Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger: 'We had urgency on our side against Tottenham'

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has praised his team's defensive attributes in this afternoon's victory over North London rivals Tottenham Hotspur.

The Gunners were slight underdogs heading into the fixture, but they managed to bring Spurs back down to earth with a 2-0 win at the Emirates.

Shkodran Mustafi scored the opening goal from a free kick, which Tottenham thought should not have been awarded because of Davinson Sanchez's apparent clean tackle on Alexis Sanchez.

The Gunners doubled their lead just before the half-time break through Sanchez, whose contract at Arsenal expires at the end of the season.

After the match, Wenger praised his players, particularly Mesut Ozil, who put in a man-of-the-match display against Spurs.

"In a derby, urgency plays a part. We had that on our side," Wenger told Sky Sports News. "We didn't lose defensive focus for 90 minutes.

"We were lucky Alexis Sanchez didn't play in the international break and Alexandre Lacazette only played one game. I'm convinced that Mesut Ozil adds physicality to his game and when he needs it he can produce it.

"He got a standing ovation because he added to the team the defensive job. He's not a specialist in that but he can do that because he's an intelligent man.

"I don't know where referee's decisions went for us. I haven't seen the offsides - the foul was a foul. I can give you plenty of games where we have had bad luck."

Arsenal have now moved to within one point of Tottenham in the Premier League table.