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Daniel Hargraves

Gabriel Jesus clear in Arsenal power rankings after Tottenham display as Martinelli improves

Arsenal maintained their position at the top of the Premier League table on Saturday after beating their fiercest rivals Tottenham 3-1 in the first north London derby of the season.

Second half goals from Gabriel Jesus and Granit Xhaka secured the victory after Thomas Partey's opener had been cancelled out by a Harry Kane penalty before half time with Spurs also going down to ten men in the second half after a reckless challenge from Emerson Royal on Gabriel Martinelli.

The Gunners have 21 points from their opening eight league matches with Manchester City sat in second with one point fewer. But who have been Mikel Arteta's side's shining stars so far this season?

READ MORE: Arsenal director resigns as Mikel Arteta set to receive further backing at board level

Here are the top five Arsenal players according to WhoScored after last weekend's victory.

5th - Martin Ødegaard (7.31/10)

With three goals so far this season, Ødegaard has been excellent in the number 10 role for Arteta with Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli usually the Norwegian's support on either flank.

Although the 23-year-old is yet to record an assist this season, his creativity has been a major asset for the Gunners who have scored 20 league goals already, with Manchester City's 29 the only higher tally.

4th - Bukayo Saka (7.35/10)

At just 21 years of age, Saka's potential is frightening. The English youngster was a major threat down the right hand side on Saturday and deserved an assist for his involvement in Gabriel Jesus' goal, providing the cross that was poorly defended by Tottenham, leading to the striker having a tap in.

With four assists alongside his goal at Manchester United, the winger has shown that he's only going to improve as time goes on and, having registered 11 goals and seven assists in the Premier League last term, you would have to imagine that the 21-year-old has a great chance of exceeding that tally this time around.

3rd - Thomas Partey (7.44/10)

Arguably a player who has gone slightly under the radar this season, Partey has been excellent alongside Granit Xhaka in the deep-lying midfield position, protecting the back-four whilst releasing the ball efficiently to set up attacks.

The 29-year-old produced a sumptuous strike after 20 minutes to set Arsenal on their way, with the goal only his third in Arsenal colours since arriving from Atletico Madrid in 2020.

Moreover, only Everton (seven) have conceded fewer league goals this season than Arsenal's eight with the Ghanaian midfielder certainly playing a major role.

2nd - Gabriel Martinelli (7.48/10)

With three goals and one assist so far this season, Martinelli is clearly improving under Arteta with the winger already halfway to his goals tally in the Premier League last term.

Similarly to Saka, at 21 the Brazilian's potential is a scary prospect in a side that has enjoyed themselves in the final third so far this term and whatever success the Gunners enjoy, Martinelli will undoubtedly play a key role.

1st - Gabriel Jesus (7.79/10)

Rather unsurprisingly, Jesus sits top of the rankings after a dream start to his Arsenal tenure which has seen the 25-year-old score five goals and provide three assists.

There were high expectations for the Brazilian after his summer move from Manchester City, with the Gunners in desperate need of a striker to settle in quickly following the struggles they endured in the second half of last season as a result of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's departure. There is no doubt that the striker has answered Arsenal's prayers thus far.

The only criticism would be that in eight matches, Jesus has already picked up four bookings and is one yellow card away from a one-match suspension.

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