Sead Kolasinac knew that a strong team performance and plenty of fight were needed to beat Tottenham – and he also knew how important the game was before it began.

Kolasinac got his first taste of the North London derby on Saturday, as he played in his usual role of left wing-back.

Like the rest of his teammates, he worked very hard to keep Tottenham out and also get up the pitch in support of Arsenal’s counters.

Speaking before the game, the Bosnian had an idea of what would be required to beat Tottenham.

“Both teams are very strong and boast plenty of individual players who can decide a game,” he told Sky Sports.

“At the end of the day, though, you have got 11 players on the pitch for each team. And, yes, there are players who can make a difference individually.

“But on Saturday the winner will be the team that stands together collectively and fights harder.

“In my first few weeks here I was told that the Spurs match is the most important of the season.

“No question, as a footballer you look forward to those games.”

His words turned out to be prophetic.

The performance on Saturday was one of the strongest collective performances seen from Arsenal in recent times.

The team pressed as a unit and fell back into shape when they had to. Nobody shirked their defensive responsibility.

Individual quality also played a part.

Our key players performed excellently and made the most of the limited attacking opportunities that they had.

Tottenham’s key players, meanwhile, were completely anonymous, partly due to Arsenal’s excellent defending.

You got the feeling on Saturday that the players really, really wanted to defeat Tottenham.

They now have to take a similar desire in every game to get a good run of form going.