Arsenal vs. Tottenham: Key Issues That Will Shape North London Derby

Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur contest the season's first north London derby on Saturday evening.

After decent but inconsistent starts to their respective Premier League campaigns, the match is an opportunity for a notable boost heading into the second full month of the season.

The Gunners won all three derbies last season (one was in the FA Cup third round), with Arsene Wenger getting the better of two Tottenham managers in the process. Mauricio Pochettino is the latest to try his luck against the Frenchman, 18 years into his reign across the city.

"I know it’s a very important game because it means a lot for our supporters and for us too," Pochettino told his pre-match press conference on Thursday. "It’s a derby, we need to go focused and we know how we need to play to try get the three points."

That supposed know-how will be tested in a raucous atmosphere at the Emirates Stadium. Read on for the key issues that could shape this match.

Quotes obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.

Can Spurs Break Down Arsenal's Defence After Their Struggles Against West Brom?

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Will Tottenham's attack, perhaps including Nacer Chadli, be able to get away from the attentions of the Gunners?

Tottenham's attack was decidedly uninspired against West Bromwich Albion last week. Their seven shots, one on target, was less than even the visitors managed, per BBC Sport.

That particular statistic was not quite so bad in their three games with Arsenal last season. Only in the last meeting, though—March's 1-0 defeat at White Hart Lane—did they really threaten.

This writer reflected at the time: "With [Nacer] Chadli operating predominantly centrally and [Andros] Townsend wide right, Arsenal struggled to keep tabs on the pair's incisive and purposeful dribbling in the middle third."

Despite some decent build-up play, Spurs' lack of quality in front of goal hurt, especially as they also came up against an Arsenal defence at its unyielding best.

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Arsenal made 66 clearances today against Spurs, the most they've made in a Premier League game this season. pic.twitter.com/JA1tnn3uOj

— Squawka Football (@Squawka) March 16, 2014"

Centre-back pairing Per Mertesacker and Laurent Koscielny have stood up well to Spurs in recent times, the motivation of beating their rivals evidently serving them well. With Calum Chambers and Kieran Gibbs likely to be either side of them at full-back, the Gunners back-four should be a tough nut to crack again (as they also were against Aston Villa last weekend).

Performances like the recent defeat by Borussia Dortmund show they are not perfect. For a Spurs team struggling to find a satisfactory consistent approach in forward areas, however, they should still be the toughest defence the Lilywhites have faced this season.

After Tottenham's midweek 3-1 win over Nottingham Forest, Pochettino could reward the positivity shown by Townsend and Harry Kane in that win. Whether he does, or tries to get the best out of recent league starters like Emmanuel Adebayor and Chadli, Spurs breaking Arsenal down will require a far better effort than they showed against the Baggies.

The Midfield Battle

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Aaron Ramsey has continued his fine form this season.

Arsene Wenger confirmed via Arsenal's official website that Mathieu Flamini could be available for Saturday's match.

This week the Gunners boss has also been talking up possibly using Abou Diaby "in a deeper role", as per The Telegraph's Jeremy Wilson. The defensive side of his midfield is obviously not far from his mind, even if he did not get around to reinforcing the position in the transfer window.

While it remains an issue for Arsenal's long-term health in the hunt for trophies, Wenger will likely be confident his midfield has enough to deal with their Tottenham counterparts. Especially on home turf.

The possible threat of Christian Eriksen and Erik Lamela instigating and leading Spurs from there will not be overlooked.

Although Aston Villa's Gabriel Agbonlahor plays further forward, he demonstrated on a few occasions that you can have a little joy running at Arsenal. Aaron Ramsey was booked for illegally stopping one of these runs and Lamela particularly might fancy being a similar nuisance.

Arsenal under Wenger have never shied away from a "do it to them, before they do it to us" philosophy, though. It was seen at its glorious best in last March's north London derby when Tomas Rosicky finished a fine Arsenal counter-attack in spectacular fashion, after just two minutes had been played.

