ARSENAL fans were left in hysterics after watching Mikel Arteta race after Granit Xhaka to stop him “getting involved in a scuffle” after the North London derby.
A howler from Hugo Lloris gave the Gunners an early lead before Martin Odegaard’s strike sealed a 2-0 win at Tottenham.
That result moved Arsenal eight points clear at the top of the table as they prepare to face Manchester United next week at home.
But tempers flared after the match with opposing players colliding following the final whistle.
And it riled up the home Spurs supporters inside the stadium, with one even punting Gunners goalie Aaron Ramsdale as he went to collect his water bottle.
Ramsdale was led away from in front of the Spurs stand by Arsenal team-mate Oleksandr Zinchenko.
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Gunners boss Arteta then took over, dragging his keeper towards the travelling supporters to celebrate with his team-mates.
However, soon captain Xhaka got involved as he raced past them in the opposite direction towards Spurs’ players and the stewards.
The Swiss ace is known for his hot temper and has been sent-off five times since his arrival at the Emirates in 2016.
Fortunately for him Arteta showed all the nimbleness and speed he showed from his midfield playing days to quickly spin around and chase his skipper, eventually getting hold of him and dragging him away from the trouble.
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As delirious supporters watched on from home, they quickly took to Twitter to react to the chaotic scenes and the panicked reaction of their gaffer.
One wrote: “Mikel Arteta doing everything he can to stop Granit Xhaka getting involved in the scuffle after the full-time whistle.”
Another tweeted: “This needs to be a meme!”
A fellow Gooner commented: “At least two lives were saved by this action.”
As a fellow fan said: “There was something quite Dad like about him intercepting Xhaka.”
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
