North London Derby: Arsenal v Tottenham preview

There is no love lost between these two rivals and at lunchtime on Sunday 6th November The North London Derby returns. Arsenal and Spurs will lock horns for the 178th time in the Premier League at The Emirates Stadium. The match is guaranteed to be a sell out, however you can find the last remaining few Arsenal v Tottenham tickets here.

This is one of the most eagerly anticipated fixtures in recent times as both teams look to continue their impressive starts to the season. Arsène Wenger has previously stated that he enjoys the “special emotions” that come with the north London derby. He said: “Football can give special emotions to people and you want to be part of that.”

The likes of David O’Leary, Emmanuel Adebayor and Thierry Henry have all written their names in North London Derby history and it a rivalry that runs deep in the English capital. Adebayor, William Gallas, David Bentley and Sol Campbell have all represented both Arsenal and Tottenham in recent times to add fuel to the everburning fire.

You have to go back to November 2010 for when Spurs last beat Arsenal at The Emirates. Tottenham staged a stunning 3-2 comeback to win at Arsenal for the first time in 17 years and wreck the Gunners' hopes of going top of the Premier League. Almost six years to the day, there is nothing more that Tottenham fans crave.

On that day, Samir Nasri and Marouane Chamakh put The Gunners into a two goal lead at the break as Arsene Wenger’s men dominated the early proceedings. However, the second half was a different story and Gareth Bale halved the deficit five minutes after the restart, with Rafael Van Der Vaart levelled from the spot for Spurs. Then, with five minutes remaining, The Emirates was stunned into silence when Younes Kaboul headed home the winner to send Spurs fans into delirium.

Spurs will be hoping to secure all three points to go some way to healing the disappointment of last season as they missed out on the title and capitulated to end the season without a win in their final four matches, which as a result saw Arsenal leapfrog them on the final match of the season. Meanwhile, Arsenal will be hoping to retain the local bragging rights and continue to assert their dominance over their North London rivals, who are always keen to remind them of their dominance and celebrate St Totteringham Day, the day of the season Arsenal fans celebrate the fact that Tottenham can no longer catch Arsenal in the league.

The Arsenal boss will take charge of his 47th match against Tottenham Hotspur, however the intensity and rivalry is as fierce as ever. Spurs will be itching to get revenge on their neighbours after The Gunners pipped them to second place in the Premier League and Mauricio Pochettino will be gunning for all three points after a steady start to the 2016/17 season.

Pochettino has admitted that he would’ve liked to kill his players after they finished below Arsenal last season, which further epitomises the importance and scale of the rivalry that exists between the two clubs. Spurs ended up behind the Gunners despite being above them for the vast majority of the season, thanks to a collapse in the last few games after being ruled out of the title chase. Both Arsenal and Tottenham fans have recognised each other as one of their biggest rivals and the derby is one of the fiercest in English football.

This season, Arsenal have been flying and Gunners fans are starting to believe that this season may be the one where they lay their demons to rest and finally clinch their first title since 2004. The world class talents of Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez will play a pivotal role in determining the result at The Emirates Stadium. However, the Gunners will have to deal with threats of their own in the shape of Harry Kane, Dele Alli and Christian Eriksen for Spurs. Meanwhile, Tottenham will be looking to affirm their place in the top four and secure Champions League football once again under Mauricio Pochettino as he continues to build on his ever-growing reputation in English football.

The omens are firmly in The Gunners favour having won 78 of the 183 meetings and with a more than impressive record at the Emirates. However, it is a fixture which almost guarantees goals and drama and this season should be no different. Spurs have only won three times in the past six years and they will be looking to emulate the result from February 2015 at White Hart Lane or repeat their Emirates heroics from six seasons ago.

Arsenal have only failed to score once in the past 43 North London derbies and the Spurs defence will have to be at their best if they are to put a halt to their impressive record. There is no doubt that Spurs are bridging the divide between the two clubs. Could this season finally see a change in the tide? Find out for yourself with your very own Arsenal v Tottenham tickets from Football Ticket Pad - The UK’s leading online ticketing platform.

Last 5 meetings in Premier League:

5th March 2016 - Tottenham 2-2 Arsenal

27th September 2015 - Arsenal 1-1 Tottenham

7th February 2015 - Tottenham 2-1 Arsenal

27th September 2014 - Arsenal 1-1 Tottenham

16th March 2014 - Tottenham 0-1 Arsenal

Probable Line-ups:

Arsenal: Cech, Bellerin, Koscielny, Mustafi, Monreal, Ramsey, Cazorla, Walcott, Ozil, Iwobi, Sanchez.

Tottenham: Lloris, Walker, Alderweireld, Vertonghen, Rose, Wanyama, Sissoko, Eriksen, Alli, Son, Kane.