Emmanuel Petit has hailed Thomas Partey’s ‘unbelievable’ goal during Arsenal’s 3-1 win over 10-man Tottenham in the north London derby on Saturday, as he told Premier League Productions (01/10/22 at 1:25 pm).
Arsenal’s defensive brain in the middle of the park opened the scoring with a brilliant first-time finish from the edge of the box after just 20 minutes.
The 29-year-old wasn’t the first name fans would have backed to open the scoring, but they would take everything that comes their way.
Harry Kane did level the scores via the penalty spot later in the first half, but that was the only bright spark for Antonio Conte’s men.
The likes of Partey continued to dominate proceedings in midfield and, in the end, they deserved all three points, as well as the bragging rights.
Arsenal legend Petit mastered that midfield role during his days at Highbury, as he praised Partey’s ‘quality’ goal, but made it clear that it’s ‘impossible’ for Spurs to allow him so much space to shoot.
“It’s unbelievable,” said Petit. “You can’t leave freedom, especially at the front of your defence.
“They have quality players and enough quality players to score goals from long-range. It’s impossible to let him do that.”
ARSENAL SITTING TOP OF THE TREE
Prior to the north London derby, Arsenal were sitting top of the league, playing great football, scoring for fun and showcasing solidity in defence.
But the one stick critics were hitting Mikel Arteta’s side with was the type of teams they have beaten.
Many felt that they have picked up wins against teams they should win against, and when they were tested, against Manchester United, they fell short.
Well, many critics can put that stick away for now because they have just ended Tottenham’s unbeaten start to the league and sent out a statement of intent.
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