BBC

Tottenham manager Thomas Frank and goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario apologised to fans following Sunday's hapless performance against Arsenal in the north London derby.

Spurs were beaten 4-1 at Emirates Stadium - their joint-heaviest Premier League defeat by the Gunners - with Eberechi Eze scoring a hat-trick against the club he almost joined in the summer.

Richarlison replied with a sensational 40-yard effort, but that was scant consolation for the visitors, whose expected-goals (xG) rating of 0.07 was the lowest in the top flight this season.

"It's extremely painful - I won't walk away from that," Frank, whose side have now lost three of their last five league games, told Sky Sports. "We can only apologise to the fans for that performance.

"It was a bad performance. I've seen a lot of character and fight in this team, but we didn't win enough duels."

Frank switched to a back three against the leaders, but the move failed to pay off as Arsenal cut through Spurs time and time again in the first half and deservedly led 2-0 at the break thanks to goals from Leandro Trossard and Eze.

The Dane changed the system at the break, but former Crystal Palace man Eze scored the third 35 seconds into the second half before completing the scoring 14 minutes from time.

"I will always take responsibility for my choice," Frank continued. "My view on it is that no matter what formation we played, we didn't have enough duels or intensity in the decisive moments, [which makes it] very difficult to win a football match."

Vicario echoed his manager's sentiments as he told Sky Sports: "We have to apologise to the people that support us every day. They expected us to fight and today we didn't fight. That's not negotiable at this level.

"We were too passive. The gameplan we prepared was different. The emotions are high, but we need cool heads."

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Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta to BBC Match of the Day: "It's a very special day for us. We knew the importance of the match and what it means to our fans. To be able to give them that joy, it's a beautiful day."

On Eberechi Eze becoming only the fourth ever player to score a hat-tick in the North London derby: "That tells you about the difficulty and what he's done today. To be fair he could have scored four or five. He's a big player who can create magic moments which unbalance a team.

"We dominated every part of the game. We created massive chances and had a lot of actions that we were very close to scoring. We stayed patient.

"Whoever we put in there they do the jobs for us. This squad has the belief and quality to deliver consistently.

"We have really good momentum but you can see how difficult every game in the Premier League is. It's a long run, let's go game by game. Let's enjoy tonight, then we have Bayern here and Chelsea away. We have a tough week."

Midfielder Eberechi Eze to BBC Match of the Day: "That is crazy. Special day, man. Special day for me, my family.

"I don't think I could've ever dreamt of it. This is more special than that. I can only thank God. Special day, man.

"We were prepared for whatever set-up they were coming with because of the diligence of our staff. Huge credit to them. And of course, the players in our team, the ability, the talent, from whatever angle we're threatening to score goals.

"Good performance, good three points and a special day.

"I probably should've scored four, to be honest. I'm always trying to score, always trying to take my chances. It's important to be relentless.

"We're focused on ourselves, we're focused on putting in our work every day. It's not by chance that we perform like this."

Tottenham manager Thomas Frank speaking to BBC Match of the Day: "Very difficult afternoon. Bad performance. It's extremely painful to stand here after that game. We can only apologise to the fans for not performing better. I was very confident we could be competitive today. We weren't. That we need to look at with a cool and calm head and work out what we need to change.

"We didn't succeed to be aggressive enough, and we didn't win the duels.

"One thing for sure is that in hindsight, everything is much easier. I take always the full responsibility for the performances. That I need to look back to. We changed things at half-time, it was a tiny bit better, but the game was already over at 3-0. It doesn't matter what system we play if we don't win our duals.

"No matter how painful it is, and of course, this is the most painful defeat of the season, there are things we can take out of this game."

Goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario to Sky Sports: "A very bad night for us. First of all, we have to apologise to the people that support us every day. They expected us to fight, and today we didn't fight. That's not negotiable to do in football in this level.

"It's a tough night, a very bad defeat, but we have to stick together. We have a big night on Wednesday but we need to stick together. Tonight we didn't show the things we are normally capable of.

"The emotions are high, but we need cool heads and apologise to the people that support us and have travelled today.

"I think we waited too much to get into the game. We were too passive. The game plan we prepared was different. Today we didn't fight. We have to apologise first of all for this. But we have to stick together and move on because on Wednesday we have a big night."

