Preview: Arsenal vs Tottenham Hotspur – Prediction, Team News & Line-ups

Sunday’s Premier League high-stakes fixture pits two local rivals against each other as Arsenal trade tackles with Tottenham Hotspur at Emirates Stadium in the first North London derby of the season. Fans looking to attend this massive London derby can buy Arsenal vs Tottenham tickets at Seatsnet.com ahead of the exciting encounter.

The Gunners will head into the highly anticipated clash brimming with confidence, having marked their Champions League return with an inspiring 4-0 victory over PSV Eindhoven.

First-half goals from Bukayo Saka, Leandro Trossard, and Gabriel Jesus all but ensured maximum points for Mikel Arteta’s side before captain Martin Odegaard added the icing on the cake with a second-half strike.

It had been six years since the Gunners last featured in the elite tournament, and Arteta couldn’t have asked for a better performance on his Champions League managerial debut.

The impressive triumph over the Eredivisie giants extended Arsenal’s winning streak to three games on the bounce following consecutive Premier League victories over Manchester United and Everton.

Arteta’s side picked up a convincing 3-1 victory over their old foes Man United, but were made to work even harder for their narrow 1-0 success over relegation candidates Everton.

Determined to keep tabs on defending champions Manchester City, Arsenal have picked up 13 points from their opening five fixtures, putting them just two points behind their Manchester counterparts.

Arteta’s side are one of only four Premier League teams to maintain an unbeaten start to the season, alongside Sunday’s opponents and their eternal rivals, Tottenham.

The Lilywhites have enjoyed a revolutionary campaign thus far under the leadership of Australian manager Ange Postecoglou and boast an identical points tally to their North London foes.

After kicking off their Premier League season with a 2-2 London derby draw against Brentford, a Carabao Cup third-round exit against Fulham represents the only blip on Spurs’ otherwise near-perfect record.

Postecouglou’s side will stroll to the Emirates on the back of four Premier League wins on the bounce after making light work of Man United, Bournemouth, and Burnley.

However, they had to put in a tremendous amount of effort to secure victory against the newly promoted Sheffield United, with Richarlison and Dejan Kulusevski scoring two stoppage-time goals in a span of just two minutes.

The Brazilian had come under a lot of scrutiny following his underwhelming performances earlier in the season and was relegated to the bench for the clash with Heung-Min Son leading the line.

However, his 80th-minute introduction changed the game as he bagged his first league goal of the season before turning provider just minutes later, setting up Kulusevski for the winning goal.

Richarlison’s performance will undoubtedly provide a much-needed confidence boost as he prepares to face Arsenal, considering he has only scored twice in his last 11 meetings with the Gunners.

Having to beat Arsenal at the Emirates could prove an uphill task for Tottenham, given their forgettable record against the Gunners in that stadium. Nonetheless, the Postecoglou era has brought a renewed sense of optimism.

Sunday’s fixture marks the first league meeting between Arsenal and Tottenham with both sides still unbeaten heading into the match since September 1990. 

Although the pair settled for a goalless draw at Highbury 33 years ago, one of them is likely to relinquish their unbeaten status this time, considering they have shared the spoils just twice in their last 13 Premier League meetings.

MATCH PREVIEW

ARSENAL

After coming out on top in their previous two meetings with Tottenham, Arsenal will be eager to make it three in a row when Postecoglou’s high-flying side arrives at the Emirates.

The Gunners have only scored more Premier League goals against Everton (76) on home turf than they have against Tottenham (63) – while Spurs have only conceded more away goals against Liverpool (64) than at the Gunners in the division.

Not since 1989 have Arsenal won three consecutive league games against Tottenham but winning four of their last five league meetings with their local rivals (L1) should bolster confidence in achieving the feat.

Arteta has won all three of his home league games against Tottenham as Arsenal boss – another victory will earn him a seat alongside Terry Neill as the only managers to win each of their first four home North London derby fixtures in charge of the Gunners.

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR

Tottenham’s woeful record at the Emirates has seen them record just one victory in their last 30 league trips to Arsenal (D11, L18).

They last won a league game on Arsenal’s turf 13 years ago, overcoming the Gunners 3-2 in November 2010, but are winless in 12 trips since (D4, L8).

Perhaps the air of change from the Postecoglou era could also set that record straight, and Tottenham will back themselves to cause Arsenal problems, having scored at least twice in their five games so far.

Falling behind may not be enough to break Spurs, considering only Liverpool (9) have won more league points from losing positions than Postecoglou’s side (7) this season.

However, Spurs have managed comeback victories in their last two fixtures, but doing it three times in a row is a feat never achieved by the North London side.

TEAM NEWS

Thomas Partey, Mohamed Elneny, and Jurrien Timber remain sidelined with long-term injuries, and Gabriel Martinelli’s availability remains uncertain.

Considering recent defensive performances, there are unlikely to be any changes in the Gunners’ backline, with David Raya expected to retain his place in goal.

On the other hand, Tottenham confirmed earlier this week that Ivan Perisic sustained a “complex” anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury in training and will be out for the rest of the season.

Rodrigo Bentancur is still in the process of recovering from an ACL injury, while Bryan Gil is expected to be sidelined until October. Fortunately, there are no additional injury concerns for Spurs at this time.

ARSENAL POTENTIAL STARTING LINE-UP:

(4-3-3): David Raya; Ben White, William Saliba, Gabriel Magalhaes, Oleksandr Zinchenko; Martin Odegaard, Declan Rice, Fabio Vieira; Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Jesus, Leandro Trossard.

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR POTENTIAL STARTING LINE-UP:

(4-3-3): Guglielmo Vicario; Pedro Porro, Cristian Romero, Micky Van de Ven, Destiny Udogie; Yves Bissouma, Pape Matar Sarr, James Maddison; Dejan Kulusevski, Richarlison, Heung-Min Son.

WE SAY: ARSENAL 2-2 TOTTENHAM

Having been spared the added demands of European football, Tottenham enter the fixture with a potential freshness advantage over Arsenal. Nevertheless, securing a victory at the Emirates may prove to be a challenging endeavor.

Spurs are currently riding a wave of momentum under Postecoglou so we expect a high-scoring contest, especially considering this fixture has witnessed at least two goals in each of their last ten meetings.