Some more Arteta hot chat …
… as well as the view according to Antonio Conte.
Mikel Arteta speaks to Sky Sports. “Bukayo Saka trained yesterday and felt good, so he started the match. Ben White didn’t do enough in training yesterday, but he’s been very willing to be here and contribute if we need him, so that’s good news as well. We always prepare to win and to create many problems for the opposition, and we want to do that tonight. We need composure. Being able to play with emotion is important, without losing the anger and passion that is very necessary, but also having cool minds to manage the situations. We always want to be dominant.”
These two clubs have history all right. Here are six famous occasions when this fixture sparked joy.
Tottenham Hotspur make one change to the side that drew 1-1 with Liverpool at Anfield on Saturday evening. Davinson Sanchez replaces Cristian Romero, who has picked up a knock and isn’t in the squad at all.
Arsenal meanwhile are unchanged from the 2-1 win over Leeds on Sunday. Bukayo Saka, a doubt for the match, has passed a fitness test.
The teams
Tottenham Hotspur: Lloris, Sanchez, Dier, Davies, Emerson, Bentancur, Hojbjerg, Sessegnon, Kulusevski, Son, Kane.
Subs: Winks, Rodon, Gollini, Bergwijn, Lucas Moura, White, Scarlett, Devine, Matthew Craig.
Arsenal: Ramsdale, Cedric, Holding, Gabriel, Tomiyasu, Elneny, Xhaka, Saka, Odegaard, Martinelli, Nketiah.
Subs: Leno, White, Lacazette, Smith Rowe, Pepe, Tavares, Sambi Lokonga, Swanson, Patino.
Referee: Paul Tierney (Lancashire).
Preamble
Lads, it’s Tottenham … but which one? See, it’s difficult to get a handle on Spurs right now. Admittedly this has been the case since time immemorial, but the point stands. During the last couple of months, they’ve thrashed Everton, Newcastle and Aston Villa, done a tactical number on title-chasing Liverpool, and failed to get a single effort on target in 180 dismal minutes against Brighton and Brentford. Good luck correctly predicting which version rocks up tonight for the north London derby.
They’ll be hoping it’s the one which has won four of their last five Premier League matches at home. Spurs desperately need all three points if they’re to snatch Champions League qualification from fourth-placed Arsenal’s grasp. Win tonight and they’ll move to within a point of their arch rivals, with two games still to play. Lose, however, and the Gunners will be guaranteed a top-four spot … and Mikel Arteta’s men can take heart from a confidence-boosting sequence of their own, having won their last four matches, a run that includes away victories at Chelsea and West Ham. A third London derby victory in a row? Well, good luck correctly predicting the outcome of that, too, because Arsenal can do erratic like the best of them, their current four-game winning streak coming off the back of four losses in five.
The current standings look like this …
… so the stakes could only be higher if this was a shootout for the title. Kickoff is at 7.45pm. It’s on!