Arsenal's FA Cup Win Must Be the Spur for Tottenham in Capital One Cup

Tottenham Hotspur take on Nottingham Forest in the Capital One Cup on Wednesday night. After a poor performance in Sunday's 1-0 loss to West Bromwich Albion, the team are understandably keen to bounce back.

Speaking to Tottenham's official website, Mousa Dembele was also keen to note the Championship table-toppers should not be taken lightly. "The positive thing is that we have another match coming very quickly but it’s not going to be easy against Forest."

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Head coach Mauricio Pochettino's call for his team "to be focused and to show a different attitude" is given added significance by the looming prospect of Arsenal away on Saturday.

Whether they like it or not, Spurs' standing is inextricably linked to their north London rivals, currently fourth in the Premier League.

While any setback continues to prompt a large amount of wailing from Gunners fans (their Champions League loss to Borussia Dortmund for instance), last season's FA Cup success has reiterated their continued superiority over their neighbours.

As Spurs continue to trail them (and others) in the hunt for a regular top-four place, one of the few bragging points they had was at least having won some silverware in the time since Arsenal had last lifted a trophy.

That is moot now, with that 2008 League Cup triumph—which followed beating Arsenal in the semi-final—going on seven years old. Only Younes Kaboul and Aaron Lennon remain from that squad, and subsequent attempts to win trophies have come up agonisingly (the 2009 League Cup final loss to Manchester United) and embarrassingly (2012's 5-1 FA Cup semi-final hammering by Chelsea) short.

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Spurs' efforts in domestic cup competitions have only got worse in the last couple of seasons. A quarter-final exit to West Ham United in last season's Capital One Cup is as far as they have got. A month after that, Arsenal dumped them out of the FA Cup in the Third Round (although they have enjoyed deeper runs in the Europa League).

Beating Stuart Pearce's rejuvenated Nottingham Forest side is important for getting Spurs back on a winning track.

Forest are unbeaten this season and Pearce is evidently well prepared for the challenge ahead. A victory over them would be a welcome confidence boost ahead of Spurs' visit to the Emirates Stadium, a ground they have only once at since it opened in 2006—a 3-2 win almost four years ago.

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A positive result against Arsenal will not come easy, a negative one will be a further reminder of how tough it will be to qualify for the Champions League this season. Something sure to be reiterated in forthcoming games against Southampton and Manchester City.

Beating Forest and going on a good cup run will not be achieved simply either. Yet, the Capital One Cup, and later on the FA Cup, are perhaps Tottenham's best chance of enjoying notable success anytime soon.

They are good opportunities for Pochettino to try and instill a winning mentality in his relatively young team as they continue to get used to his methods. One-off games can be simpler to focus their attentions on, in comparison to the league and its overarching themes, or the near-continuous grind of the Europa League.

If Andros Townsend's comments to TottenhamHotspur.com are anything to go by, the team are keen to achieve something here too:

"

We’re making no secret about the fact we want to win something and I think the Capital One Cup is a perfect opportunity for us to go far.

Of course, the last time we won something was the League Cup back in 2008. But the manager here is building a good squad and we have strength in depth so I’m sure we have the capability in our squad to challenge not only in the Premier League but also in the Capital One Cup, the FA Cup and the Europa League.

"

With Spurs and Pochettino's grand ambitions for Champions League football, and even a title push down the line—as he told The Sun in July he "eventually" wants to do, via Sky Sports—they need to make a start somewhere.

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Judging themselves in comparison to Arsenal is not the healthiest things to necessarily do. But Arsene Wenger's side, consistently among Europe's elite and now with another trophy win to point to, are where Tottenham want to be.

Getting anywhere close to there begins with getting the better of Nottingham Forest.