Save for Spurs' 2-1 home win in 2013, Arsenal have had the better of the midfield battles in the previous few games. They have done enough to absorb Spurs' own threat, and then exploded back at them, with the skill of Rosicky and Santi Cazorla and the speed of Theo Walcott (among other things) causing no shortage of problems.

Led by Ramsey and Mesut Ozil, Arsenal's passing and movement from midfield was near impossible for Villa to resist a week ago.

Be it Etienne Capoue, Mousa Dembele or whoever Pochettino fields, Spurs' midfield will be in for a long evening if they do not work to stop these players in their tracks as soon as they get the ball.

Will Welbeck Expose Spurs' Defensive Uncertainties?

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The name that has been on many people's lips in football this past month.

Danny Welbeck was the third man in the Ozil/Ramsey axis that ripped Villa apart in a three-and-a-half-minute first-half spell a week ago. The England forward highlighted the sides of his game Arsenal will hope become increasingly prominent features of their team's play.

Outside the box Welbeck was well comfortable as part of his team-mates' quick, often hypnotic interchanges. His own pace and trickery on the ball a worthy companion piece, tying defenders in knots and luring them out of position.

He set up Ozil's opener, and soon after was in the penalty area to return the favour. The 23-year-old's finishing may not be the most clinical ever seen in the red of Arsenal, but along with his movement it is dangerous enough that it should not be discounted by any opponent.

If the uncertainty of Tottenham's defence against both West Brom and Nottingham Forest persists this weekend, Welbeck will fancy his chances of adding to his Arsenal tally.

Neither the Younes Kaboul/Vlad Chiriches or Federico Fazio/Jan Vertonghen partnerships looked particularly solid in those respective games.

Kaboul mopped up most of what the Baggies offered, but then got caught ball-watching when an unmarked James Morrison eventually scored. Chiriches looked nervy and took a few too many risks on the ball than was ideal.

Fazio is still settling in after his move from Sevilla, but was clearly still getting to know Vertonghen as a defensive partner against Forest. Whether Pochettino sticks or twists in defence, there are going to be issues an alert Welbeck and friends could take advantage of.

It will be intriguing, too, to see if the Argentinian reins in likely full-back pair Eric Dier and Danny Rose. Balancing his desire to see them contribute in attack with the need to be ready for Arsenal is a dilemma not easily solved.

Spurs Need to Show They Can Fight Pochettino's Good Fight

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Mauricio Pochettino has urged Tottenham to fight for every ball.

Following on from the underwhelming nature of their performance against West Brom, and a similarly tepid opening hour versus Nottingham Forest, above all else Tottenham need to show they are up for the challenge of Arsenal.

In his pre-match briefing, Pochettino was well aware of what is required for a derby game. He talked up the need "to be aggressive and focused, and you need to show all that you have inside."

A veteran of some considerable rivalry games himself—Paris Saint-Germain and Marseille, Espanyol and Barcelona, Newell's Old Boys and Rosario Central—the 42-year-old certainly has experience here, and made clear what he and the Spurs supporters will want to see.

"Now it is our responsibility to fight in every ball. After the whistle, if we’re fighting the victory might arrive for us. But we need to fight. Our supporters expect that of us, that we fight in the game."

As the previous pages have noted, Tottenham have issues to contend with against Arsenal that will not be made hunky-dory with just a rallying cry. They will almost certainly have been pumped up in last season's north London derbies, but still largely underperformed.

What is certain, though, is they will not beat Arsenal without an upping of the effort and meagre desire that was seen at White Hart Lane last weekend.

Arsenal fans have called into question their own team here several times in recent years, especially in big games with title or Champions League consequences. Spurs games have generally been the exception.

That superiority—as it is felt, and in reality—will not be beaten unless Tottenham show they are willing to fight.

It has been seen a little already this season, in the way they held on and eventually beat another London rival in West Ham United on opening day. Against Arsenal, they are going to need even more.