Bukayo Saka was thrilled that we managed to hold on to a precious three points and claim the derby day bragging rights against Tottenham Hotspur.
Our forward got on the scoresheet in a devastating first half that saw us lead 3-0 at the break, with Bukayo’s strike coming moments after VAR overturned an equaliser for the hosts to completely tip the scales in our favour.
After the interval, Spurs battled back to pull it back to 3-2 with five minutes of normal time remaining, but we held firm to keep our Premier League title hopes on track and ensure the travelling supporters could celebrate successive away league wins over our neighbours for the first time since 1988.
Post-match, Saka said: “I’m delighted. It was worth everything we put in those last 20 minutes, we’re happy to leave here with three points.
“It was a rollercoaster, but I’m happy. I went over to the bench [after the disallowed goal] and they told me it was offside so I was pretty calm and I wasn’t really worried about the checks. After that we managed to score one and then another, we were 3-0 up and we went into half-time pretty comfortable.
“Big credit to all the defenders, they’ve been amazing all season. We’ve all seen that and they’re getting their credit, they showed that again today, they were so solid.
“When the atmosphere is against you and Spurs are piling on the pressure, they were so calm. David [Raya] as well made a mistake but he was so calm after, so credit to him. I’m so proud of the boys.”
The game was also a personal triumph for Bukayo, who bagged his 15th Premier League goal of the campaign to reach a new career high, and become the first Englishman to hit that total for us since Ian Wright in 1996/97.
He's now also the first Gunner to score home and away against Tottenham since Alexandre Lacazette in 2019/20, and that is something that delights the Hale End graduate who is now hoping our winning form stretches into the final three games as he aims to get his hands on the Premier League trophy.
“It’s nice to score home and away as an Arsenal guy, we love this fixture and to score here is nice - I’m buzzing,” he added.
“It’s a big relief, a big flow of happiness and to go over to the fans and celebrate like that it was enjoyable for sure.
“We’ve got three to go so we need to keep winning. It’s Bournemouth at home next, and we’re going to do what we can, focus on our game, win our games and see where it leaves us.”
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