A NORTH London derby is always special, and the first league meeting between Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal at Wembley should add an extra layer of excitement to this weekend’s clash.
Despite finishing above their local rivals season, Spurs have only beaten the Gunners twice in their last 11 meetings. It’s form Tottenham fans will hope their side can change.
Mauricio Pochettino’s men sit in fifth in the Premier League table going into the game, Arsenal are below in sixth.
But a win for the Gunners would take them within a point of Spurs and ramp up the pressure in the race for a top four place.
Kick-off at Wembley is at 12.30 on Saturday, and the match is being shown live on BT Sport.
And we asked our friends at Football Whispers to preview the contest, looking at whether game may be won or lost.
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Key battle: Kane vs Mustafi and Koscielny
Harry Kane scored the last time the two sides met on Tottenham soil and he’ll be hoping to do so again on Saturday.
KANE’D HIM Stats show Aubameyang more ruthless than Kane but needs more time per goal
The 24-year-old has netted an astonishing 35 goals in 36 games for club and country, including three hat-tricks, so far this season.
And when asked if there was a better No.9 in Europe than Kane at the moment, even Arsene Wenger admitted the Spurs star is in a league of his own.
“If you look at the numbers then, no,” the Frenchman said. “I can talk and talk and talk, but it’s the numbers which will show that. The best way to defend is to have the numbers and take the game to them.”
With the Arsenal boss acknowledging how good the Tottenham forward is, it will come down to his centre-backs to try to keep the England star quiet. Shkodran Mustafi and Laurent Kosicelny are likely to be the men entrusted with that role.
And if they can nullify Kane’s influence, Arsenal may have a chance of causing an upset.
Spurs vs Arsenal
Potential match-winners: Aubameyang and Kane
Both teams are packed full of players capable of winning a game through a moment of magic.
Tottenham’s front four of Son Heung-Min, Dele Alli, Christian Eriksen and Kane has scored 43 of their 51 Premier League goals this season – so the likelihood is that Spurs’ biggest threat in attack will come from one of those four.
Given that Kane is the top scorer in the English top flight, with 22 goals, one every 97 minutes, he is the man most likely to be the match-winner for Tottenham.
Like Spurs, Arsenal’s front four is also packed full of attacking threat.
While Alex Iwobi, Mesut Ozil, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang may only have seven Premier League goals between them for Arsenal this season, the latter two have only been with the Gunners since the January transfer window.
But if the Armenian playmaker and Gabonese striker recreate the chemistry they had Borussia Dortmund, they will be a real threat for any opposition defence.
Their last season together in Germany saw Aubameyang manage 39 goals and 12 assists, Mkhitaryan, meanwhile, claimed 23 goals and 32 assists. Those numbers alone make the duo a very exciting prospect for Arsenal fans.
And his goalscoring debut against Everton, the £55million striker will want to make himself even more of a fan’s favourite by finding the back of the net against the Gunners’ biggest rivals.
The 28-year-old has a good record against Spurs too, having struck four in four against them when playing for Dortmund.
Managers’ tactics
Pochettino has again switched between three and four at the back this season, with his two most favoured formations being 4-2-3-1 or 3-4-3.
The formation he has used most though is 4-2-3-1. It’s the shape his side were set-up in against Manchester United and Liverpool and there’s no reason to suggest the Argentine will change to three at the back after taking four points from those two tough matches.
Wenger has also favoured 4-2-3-1 or 3-4-3 for most of the season.
He started the campaign with three at the back but has switched to a four-man defence in recent weeks. The Gunners boss is likely to match Arsenal up against Spurs’ 4-2-3-1 given it worked so well in their last outing, a 5-1 win over Everton.
How the teams are likely to be set up
Toby Alderweireld, Harry Winks and Danny Rose all returned from long-term injuries to play in the midweek FA Cup win over Newport County, but a North London derby is a step up from a cup tie against a League Two side.
Lucas Moura is also in contention to make his Spurs debut after arriving from Paris Saint-Germain on deadline day, although there is a fitness concern over the Brazilian.
However, after keeping the same team for the games against Manchester United and Liverpool, Pochettino may be tempted to do the same when they face Arsenal.
Tottenham Hotspur (4-2-3-1): Lloris; Trippier, Sanchez, Vertonghen, Davies; Dier, Dembele; Son, Alli, Eriksen; Kane
For Arsenal, Danny Welbeck will be in contention after a hip injury, while Nacho Monreal has been passed fit after being substituted against Everton.
Petr Cech will be subject of a late fitness test after not training all week, with David Ospina ready to deputise. Santi Cazorla remains a long-term absentee with an achilles injury.
Arsenal (4-2-3-1): Ospina; Bellerin, Mustafi, Koscielny, Monreal; Ramsey, Xhaka; Iwobi, Ozil, Mkhitaryan; Aubameyang
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Key stats heading into the game
Arsenal’s victory over Tottenham in the reverse fixture last November was their first win over their rivals in seven Premier League meetings.
This is the first game between the sides at Wembley since April 1993, when Arsenal won an FA Cup semi-final 1-0 thanks to a Tony Adams goal.
Tottenham have dropped 37 points from winning positions in Premier League games against Arsenal, which is the worst record of any club against a single opponent.
Pochettino’s side have gone 12 home matches without defeat in the Premier League, winning eight of their past ten.
Spurs have scored in 14 successive top-flight matches since their 2-0 defeat at Arsenal in November.
Kane has scored 21 goals in 32 Premier League London derby matches, averaging 0.66 goals per game. Of players to have played in 20 or more London derbies in the Premier League, only Thierry Henry has a better ratio (0.73 – 43 goals in 59 appearances).
Mkhitaryan has assisted three goals in 120 minutes of Premier League action for Arsenal so far, which is the same amount that Alexis Sanchez managed in 1507 minutes of action for the Gunners in 2017/18 before his move to Manchester United.
Arsenal are winless in 15 Premier League away games against the current top five clubs since a 2-0 victory at Manchester City in January 2015, having drawn six and lost nine.
The Gunners are unbeaten in their last nine matches at Wembley Stadium, winning them all including two penalty shootouts.
Wenger’s side have gone eight league games without a clean sheet since mid-December.
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