Unai Emery settled briefly into his touchline seat before kick-off, crossed himself and mumbled a quiet prayer. Perhaps he had an inkling of what lay ahead; knew this would be a derby of the runaway train variety. Perhaps he was surprised to find no seatbelt.
Six goals, two penalties, seven yellow cards, one red, careering emotions, an almighty skirmish and enough incident to keep the Football Association's disciplinary department busy for the next day or two.
No-one dared predict quite where the breathless ride was going to end until Lucas Torreira gave Arsenal the luxury of a two-goal lead with 13 minutes remaining.
The result at the Emirates on Sunday saw new Arsenal manager Unai Emery taste victory on his north London derby debut
It was the first time the Uruguayan midfielder has scored for Arsenal since joining them in the summer transfer window
Torreira ripped off his shirt, slid on his knees and celebrated his first goal for the club with a triumphant roar, an image which will live long in the hearts of the home fans.
After dominating in this neighbourhood for so long, those in red-and-white have been concerned by Tottenham's stylish rise under Mauricio Pochettino.
Here, then, was a day to savour and fuel optimism under Emery as they clambered above Spurs on goal difference. They are unbeaten in 19 games and the confidence tanks are full ahead of Wednesday's trip to Manchester United.
They did not want to go home at the end and the Emirates Stadium, easily ridiculed for its reverential mood and empty seats, pulsated to the sound of victory.
'We are happy, we enjoy it but it is short, it will be difficult in Manchester,' said Emery, ever cautious, a manager who deserves great credit.
Not only for his refusal to indulge Mesut Ozil but also to think on his feet and make the strategic in-game changes which saved his team when he saw them wobbling.
Arsenal made a fast start and for half an hour looked too fresh for Spurs. First to the ball in midfield, they zipped their passes at pace and dragged the visitors out of shape.
Wing-backs flew forward with purpose, Granit Xhaka orchestrated play from the centre of the pitch and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang appeared capable of finding the net whenever the ball came close.
They deserved the early lead, from a penalty given against Jan Vertonghen who, having lost track of Shkodran Mustafi while defending at a free-kick threw up an arm and touched the ball away from his head with a hand.
Referee Mike Dean made the right call and Aubameyang stepped up to send goalkeeper Hugo Lloris the wrong way and score.
Chances to consolidate this lead were squandered by Arsenal. Lloris saved from Aubameyang and Alex Iwobi but Tottenham survived without further damage and equalised through Eric Dier, who beat Bernd Leno with a glancing header from an in-swinging free-kick, delivered by Christian Eriksen.
Both sets of players clashed on the pitch and even suited Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino entered the field of play
Leno has been impressive since dislodging Petr Cech as Emery's number one goalkeeper but he ought to have done better with this at his near post.
The celebrations turned ugly as Tottenham's players clashed with the Arsenal substitutes who were warming up near a corner flag. The pushing and shoving attracted others to race and join the mayhem from afar and missiles flew down from the stands.
Spurs emerged from the blur to go ahead, almost instantly, from a penalty won by Heung-min Son, who had been dangerous on the break and twice forced saves from Leno.
This time, he had another plan, dashing into the penalty box and pausing in anticipation of a challenge. As soon as Rob Holding arrived, Son hit the turf. The contract was minimal but a penalty was given and Harry Kane made no mistake.
Emery re-established authority with two changes at the interval. On went Alex Lacazette to play in tandem with Aubameyang, and Aaron Ramsey, to operate behind the two strikers.
Pochettino responded by shifting Dier from midfield into the centre of a back-three but Arsenal had settled their nerves and Aubameyang scored his second, his 12th of the season, with a clinical finish at the end of a sweeping move.
Ref Dean looked certain he had made the correct decision as he held the red card aloft during the 85th minute of the game
Hector Bellerin's pass sliced open the Tottenham defence and was chopped square by Ramsey. Serge Aurier was caught flat-footed as Aubameyang eased onto the ball and whipped his shot around the stricken Lloris and inside the post.
Dele Alli cleared off the line from Mustafi as Arsenal applied more pressure and Leno saved from Son after a mistake by Bellerin but Juan Foyth was not so fortunate when he lost possession to Ramsey on the half-way line.
Ramsey moved the ball forward and Lacazette fired his team into a 3-2 lead with the help of a deflection off Dier.
Foyth is only 20 and full of promise but has no luck. 'Take away this pass and Juan was by far our best player,' said Pochettino. 'Lots of players miss the pass on half way. There is still 50 metres to the goal.'
It did, however, prove decisive. There was no way back once Arsenal were on top and the positive energy was swirling around the Emirates. Torreira's goal was a delight and Vertonghen, booked when he conceded the penalty, was sent off.
He won the ball but sank his studs into Lacazette's ankle on a follow-through and Pochettino did not dispute the red card which rules him out of the game against Southampton on Wednesday.
'After third goal it was tough for us to find the energy to go again,' said the Spurs boss, who claimed it was one big-game too far after impressive wins against Chelsea and Inter Milan. 'We paid for the effort and started to suffer.'
Emery sank back into his seat.This time with a look of serenity & satisfaction.Arsene who? as they once dared to say.
#LUCAS TORREIRA is the fourth player to score their first goal for Arsenal in a north London derby.The others are Nicklas Bendtner, Mikael Sivestre and Per Mertesacker
Komen aku : game yg best...game laju...ada gaduh2...puas hati Spurs dikalahkan....yearghhhh COYG!
