The barometer has been pointing towards a change in the air.
But Arsenal are not yet ready for a power shift and refused to surrender and let Tottenham be crowned the new kings of North London.
It is all too easy to think their dominance is coming to an end, Mauricio Pochettino readying himself to eclipse Arsene Wenger as top dog — all on the basis of Spurs finishing above Arsenal last season for the first time since 1995, before Wenger’s arrival.
But there is no doubt what happened at the Emirates on Saturday was a reaction, a defiant response from Arsenal to being written off with Pochettino the new darling and Wenger the washed-up has-been.
For all the praise coming Tottenham’s way, they have yet to lift a trophy with Pochettino and have not won away at one of their top-six rivals in the past 21 months.
Since Pochettino took charge at White Hart Lane in 2014, Wenger has won two FA Cups and guided the Gunners to finishing above Spurs in two of those three seasons.
Undoubtedly, Tottenham are narrowing the gap but until they produce big-statement victories they will remain a long way from completing a power shift.
If the fear was Arsenal are a fading force because Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil are on their way next summer then the pair put in committed performances to suggest otherwise.
Ozil was outstanding, while Sanchez scored and never stopped battling.
Amid the uncertainty over their long-term futures, that was to be admired.
From first to last, Arsenal were up for it and if they were surprisingly good then Spurs were surprisingly bad.
It has not only been momentum under Pochettino that has driven talk of a power shift. Many choosing a combined North London XI did not pick even one Arsenal player.
Shkodran Mustafi was not in anyone’s line-up, yet the Gunners defender scored, was arguably man-of-the-match and set the tone with a gritty display.
He could easily have left for Inter Milan after an indifferent first season but the Germany international is clearly an asset at his best and was prickly about Arsenal being written off.
“But I’m here, I’m standing in front of you in an Arsenal shirt,” said Mustafi. “What happens in the changing room is the real thing.
“As always, 'Arsenal is dead, Arsenal isn’t coming back.' It’s always the same. But it’s about what the team is thinking and feeling.
“We keep saying we always are alive, we always believe in ourselves, we always try to give everything on the pitch.
“Obviously, when it comes to games like this you have to show character. We did it and you have to give the team credit.
“So there’s no point talking now about what was said before and what the people were thinking and who was the better team.. At the end of the game you can see if you did your job or you didn’t, and I think we did our job.
“If you want to judge a player, it’s not about what he’s done in the last three weeks. If you look at what Mesut achieved, you have to give him credit.
“It’s sometimes stupid to say, ‘He’s not good enough, he’s not this or that’. You have to see what he’s done in his career and respect that.”
Wenger also paid tribute to Mustafi and compared his qualities to compatriot Per Mertesacker.
He said: “He’s similar to Per on a mental front, but 10 years younger. He’s a leader, a motivator, has a strong focus. I think he’s a winner.”