5 takeaways from Arsenal's north London derby victory

Arsenal claimed the north London derby rights in an emphatic 5-0 victory over Tottenham Hotspur at Emirates Stadium.

An early own goal from Clare Hunt wrote the script for Spurs' disastrous afternoon, before the Gunners sunk their teeth into victory with four more.

The win in N5 means that Arsenal hold their third-place spot in the Women's Super League (WSL) standings, whilst Tottenham risk falling out of sixth in weeks to come.

Here are 90min's five key takeaways from Arsenal's derby day triumph...

Gunners assert dominance just like old times

If one thing is certain, it's that Arsenal have reclaimed their north London dominance once more. Both ties in the 2023/24 season played out as cagey affairs, with the aggregate score ending as 1-1 across the two games. This season, Arsenal settled the score at 8-0.

Under Renee Slegers, the Gunners have their flair back, making the derby look like less of a derby and more of a playdate. Arsenal haven't missed a beat in either of the fixtures against their city rivals, showing just how wide the gap really is between themselves and Spurs.

Arsenal's timid playing style under Jonas Eidevall meant that the side failed to breakdown Tottenham's low block, often looking uninpsiring in the final third. But now, the team have returned to old ways, humbling Tottenham back into their box once more.

Toothless Tottenham forget to show up

If the north London derby taught us anything, it's that Tottenham are merely a ghost of the team that marched all the way to Wembley Stadium in May 2024.

The side failed to gather any sense of composure in the midfield, meaning Bethany England had to drop in and compensate far too often. Jess Naz and Hayley Raso didn't look like they wanted to run the hard yards, and Martha Thomas coughed up possession as soon as she entered the field in the 60th minute.

Making a half-hearted effort to replace Grace Clinton has cost this Spurs team, and they are still mourning the loss of her all these months later. Clinton was the attacking glue, providing Tottenham with individual brilliance in order to mask what was still a very turbulent season despite the FA Cup run.

Still sixth and fighting, this team will need an injection of energy in order to round off their season with any positives.

Mariona Caldentey is a ceiling raiser

Signing in the summer from footballing giants Barcelona, Mariona Caldentey has raised the levels of this Arsenal team. Her ability to float into spaces and work her way around defenders with such ease is a marvel to watch, and she just keeps getting better.

Neville was spinning in circles trying to catch her as she tore up the N5 turf with defined experience. Alessia Russo may have been named player of the match, but Caldentey touched every blade of grass across the full 90 minutes.

Her goal summed up the elite showing from the Spanish attacker, following up her blocked shot with a curling touch into the bottom right corner. Executed with such ease, she made scoring past five defenders look like a tap in.

Arsenal head coach Renee Slegers summed it up perfectly in her post match press conference, saying "she is everything that football is".

Chloe Kelly returns home

If you were a Highbury resident walking your dog in the nearby area as the 60th minute ticked over, you would only assume that Arsenal had scored the winning goal in a stoppage time thriller. Nope, the Emirates Stadium eruption was caused by Chloe Kelly's entrance onto the field wearing an Arsenal shirt.

After departing the club nearly seven years ago, Kelly took the field once more wearing the cannon over her heart. Smiling from eye to ear, the forward soaked up every last drop of energy that was being given to her by the Gunners faithful.

Not only was it a nice moment, but Kelly made an impact. In just 30 minutes, Kelly created more valuable chances (4) than any player on the pitch, other than Katie McCabe. She carried possession with strength, and commanded the area like she has been at Arsenal for months.

The fairytale almost wrote itself the perfect ending with the last kick of the game as Kelly beat Ella Morris for pace before rattling the crossbar within close range. Fans will have to wait just a little longer to see the forward write her name on the scoresheet for the Gunners.

Build it and they will come

When it comes to growing the women's game, no one in England is doing it like Arsenal. 56,784 fans flooded through the turnstiles in north London, marking the WSL's biggest crowd of the 2024/25 season so far.

The club have been hard at work promoting the fixture for months, proving that if you build it, they will come. At a time where keyboard warriors and talk show hosts are claiming that no one is bothered about the women's game, the sport is proving them wrong.

Making the permanent move to Emirates Stadium was the first step, but filling the seats was the second. Arsenal have shown that the migration into the main stadium wasn't just a token gesture, but a statement of intent to prove just how big the women's team can be.

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