Premier League preview: Tottenham v Arsenal
The north-London derby has produced some memorable matches in recent years. From Arsenal’s enthralling 5-4 victory in 2004, to last season’s dramatic 4-4 draw at the Emirates – this really has been a fixture to savour.
Tonight, though, this fearsome derby has rarely meant more to either team – perhaps only with the exception of the famous encounter from 1971. Arsenal wrapped up the league title and then the double, to match their rival’s achievement from 10 years earlier, on that occasion.
Even when Arsène Wenger’s ‘Invincibles’ sealed the league title with a draw at White Hart Lane six years ago, there was nothing Spurs had left to play for apart from pride.
Whereas this evening, the outcome of this clichéd “six-pointer” will undoubtedly have a key bearing on both Tottenham and Arsenal’s seasons.
With less than a month left before the season reaches its conclusion, Spurs boss, Harry Redknapp, and his Arsenal counterpart, Wenger, will know that three points will put them within touching distance of achieving their respective targets. Neither manager will want to countenance defeat. This fixture has carried an all-or-nothing feel about it before, but never for both sides.
Victory for the hosts would put them just a single point behind Manchester City in the race for that elusive fourth spot. With Liverpool faltering so badly this season, Spurs couldn’t have wished for a better opportunity to break into the top four and finally bring Champions League football to the club after years of flirting with the idea - but they have much to do yet.
Tottenham’s task to beat their north-London rivals this evening is perhaps their toughest of the forthcoming weeks. It will be a true test of what Redknapp’s men are made of, and they will be desperate to bounce back from their gut-wrenching FA Cup semi-final defeat against Portsmouth on Sunday. Victory over Arsenal would provide the best possible tonic.
However, a winless-streak against the Gunners which stretches back over 20 Premier League games is not exactly a mental hurdle for the home side to overcome, but more like a mental pole vault. A dig through the archives is the only way to find out when Spurs last beat Wenger’s men – it came 11 years ago, back in November 1999.
Sol Campbell is the only player who survives from that afternoon’s encounter. Having been in Tottenham’s winning team for that match, he infamously made the switch to the Gunners soon after and, following a spell away from the Emirates, the ageing defender is now back. Campbell will be braced for a tough night. Not only from the Tottenham strikers, but also the club’s supporters, who’ll be baying for blood.
Spurred on by this, and having enjoyed watching Arsenal torn apart by Barcelona’s Lionel Messi in Europe last week, Tottenham will believe that tonight will finally be the night they bring an abrupt end to their rival’s dominance.
Although the current Arsenal side isn’t by any stretch of the imagination as formidable as the ‘Invincibles’ were, they have displayed other important qualities of a title-winning side this season. Not least, their never-say-die attitude, which has eluded them in recent years.
But to win the Premier League title this season would be an almighty achievement. With a number of integral players out injured included Cesc Fàbregas, William Gallas and Andrey Arshavin, winning the league title with the current depleted squad would rank alongside the most remarkable triumphs since the league’s inception.
Welcome news for Wenger is the fact that influential striker Robin van Persie will make his return to the Arsenal squad after five months out injured with ruptured ankle ligaments; but even the talented Dutchman will need a bit longer to settle back in and rediscover his best form.
Excuses can be made after the season ends, though. Right now, Arsenal have a job to do regardless of the personnel available. Without any silverware since 2005, everyone associated with the club have become slightly twitchy of late; but an away victory this evening would help ease those anxieties and put the Gunners right in the mix for the league title with just four matches of the season left to play.
Fortunately for the Gunners, following last week’s humiliation at the Nou Camp, Spurs might have a number of players to watch out for, but none quite as good as Messi.
Prediction: Tottenham 2 Arsenal 2.
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