Arsenal vs. Tottenham: Team News, Predicted Lineups, Live Stream and TV Info
The second north London derby of the season is here. On Sunday, Arsenal and Tottenham will meet at the Emirates Stadium with three precious Premier League points at stake.
The last time these two sides met, two Mathieu Flamini strikes saw Arsenal win the Capital One Cup tie. However, the league fixture could be a very different affair. In the League Cup game, Arsene Wenger and Mauricio Pochettino did not play their full XIs, but they’ll both be going all-out to win this one.
Derby days are always tense occasions, but this one feels more significant than most. Both teams are enjoying consistent league campaigns, and the struggles of Chelsea have given both north London clubs hope that they could achieve their major targets for the season. It’s improved Arsenal’s chance of lifting the title, and Spurs’ of reaching the top four and Champions League qualification.
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The north London derby always means a lot. This time round, it feels particularly significant.
Date: Sunday, November 8
Time: 4 p.m. GMT/11 a.m. ET
Location: Emirates Stadium, London
Television coverage: Sky Sports 1/Sky Sports 1 HD (U.K. only); NBCSN and Telemundo Read (U.S. only)
Streaming: Sky Go (U.K. only)
Form
Arsenal
W (2-0) vs. Bayern Munich
W (2-1) vs. Everton
L (3-0) vs. Sheffield Wednesday
W (0-3) vs. Swansea
L (5-1) vs. Bayern Munich
Tottenham
D (0-0) vs. Liverpool
L (2-1) vs. Anderlecht
W (1-5) vs. Tottenham
W (3-1) vs. Aston Villa
W (2-1) vs. Anderlecht
These two teams are currently top of the Premier League’s form table. Tottenham have not lost in the league since the opening day of the 2015/16 season, while Arsenal have won five league games on the trot, scoring 16 goals in the process and conceding just three.
Home advantage could certainly be a factor in this game. Tottenham have won just one of their last 25 games away at Arsenal—a record stretching back 22 years to 1993.
The Managers
Arsene Wenger is determined for Arsenal to bounce back from their Munich mauling with a win against Tottenham. There is good precedent for the Gunners recovering from a Champions League disappointment to secure a good league result. After losing to Olympiakos, they immediately followed up with a convincing 3-0 win over Manchester United.
Wenger is adamant Arsenal can repeat that sort of response. He said, per Arsenal.com:
"It was a disappointing result on Wednesday night but before that we did extremely well in the Premier League. We will try to continue from one competition from the other. I believe that in the Premier League we have a strong confidence and focus and that is what we want to reproduce on Sunday against Tottenham and, as always, it is a derby. It is always a game where the commitment and nervous force will be important.
"
Tottenham had a European fixture of their own to contend with against Anderlecht, but Mauricio Pochettino is determined not to use that as any excuse come Sunday. He told Paul Doyle of the Guardian:
"It is true that our opponents have an advantage because they have one day more to prepare and recover but we cannot complain and we need to be ready. We need to be strong in our minds and try to win the game because we know what the derby means.
We are very strong in our minds and the way we showed character [against Anderlecht] and on Monday shows that we are ready to compete in a good way and will try 100% to win the game.
"
As good as Spurs have been in recent weeks, they’ll know they need to be at 100 percent to overturn an in-form Arsenal side.
Team News
Arsenal
Arsenal’s squad is in the depths of their annual injury crisis. Wenger is understandably concerned, per the BBC:
"At the moment we have too many players out. I am very concerned, honestly, because we are only in November and we have so many players out knowing we go into the Christmas period soon."
The latest to join the growing injury list is Spanish full-back Hector Bellerin, who will not recover in time to face Tottenham. That will mean another start for Mathieu Debuchy, who has recently struggled to reproduce the form he initially showed after joining from Newcastle.
With the likes of Aaron Ramsey, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Theo Walcott all still absent, Costa Rican Joel Campbell should be called upon to continue on the right-hand side. After scoring on his first Premier League start against Swansea last weekend, he’ll know there’s an opportunity to become a bona-fide folk hero by repeating the feat against Spurs.
Predicted Arsenal XI (4-2-3-1): Petr Cech; Mathieu Debuchy, Per Mertesacker, Laurent Koscielny, Nacho Monreal; Francis Coquelin, Santi Cazorla; Joel Campbell, Mesut Ozil, Alexis Sanchez; Olivier Giroud
Tottenham
Left-back Danny Rose suffered a knock against Aston Villa last weekend, but he is expected to be fit to take his place ahead of Welshman Ben Davies.
Pochettino is largely expected to keep faith with the side that beat Villa after rotating his squad for the midweek Europa League game.
Korean forward Son Heung-min made his comeback as a substitute against Anderlecht on Thursday after six weeks out, but he is not expected to make an immediate return to the starting lineup.
Predicted Tottenham XI (4-2-3-1): Hugo Lloris; Kyle Walker, Toby Alderweireld, Jan Vertonghen, Danny Rose; Eric Dier, Dele Alli; Erik Lamela, Moussa Dembele, Christian Eriksen; Harry Kane
Players to Watch
Arsenal: Mesut Ozil
German playmaker Ozil is arguably the form player in the Premier League. His creative powers seem to be approaching their peak, and it’s almost certain he will hold the key to unlocking an improving Tottenham defence.
The loss of Theo Walcott has been partly assuaged by the form of Olivier Giroud, and it is Ozil who has provided the assists for each of his last three Premier League goals. It’s vital Tottenham find a way to stop that blossoming partnership.
Tottenham: Harry Kane
After a slow start to the season, Kane has found his form in considerable style. After scoring twice in just 14 games, he has responded with a run of five goals in five league appearances.
He has now scored 21 Premier League goals in the calendar year of 2015. Two of those came in last season’s derby at White Hart Lane, when a late header allowed Tottenham to complete a 2-1 comeback victory.
Kane will hope to replicate that feat at the Emirates Stadium and further cement his place in Tottenham folklore.
James McNicholas is Bleacher Report's lead Arsenal correspondent and is following the club from a London base throughout 2015/16. Follow him on Twitter here.
