Attentive supporters noticed Ben White’s sly move to fiddle with Vicario’s gloves during the chaos of Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg’s own goal, which gave Tottenham a disastrous beginning in their 3-2 loss to arch-rivals Arsenal.
The much-anticipated north London derby was seen as a potential stumbling block for Arsenal’s Premier League title chase, especially with Manchester City set to play Nottingham Forest later.
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However, Spurs capitulated, allowing the visitors to quickly amass a three-goal advantage.
Hojbjerg accidentally knocked the ball into his own net after a corner, giving Arsenal an early lead at the 15-minute mark. The situation deteriorated for the home side when Bukayo Saka capped off a sharp counter-attack, widening the gap.
Despite Tottenham having a goal ruled out for offside, Kai Havertz, who has been in remarkable form lately, scored with a header, further deepening the home team’s woes as Arsenal dominated from another corner.
In the second half, Ange Postecoglou’s squad mounted a comeback, with Cristian Romero and Son Heung-min scoring to make for a thrilling conclusion. Nevertheless, Arsenal persisted and clinched the victory, extending their lead to four points over City at the summit.
Gary Neville, the ex-Manchester United right-back and commentator for Sky Sports, pointed out White’s disruptive antics during Arsenal’s first goal, referring to the defender as a ‘nuisance’ in the lead-up to the score.
‘It’s been the same setup all year for Arsenal and it has been good all year,’ Neville said as Arsenal scored their 20th set-piece goal to break the deadlock in north London.
‘Ben White the nuisance, the five big lads getting across that near post. [Takehiro] Tomiyasu just does enough.
‘He bugs Hojbjerg and he can’t get a full head on it. Vicario has no chance. It is past him in a flash.’
Footage revealed White’s sneaky attempt to untie Vicario’s gloves just before Hojbjerg’s own goal, distracting the Tottenham goalkeeper from focusing on the incoming corner kick.
The episode quickly spread across social media platforms, with Arsenal fans praising White for his cunning tactics.
Ben white really did this to trigger vicario ????
— Rowie (@row_lyne) April 28, 2024
Conversely, many Tottenham supporters were left bewildered as to how White escaped censure for his trickery, especially with referee Michael Oliver in close proximity to the action.
Former Arsenal player Paul Merson criticized Tottenham’s lackluster display during the half-time analysis and expressed sympathy for Ben Davies following Saka’s goal at the 27th minute, which increased the lead for the guests.
‘It is ruthless but bad by Tottenham, terrible by Tottenham, no awareness,’ Merson said in the Sky Sports studio.
‘Everybody’s looking at the ball, no one sees Saka. ‘I feel sorry for Ben Davies in a way, but you know Saka’s coming back on his left.
‘Davies can’t do too much but what he can do is put him on his right foot, if he scores on his right foot you hold your hands up and say I put him on his weaker foot.
‘I’m shouting, you cannot let him back on his left foot. And he doesn’t even do it greatly, he just comes inside and bends it in.’
