Arsenal’s first half against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday saw the Gunners struggle badly as the visitors dominated the midfield in the north London derby.

Failing to put a foot on the ball and take control of the game, Santi Cazorla was subbed off for Mathieu Flamini at half-time, and the Arsenal manager has explained that something must have been wrong with the Spaniard.

“We were a bit unlucky with Cazorla in the first half because he was not himself. I took him off because he was dizzy so we suffered a little bit in the first half,” the manager told Sky Sports after the game.

“Cazorla wasn’t at the races and we suffered. We have too many players out as well, restricted options on the bench and that makes the game difficult so in the end I must give credit to my players who refused to lose the game.”

Arsenal struggled, but looked much better with Flamini on after the game. Thankfully the boss confirmed Cazorla wasn’t in hospital after the match, but nobody is sure what’s actually wrong with him and that’s a concern.

Cazorla has been named in the Spain squad for the impending international break, but may have to be taken out if the problem is a serious one.

Hopefully common sense prevails and he is given two weeks off to prepare for Arsenal’s next game. Sunday’s derby was saved by a late Kieran Gibbs winner, but Cazorla’s form will be a concern moving forward if this problem continues.