Kane seals north London bragging rights for Tottenham

The North London derby was expected to be an attacking affair with both sides boasting great options up front. However, the first half was arguably more cagey as a lack of clinical finishing meant that the tie went into the break goalless.

Mauricio Pochettino would have been the happier of the two managers as Son Heung-min looked dangerous on the left and the home side comfortably dominated possession by 58 per cent to 42 although chances were few and far to come by.

Harry Kane would have the perfect opportunity to give ‘Spurs’ the lead in the 26th minute, though, as he stayed on-side to leave the Arsenal defence behind and meet a cross from Christian Eriksen. However, the England international jumped too early and sent the resulting header flying over the crossbar.

The visitors’ did not have a clear-cut chance like their rivals but did pose a danger on the break. Nacho Monreal, who was making his 200th appearance for the club, found himself free in the box but couldn’t get much power behind the header as it bounced in the six-yard box before being dealt with by Hugo Lloris and Sanchez.

- Action-packed second half -

All the action would be awaiting the Wembley crowd in the second 45 minutes as it didn’t take long for one side to break the deadlock.

Kane fired Tottenham ahead in the 50th minute, rising above the Arsenal defence to comfortably head home Davies' whipped cross from the left to score his 101st goal for the London club. It was a devastating blow to the visitors who faced a resulting enslaught from their rivals.

'Spurs' deadly striker found his shooting boots and had ample opportunities to give his side a comfortable lead in the next 10 minutes. His first coming from another header but the 24-year-old directed it wide of the far post.

Soon after, he found himself free in the box again and connected with an incoming ball with his right foot to hit a powerful shot at Petr Cech. It was straight at the Arsenal goalkeeper however, who parried it away from danger.

Arsene Wenger looked to his substitute bench to stop the momentum and replaced the lacklustre Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Mohamed Elneny with Alexandre Lacazette and Alex Iwobi respectively, who would have been disappointed not to start given his performance against Everton in the previous fixture.

The two rivals exchanged chances until the final moments of the game when Arsenal looked more likely to snatch an equaliser. The two clear chances fell to their French substitute who would go on to rue his missed opportunities.

His first would come from a cross by Hector Bellerin, who was both defensively and offensively active all game, which found the striker in ample space in the box. However, Lacazette chose to try and volley the ball which preceded to fly high over the crossbar.

The second was less wasteful but summed up Arsenal's performance. The 26-year-old beat Davinson Sanchez on the right wing to run through on goal but drew his shot agonisingly wide of the far post as Hugo Lloris charged at his French compatriot - a chip would have been a far more suitable option.

Arsenal's efforts would be to no avail as they sank to a 1-0 defeat to their North London rivals in a game where it wasn't just bragging rights at stake. The loss means that Wenger's team fall off the pace for Champions League qualification, finding themselves six points behind Liverpool in fourth, who have a game in hand.

As for Pochettino and Tottenham, it is a massive three points as they move ahead of Chelsea and Liverpool into third with 52 points although their rivals are still yet to play their Premier League fixtures.