Tottenham vs Arsenal – Match Preview
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What a difference a week makes, this time last week Tottenham were firmly in the title race and this week they are supposedly a club in crisis. Although these are the two extremes, it’s fair to say that their situation currently lies somewhere in the middle.
A situation that can either improve massively by Saturday afternoon or by the same account deeply worsen, that’s because there is the small matter of the North London derby on the horizon. A game that after events in midweek, has seen the stakes been raised even further.
That’s because Tottenham followed up their surprise defeat away to Burnley with a lacklustre offering against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, one that saw the Blues ease to a 2-0 win in front of their own fans.
And that defeat would have been magnified by the fact that Kieran Trippier scored a stupendous own goal when under no pressure whatsoever, it was the icing on a very abject cake in terms of Spurs’ performance and one that will have Mauricio Pochettino concerned.
Especially when he sees what is going on across London, Arsenal under Unai Emery look resurgent as of late and they will have their tails up after putting no fewer than five goals past a hapless Bournemouth on Wednesday.
A couple of weeks ago, Tottenham would have been clear favourites going into this game and with them playing at home, you would be confident of them getting all three points against their arch rivals.
Now though it seems as if the landscape is beginning to change and the Gunners will be brimming with confidence of their own, especially if it means closing the gap on Tottenham and in turn solidifying their own hopes of a top four finish.
It looked as if it was going to be three teams fighting over one Champions league paying place, but now it looks as if it could be four teams scrapping over two and this will certainly be the case if Arsenal come out on top of Premier League.
Tottenham have welcomed back Harry Kane to the fold after injury, but it is almost as if they have the player on the pitch and not the talent that comes with it. His last two performances have had many asking whether he is fully fit or not.
At the same time Kane is certainly a big game player and if there is anyone who can take this upcoming North London derby by the scruff of the neck, then it will undoubtedly be Tottenham’s talisman.
The issue though might not be goals scored but keeping them out at the other end, Arsenal have seemingly sorted out their own defensive issues and are now beginning to cause serious damage in attack.
And if Jan Vertonghen misses this game through a hip injury then the likes of Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette will be rubbing their hands with glee at the prospect of adding to their goal tallies.
When it comes to derbies such as this, the form book usually goes out of the window. However, Arsenal will have the momentum going into this one and could well manage to make the short trip back across London with maximum points in their possession.
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