1-2 v Arsenal FC - 8 November 2003 - Away

Tottenham Hotspur Badge

Spurs 1

Arsenal FC

Arsenal FC

2

  • Pirés
    69'
  • Ljungberg
    79'
Details
Match Number

6427

Opposition
Arsenal

Arsenal FC

Competition
Premier League

Premier League

Season

2003/04

Date

8th November 2003

Kick Off

15:00

Venue

Highbury

Attendance

38,101

Referee

Mark Halsey

League Position

13th

Opposition League Position

1st

Opposition Form

DWDWWW

Weather at Kick Off

8.8° - Overcast

Facts & Milestones
  • 6394th overall match (3029 wins, 1401 draws, 1951 losses)

  • 4906th competitive match (2180 wins, 1151 draws, 1575 losses)

  • team

    243rd match vs Arsenal FC (91 wins, 54 draws, 98 losses)

  • competition

    442nd Premier League match (153 wins, 119 draws, 170 losses)

  • 5891st match in England (2741 wins, 1326 draws, 1811 losses)

  • 126th match at Highbury (53 wins, 21 draws, 52 losses)

Report

Arsenal rode their luck in the north London derby to sink Spurs and extend their lead at the Premiership summit.

Spurs looked on course to end a barren 11-season barren sequence at Highbury as they deservedly led through Darren Anderton's early goal.

But after the miserable Helder Postiga squandered two gilt-edged opportunities to double the advantage for David Pleat's side, Arsenal struck back to snatch a vital victory.

Robert Pires scored a hotly-disputed equaliser, then Freddie Ljungberg hit the winner 11 minutes from time via a wicked deflection off Steven Carr.

Spurs were left shattered after a battling display, with Postiga the undisputed villain of the piece.

Arsenal gave a first Premiership start of the season to Kanu as they attempted to continue their recent supremacy over their arch-rivals.

But it was Spurs who stunned Highbury by taking the lead after only four minutes through veteran Anderton.

Postiga and Robbie Keane were involved in the build-up, and when Lauren hurried a clearance Anderton was on hand to stab the finish past Jens Lehmann.

Arsenal responded instantly, with Thierry Henry forcing a fine save as he dived full length to turn his shot around the post.

But the central figure of an often abrasive first half was Portuguese youngster Postiga, who wasted two glorious chances to score his first goal since his £6.5m summer arrival from Porto.

Postiga twice failed to take advantage of poor back passes from Lauren, first over-running the ball and then allowing Lehmann to save at his feet once again.

The first chance sparked angry scenes when Lehmann was caught - but they were two desperate moments for a striker short on confidence.

Tempers had frayed throughout the first half, with the theatrical Pires involved in several angry exchanges with Spurs players.

Keller kept Spurs ahead with another fine save from Henry, who needed lengthy treatment after being accidentally caught in the throat by Steven Carr's arm.

Spurs continued in an attacking vein after the interval, taking advantage of a ragged Arsenal performance which eventually saw Wenger introduce Dennis Bergkamp for Gilberto on the hour.

And just as Arsenal's play was descending into frustration, they equalised in controversial circumstances after 69 minutes.

Spurs appealed for offside as Henry raced through, and even though Keller saved, the ball ran loose for Pires to take the easiest of chances.

And the game was turned on its head 10 minutes later when Ljungberg's shot took a wicked deflection off Carr and looped over the helpless Keller.

Location
League Table
# Team PL W D L GF GA GD PTS
1
Arsenal
11 8 3 0 23 9 14 27
2
Chelsea
11 8 2 1 21 9 12 26
3
Manchester united
11 8 1 2 21 6 15 25
4
Birmingham city
11 5 4 2 10 7 3 19
5
Manchester city
11 5 3 3 22 12 10 18
6
Fulham
11 5 3 3 21 15 6 18
7
Charlton athletic
11 5 3 3 16 14 2 18
8
Liverpool
11 5 2 4 17 12 5 17
9
Newcastle united
11 4 4 3 16 13 3 16
10
Southampton
11 4 4 3 10 7 3 16
11
Portsmouth
11 3 3 5 11 15 -4 12
12
Tottenham Hotspur Badge Tottenham Hotspur
11 3 3 5 10 14 -4 12
13
Aston villa
11 2 5 4 9 13 -4 11
14
Middlesbrough
11 3 2 6 9 15 -6 11
15
Bolton wanderers
11 2 5 4 9 19 -10 11
16
Everton
11 2 4 5 12 15 -3 10
17
Wolverhampton wanderers
11 2 3 6 7 23 -16 9
18
Leicester city
11 2 2 7 16 21 -5 8
19
Blackburn rovers
11 2 2 7 15 21 -6 8
20
Leeds united
11 2 2 7 10 25 -15 8
# Team PL W D L GF GA GD PTS
1
Arsenal
12 9 3 0 25 10 15 30
2
Chelsea
12 9 2 1 26 9 17 29
3
Manchester united
12 9 1 2 23 7 16 28
4
Charlton athletic
12 6 3 3 19 15 4 21
5
Birmingham city
12 5 5 2 11 8 3 20
6
Manchester city
12 5 3 4 22 15 7 18
7
Fulham
12 5 3 4 22 18 4 18
8
Liverpool
12 5 2 5 18 14 4 17
9
Southampton
12 4 5 3 10 7 3 17
10
Newcastle united
12 4 4 4 16 18 -2 16
11
Portsmouth
12 4 3 5 17 16 1 15
12
Middlesbrough
12 4 2 6 11 15 -4 14
13
Tottenham Hotspur Badge Tottenham Hotspur
12 3 3 6 11 16 -5 12
14
Bolton wanderers
12 2 6 4 9 19 -10 12
15
Leicester city
12 3 2 7 19 21 -2 11
16
Aston villa
12 2 5 5 9 15 -6 11
17
Everton
11 2 4 5 12 15 -3 10
18
Wolverhampton wanderers
12 2 4 6 8 24 -16 10
19
Blackburn rovers
11 2 2 7 15 21 -6 8
20
Leeds united
12 2 2 8 11 31 -20 8
Highlights
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