Tottenham On This Day: Remember 17th November 2001

On this day in 2001, Tottenham played Arsenal at White Hart Lane. The match ended in a 1 – 1 draw and Gus Poyet scored the goal but all of that is irrelevant. this match marked the return of Sol ‘Judas’ Campbell to White Hart Lane for the first time wearing the red and white shirt of Arsenal.

Judas [Photo: tottenhamblog.com]

17th November, 2001

Tottenham Hotspur 1 Arsenal 1

Scorers: Poyet              Pires

The north London derby occurs quite frequently in the month of November but in this case the match was of secondary importance. It was a match every Tottenham supporter wanted to attend to vent their anger at Sol Campbell. The Arsenal bus received a hostile welcome as it made its way up the Tottenham High Road and into the ground. Campbell was a constant target for Tottenham supporters throughout the match which was played in a high;y charged atmosphere inside White Hart Lane.

It was Glenn Hoddle’s first home derby against Arsenal as manager of Tottenham. The team came into the game in a good vein of form in spite of losing their previous game at Leeds United.

However, the main focus of attention was the return of Sol Campbell who had defected to the other team in North London during the summer on a Bosman deal, having let his contract run out. The atmosphere was hostile as Spurs fans vented their anger against their former captain.

Spurs played well with Ledley King outstanding but it was Arsenal who took the lead late in the second half with a shot by  Pires from distance which he curled past Neil Sullivan. They looked set to hold on to take the three points until the final moments when Gus Poyet equalised with a volley that slipped through the goalkeeper’s fingers.

Watch the video but ignore the opening seconds.