On Arsenal's second goal: "I think the way the game went it wouldn't have changed anything. There were three people in front of me so of course they impacted me. But we didn't lose the game for that."

It has been a mixed start for Thomas Frank at Tottenham whose conservative style of play since taking over means he has a fight on his hands to win over fans - and this result will have damaged that relationship further.

His team came into this game unbeaten from home in the league, but never looked like getting a positive result against their rivals.

Tottenham have not clicked in attack this season and average fewer than 10 shots per match, the third-lowest figure in the top flight.

That trend continued into this match with Spurs not having a shot in the first half, the second time that has happened this season (after their 1-0 home loss to Bournemouth in August).

Frank appeared to accept he had got his initial tactical plan wrong by making a half-time change to his team's shape - but Eberechi Eze's goal seconds after the restart effectively sealed Spurs' fate.

Tottenham are ninth in the league, but they are only three points below the Champions League places.

However, the Spurs manager is going to have to turn things around quickly before supporters decide they no longer want to watch his team put defensive solidity before creativity.

Arsenal beat Tottenham 4-1 to move six points clear at the top of the Premier League.

How did the players perform?

David Raya: 5.5/10

A virtual spectator until Richarlison produced one of the goals of the season.

Jurrien Timber: 7.5

Shook off a midweek injury scare to add to his growing repertoire of excellent performances.

William Saliba: 7

Did not miss his central defensive partner Gabriel a jot. Cruised through the game.

Piero Hincapie: 7

Excellent on his first Premier League start. Will be key for Arsenal in injured Gabriel's absence.

Ricardo Calafiori: 7

Some doubt over his inclusion but manager Mikel Arteta will be happy his left-back was available.

Martin Zubimendi: 8

His reputation grows with every game. Knits it all together for Arsenal.

Declan Rice: 8

Built for occasions like these. Energy in abundance, with the temperament to boot.

Bukayo Saka: 7

The captain petrified Tottenham's left-hand side with his pace and power. A constant threat.

Eberechi Eze: 9.5

The stuff dreams are made of. A magical hat-trick in his first north London derby.

Mikel Merino: 7.5

Unlocked Tottenham with an excellent pass to set up Trossard's opener. Tireless work.

Leandro Trossard: 8

Continues to be Arsenal's Mr Reliable. Deserved his goal. Proving to be an important player for Arteta.

Noni Madueke (Trossard 78): 6

Ethan Nwaneri (Merino 88), Cristhian Mosquera (Hincapie 88), Myles Lewis-Skelly (Calafiori 90)

Mikel Arteta names Piero Hincapie at centre back in place of the injured Gabriel Magalhaes. Mikel Merino continues upfront in place of Viktor Gyokeres who is also out injured.

There is positive news as Noni Madueke and Gabriel Martinelli are back on the bench after injury.

Arsenal starting XI: Raya, Timber, Saliba, Hincapie, Calafiori, Zubimendi, Rice, Eze, Saka, Trossard, Merino

Subs: Arrizabalaga, White, Mosquera, Martinelli, Norgaard, Madueke, Nwaneri, Lewis-Skelly, Dowman

Thomas Frank reverts to a back three for the match with Arsenal. Kevin Danso comes in at centre back while Mohammed Kudus starts.

Tottenham starting XI: Vicario, Spence, Romero, Danso, Van de Ven, Udogie, Palhinha, Bentancur, Richarlison, Odobert, Kudus

Tottenham have got the best away record in the Premier League, with four wins and one draw so far, but this is their biggest test yet.

While Spurs have picked up some good results, I have still been disappointed with their frontline, and their attacking players have not really connected.

That is going to be the issue for them at Emirates Stadium, and the big difference with Arsenal is that you always feel like they are going to score. They are going to give a few teams a walloping, and Spurs could be one of them.

I started off thinking that this game was going to be reasonably close but, the more I think about it, the more I feel like Arsenal will win comfortably.

The Gunners have some issues too, with Gabriel out injured. He has been such a colossal player for them but Cristhian Mosquera can come into their defence, and I don't see it affecting them too much.

Sutton's prediction: 3-0

The north London derby takes place at 16:30 GMT on Sunday, with Arsenal hoping to extend their lead at the top and Tottenham eyeing a return to the top four.

To mark the match we thought we'd test your knowledge on these Arsenal and Spurs stars, some are recognisable - others not so much. Good luck!