Harry Kane scored from the penalty spot on his return from injury as Tottenham came from behind and earned a 1-1 draw with Arsenal in the north London derby at the Emirates. Kevin Wimmer scored an own goal late in the first half to give the hosts the lead, but Kane levelled the scores soon after the break and Spurs remain just three points behind their arch-rivals, despite drawing their last four league fixtures.
Positives
Some feared the worst after Wednesday's dismal defeat to Bayer Leverkusen, and their concerns looked justified when Arsenal took a 1-0 lead into the interval. But Spurs showed character to fight back and seize a point, maintaining their unbeaten record in the Premier League -- and Kane is already back among the goals.
Negatives
While Tottenham were much-improved after their midweek outing at Wembley, they still needed a penalty to find the net and have now failed to score from open play in their last six games.
Manager rating out of 10
8 -- Mauricio Pochettino needed to do something to haul Spurs out of their malaise and he bravely changed his system, surprising Wenger by using three centre-backs and deploying Danny Rose and Kyle Walker as wing-backs. Arsenal went into the derby in fine form but it took them half an hour to adjust to Spurs' tactics.
Player ratings (1-10; 10 = best. Players introduced after 70 minutes get no rating)
GK Hugo Lloris, 7 -- Had little chance with the goal but made an important save in the final 20 minutes, diving at Mesut Ozil's feet.
DF Kyle Walker, 6 -- Seemed to be struggling with a knock or niggle throughout and he eventually came off 10 minutes from time. Arsenal got some joy down his flank in the last 15 minutes of the first half but he was solid enough.
DF Eric Dier, 7 -- Recovered from a nervy showing against Leverkusen, putting in a robust display on the right side of Spurs' back three.
DF Kevin Wimmer, 6 -- Made his first Premier League appearance of the season and picked up a silly booking early on before scoring an own goal. But he can justifiably argue it should have been disallowed because he was running back to catch two opponents who were offside, and otherwise he had a decent game.
DF Jan Vertonghen, 8 -- Took responsibility time and again in the rearguard, repelling a number of attacks, and he used the ball well too, keeping a calm head and threading passes forward into midfield to get his side onto the front foot.
DF Danny Rose, 8 -- Defended well, notably when he stopped both Theo Walcott and Hector Bellerin from getting outside him and then immediately won two successive tackles. The left-back also caused problems going forward and put in a good low cross to Kane.
MF Victor Wanyama, 7 -- Spurs had a different system but the Kenyan gave the core of the team a familiarly solid, dependable look, and an Arsenal side that had scored seven times in their previous two games only really had one period of dominance, in the 15 minutes before half-time.
MF Mousa Dembele, 8 -- The Belgian has had a stop-start season so far due to suspension and injuries but he showed why he is such an important figure at the Emirates. His purposeful run into the Arsenal box won a penalty out of nowhere, and it changed the game.
MF Christian Eriksen, 7 -- The Dane has been very quiet recently but he was more lively in the derby, setting up a chance for Kane in the first half with a cross and then drawing a low save from Petr Cech before hitting the post with an awkward, inswinging free kick.
MF Son Heung-Min, 6 -- Made a good early run down the left flank but struggled to provide a consistent threat and faded. It looked like he bottled a challenge with Petr Cech, jumping over the ball when he could perhaps have dispossessed the goalkeeper and had a clear run at an open goal. Welcome back.
FW Harry Kane, 7 -- The striker was understandably not at his sharpest and he got in Rose's way in the first half, virtually tackling his teammate, but he went close on two occasions either side of his goal, heading just wide from Eriksen's cross and then being denied by a challenge from Nacho Monreal as he tried to finish Rose's cross at the back post. His penalty was confidently taken too.
Substitutes
FW Vincent Janssen, N/A -- Replaced the tiring Kane and looked low on confidence.
DF Kieran Trippier, N/A -- Came on for Walker with 10 minutes left and put in a disappointing cross which hit the first man.
MF Harry Winks, N/A -- Got a brief taste of the derby action after replacing Son in the final minutes.