Arsenal fought hard to ensure they won yet another North London Derby against their rivals Tottenham away from home.

The Gunners had to scrap their way through a difficult game, where they were without Martin Odegaard, Declan Rice and Mikel Merino in the midfield.

Despite that, Mikel Arteta set his team up to be incredibly resolute in defence, holding firm and looking to hit Spurs on the break.

Arsenal made their moments count, scoring from a corner in the second half as Gabriel Magalhaes rose highest.

Tottenham were given very little joy and as a result, the visitors managed to grind out an important three points.

While there was plenty to be happy about for the Arsenal faithful, there was also a first glimpse of Raheem Sterling.

Raheem Sterling makes Arsenal debut in North London Derby

Arsenal loanee Sterling was given his first minutes for the Gunners when he came on in the second half of the clash with Tottenham.

It marked a debut for the winger, who was the first Arsenal player to make his entrance in the North London Derby since 1997 – when Isaiah Rankin made his debut for the club in a 1-1 draw at White Hart Lane.

It was a bright cameo from Sterling, who played on the left rather than the right – as was expected to play as a backup to Bukayo Saka.

There was one moment where the winger was able to cut in from the left flank to cause some problems but was unable to get a shot off.

It’s a job for Sterling to now build up his fitness to have a true impact when moving on from his debut in the weeks ahead.

Raheem Sterling must play against Atalanta in the Champions League

The clash with Atalanta on Thursday offers a chance to give Sterling a first start for Arsenal while building some fitness.

It’s a tough week for the Gunners, with the North London Derby quickly transitioning into Champions League action and then the Premier League title clash with Manchester City.

But that’s where the depth of the squad is mightily important, with Sterling offering ideal rotation to Saka on Thursday.

It remains to be seen if Arteta will trust him with such a role, but it could be an important decision to make.

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