Football: Arsenal stay top with 3-1 derby win as Tottenham self-destruct

LONDON - Arsenal meted out their usual punishment to north London rivals Tottenham Hotspur at the Emirates Stadium with goals by Thomas Partey, Gabriel Jesus and Granit Xhaka sealing a 3-1 win to keep them top of the Premier League on Saturday.

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 in the derby continued.

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.

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 - making the England captain the first player to score 100 away goals in the Premier League.

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.

Royal was then red-carded 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 Tottenham reeling.

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

Previously unbeaten Tottenham have now managed only one victory in their last 30 league visits to Arsenal. They remain third with 17 points.

Arteta hailed his players' energy after the game, saying: “They were phenomenal. We went from it and we created great energy in the stadium and deserved to win the game.

“We were free, courageous and brave. This is what we demand from the players.”

Spurs manager Antonio Conte felt that Royal's red card "killed the game".

“Not because we had 10 men," he said. "But because the team we had was really offensive and in that four or five minutes it took to make the substitutions the team was really offensive, it was difficult to defend and we conceded the (third) goal.” REUTERS