Why Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka was subbed at half-time vs Tottenham

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Why Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka was subbed at half-time vs Tottenham

Arsenal edge past Tottenham

The latest North London derby played out a short time ago at the Emirates.

The tie started fairly slowly, with not too much action during the opening exchanges.

However, things began to spring into life around the 20-minute mark.

Tottenham were dealt a big blow 19 minutes in, as Heung-min Son was forced off with what appeared to be a hamstring injury.

It was not all doom and gloom for the Lilywhites, though. Erik Lamela, who replaced the injured Son, fired the away outfit into the lead after 33 minutes with a goal-of-the-season contender, which also happened to be Spurs’ first shot on target:

Tottenham’s lead didn’t last too long, though, as Martin Odegaard deservedly drew Arsenal level right on the stroke of half-time.

The Gunners were then able to take the lead thanks to some extremely clumsy defending on the part of Davinson Sanchez.

The Colombian clattered into Alexandre Lacazette inside the Spurs box, after the Frenchman mishit his shot.

A penalty was then awarded after a brief VAR check, which Lacazette stepped up to convert.

Tottenham’s afternoon then went from bad to worse when Lamela was sent off 75 minutes in, after being shown a second yellow card. And though Mourinho’s men sprang into life somewhat following the dismissal, Arsenal were, thanks to some superb defending from Gabriel, able to hold out for a 2-1 win.

Why Saka was taken off vs Tottenham

On an otherwise positive evening for Arsenal, though, they do appear to have been dealt one big blow on the personnel front.

Bukayo Saka was brought off at half-time vs Spurs, which seemed strange at the time, considering the 19-year-old’s key role in Arsenal’s success over recent months.

But, speaking post-match, Mikel Arteta provided an explanation for Saka’s withdrawal, confirming that the youngster picked up a hamstring issue:

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This article was edited by Conor Laird.

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Premier League table

# Team MP D P
1 Manchester City FC 30 43 71
2 Leicester City FC 29 21 56
3 Manchester United FC 28 23 54
4 Chelsea FC 29 19 51
5 West Ham United FC 27 11 48
6 Everton FC 28 3 46
7 Tottenham Hotspur FC 27 18 45
8 Liverpool FC 28 11 43
9 Aston Villa FC 27 11 41
10 Arsenal FC 27 7 38
11 Crystal Palace FC 29 -16 37
12 Leeds United 28 -3 36
13 Wolverhampton Wanderers FC 28 -9 35
14 Southampton FC 29 -15 33
15 Burnley FC 29 -15 33
16 Brighton & Hove Albion FC 28 -7 29
17 Newcastle United FC 28 -17 28
18 Fulham FC 29 -14 26
19 West Bromwich Albion 29 -37 18
20 Sheffield United FC 29 -34 14
Player Team Goals
Salah, Mohamed Liverpool FC 17
Kane, Harry Tottenham Hotspur FC 16
Fernandes, Bruno Manchester United FC 16
Calvert-Lewin, Dominic Everton FC 14
Son, Heung Min Tottenham Hotspur FC 13
Bamford, Patrick Leeds United 13
Vardy, Jamie Leicester City FC 12
Gundogan, Ilkay Manchester City FC 12
Wilson, Callum Newcastle United FC 10
Watkins, Ollie Aston Villa FC 10
Lacazette, Alexandre Arsenal FC 10
Rashford, Marcus Manchester United FC 9
Sterling, Raheem Manchester City FC 9
Mahrez, Riyad Manchester City FC 9
Barnes, Harvey Leicester City FC 9
Zaha, Wilfried Crystal Palace FC 9
Aubameyang, Pierre-Emerick Arsenal FC 9
Maddison, James Leicester City FC 8
Ings, Danny Southampton FC 8
Soucek, Tomas West Ham United FC 8

Source: 101greatgoals.com