17 points.

REUTERS