Tottenham Hotspur have been warned that they are almost certain to fall short against Arsenal when the Premier League resumes after the international break.
Come Sunday, 23rd November, football fans across the globe will be tuned in to the Emirates Stadium for the latest instalment of the North London Derby, Arsenal versus Spurs.
Arsenal have enjoyed a bright start to the campaign, yet just before the break, they stumbled, dropping two points in a frustrating 2-2 draw with Sunderland. Naturally, all eyes will be on whether the Gunners can bounce back, and whether they will do so against their noisy neighbours from N17.
Spurs, meanwhile, remain the league’s wild card. Blowing hot and cold with little predictability, it is anyone’s guess which version of the Lilywhites will turn up at the Emirates.
Jenas backs Arsenal for another NLD victory
Jermaine Jenas, speaking on the Wildcards youtube podcast alongside Jermaine Pennant, did not mince his words. He believes that regardless of which Spurs side shows up, even if they pose a threat, there is only one likely outcome.
He said: “Then you have the North London Derby, which I fully expect Arsenal to win, unfortunately. I just think, look, Spurs are better away from home at the minute, currently, and I think they could cause Arsenal a few issues. But I just do not think they are playing well enough.”
It is a verdict that echoes what many Gooners already feel. Even when Spurs have enjoyed strong spells of form in previous seasons, they rarely carry that confidence into the red half of North London.
The Emirates remains a nightmare for Spurs
History provides little comfort for the visitors. In twenty three North London Derbies at the Emirates Stadium, Arsenal have secured fourteen wins, seven draws, and only two defeats.
The Emirates is not a happy hunting ground for Tottenham. They struggle there, and often badly. For Arsenal, this makes next Sunday an ideal opportunity to re-establish momentum, particularly with formidable fixtures around the corner.
Having lost ground against Sunderland, Mikel Arteta’s men need an immediate response. Results against Spurs, Bayern Munich, and Chelsea in quick succession will be crucial, not only for points but to reaffirm that this Arsenal team are genuine contenders with serious resilience.
What are your thoughts Gooners? Should Arsenal be confident going into this one?
Daniel O
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Arsenal can’t dream of landing the title without beating a top 6 team which they haven’t done so in the past 11 matches. Losing to Pool and drawing both v City and Sunderland. So must win to regain the fear factor. I’ll be loving it much if Havertz returns and open his goal account then. I think he’s good fortune v Spurs while at Chelsea and here.
I’d be more confident if Gabriel is playing but reports seem to confirm he could be out for a few weeks 🙁
I think we will have too much for spurs.
I don’t want to be a bit cocky here or anything, but I am more concerned about the chelsea game away the following week than spurs.
If you wanted to read an article that tempts fate, this article is truly it. 🤦♂️🤷♂️😠
We have nearly a team full of first choice players on treatment table. It’s not inconceivable we lose all 3 of next weeks fixtures.
Well wait
First choice GK is fit
First choice CB is fit
First choice lb should play and if not most on this site have said Skelly is like Ashley Cole
First choice RB will be fit and if not Ben White is hardly a bad replacement
First choice CM will play
First choice RM will play
Many wanted Eze to play AM instead of Odegarrd
Trossard would be ahead of Martinelli even if Brazilian was fit
So more then good enough to beat Spurs
Well let’s hope so! Can’t expect much from those playing first minutes after layoffs, so if we can get 6 points from the two Prem games next week fielding the Taxi Squad, it will be a real injection of belief. The die rotten game not so important imo, Liverpool topped the first phase last year and got a sticky fixture, just top 8 to avoid extra games in winter is best any team can aim for in cups, so plenty of game time for bench warmers and any returnees in that one, to field strongest possible 11 at the bridge.
While it’s not ideal regarding the injury situation, you won’t get me using it as an excuse should we fail in the next three games.
Make up your mind people, in the summer we had poster’s coming on here lording the work Arteta and Bertha had done in the transfer window. They were waxing lyrical about the squads quality and depth.
Well now, we’ll see if all that waxing lyrical come to fruition. After all, isn’t this the reason we wanted a bigger squad in the first place.
Now we’ll find out about the rest of he squad won’t we. 🤷♂️
What about the argument you may only have 4 injuries, but it’s your three most cutting edge forwards and part of centre back duo who perform so well together, but less well with makeshift partners?
Spuds long period last year lost all experience and class from their defence, yes they could still field a defence, but nowhere near level of prem first 11. If Liverpool lost Salah and VVD for months, just 2 players, at this same point last season, would they have gone on that run that ultimately won the title.
You could say blips, like dropped points at Sunderland, can happen anytime, but they most likely line up with having key players out.
Moon Girl,
Of course you’re going to miss a said key player, but if it has that much of an averse reaction regarding the teams performance, then it doesn’t say much for the back-up players does it.
Like it or not, injury’s are part and parcel of the game. Always have been and always will be. It comes down in the end to which team can deal with said injury’s better.
Other teams over the years have had their injury issues through out the season, and still gone on to win major trophy’s.
And Yes David, I will stand by me stance regarding it being used to much as an excuse. While it doesn’t help, if we can’t cope then that just tough.
But you’ll never catch me using injury’s as an excuse. That’s just a cop out.
For a team to perform you need to be able to put out a competitive team. If many of your first team players are out your competitiveness will be compromised. Even if you are able to manage for a period of time there could be knock-on effects on other players.
Certainly, any team that goes on to win a title won’t refer to this aspect as much as one that doesn’t. However, this does not mean that it is an irrelevant issue.
It has been notable that injuries have increased in recent years amongst certain professional sports people including footballers.
These injuries can have a major impact on the player involved as well as the performances of their teams. Unfortunately, the factors that lead to these injuries are not as well understood as they should be. This is probably where there may be some debate and possibly better research. However, the attempts to dismiss injuries as irrelevant to outcomes often reflect either ignorance or duplicity and are mainly used by those who want to drive narratives of underperformance.
David,
You’re always talking about people making up their own narratives to suit their argument.
Well you should know, as you’re an expert at it.
The squad is good but injuries are an issue that can affect the performance of a team. It’s quite ridiculous for people to keep saying that injuries are just an “excuse”.
If your best players are out the performances can drop. This is simple reality and people need to stop pretending that it’s not relevant.
Even if you have cover there are key positions that are not easy to cover. You also need to consider the number of injuries. A team can only carry so many before they start to run out of players.
This isn’t about “make up your mind”. You need to be able to assess things holistically not just drive narratives.
Merino.
Trossard. Eze. Saka.
Rice. Zubimendi.
Calafiori. Hincapie. Saliba. Timber.
Raya.
Seems like the most logical setup for a starting lineup to me too. Hincapié would be the natural replacement for Gabriel, but maybe Mosquera will get the nod this time. Either way, two good options.
I would not be surprised if Ødegaard and MLS get some minutes too. Nwaneri maybe, but his play in the U21 internationals seemed a bit up and down.