da premier bet： The Premier League’s fixture makers certainly haven’t disappointed this season, with a heavyweight clash almost every weekend. And we’ve got yet another classic in store this Sunday, as Arsenal play hosts to Tottenham Hotspur in the hotly-anticipated north London derby.
da betcris： The Gunners boast the better track record in terms of recent encounters, claiming four wins from the last six – including a 2-1 win in the Capital One Cup earlier this season. But the Lilywhites took four points from their local rivals in the Premier League last term and White Hart Lane gaffer Mauricio Pochettino clearly knows a thing or two about stopping Arsenal in their tracks.
In order to repeat the feat, however, there are several key questions the Argentine must answer first, some relating to his own team and others to the opposition. With that in mind, here’s FOUR question we at Football Fancast view as the most important.
A MORE DEFENSIVE APPROACH?
If there’s one thing every fan wants to see in a local derby, it’s their side pushing for the win. After all, victory or defeat decides whether you’ll spend the next six months humiliating or being humiliated by your mates who support the other team.
But there’s no question that Arsenal are the Premier League’s team to beat at the moment. They may be behind table-toppers Manchester City on goal difference but the Gunners’ title credentials are growing by the week, winning five Premier League fixtures in a row and three by a 3-0 score line. They’re organised, calculated and ruthless going forward.
With that in mind, and especially considering Sunday’s fixture is at the Emirates, the Lilywhites may need to take a more cautious approach. It could leave the fans frustrated for large periods of the match but simply trying to match the Gunners in all departments just won’t work. Spurs need to be a little more shrewd and make sure they don’t concede first.
Whether that requires a change in shape, tactics, personnel or simply mentality is purely Mauricio Pochettino’s call.
DOES HEUNG-MIN SON START?
Heung-Min Son has certainly impressed since arriving at White Hart Lane for a £22million fee in August, bagging three goals and one assist in his first five appearances for the Lilywhites. Many view him as one of the club’s top talents, but it may be wiser to keep him on the bench for Sunday’s visit to the Emirates.
First of all, the South Korea international has just come back from a month-long layoff due to a foot injury, receiving his first outing since September during midweek’s Europa League action – providing an assist from the bench. Is he ready to play a second game in just four days? Perhaps not.
But secondly and more importantly, other Tottenham stars have excelled in his absence. Mousa Dembele has been in fantastic form over the last few weeks, claiming three goals in his last three appearances – including a stellar strike against Anderlecht – and putting in a Man of the Match display against Liverpool. The same can be said for Erik Lamela, who is slowly beginning to resemble a £30million player, whilst Christian Eriksen’s place in the starting Xi appears to be set in stone.
Therefore, in regards to the attacking midfield slots, Spurs might be better off not trying to fix what isn’t broken for their visit to Arsenal. That being said, Son’s laden with match-winning potential and with a number of key Gunners players injured, this could well be his time to shine.
WILL POOR DISCIPLINE BE A PROBLEM?
I’m sure the vast majority of Tottenham fans are happy with the style of football Mauricio Pochettino has brought to White Hart Lane. It’s positive, fast paced, technically-demanding and aggressive.
But that latter objective has the potential to be as much a curse as a blessing, especially upon facing Arsenal this weekend. Although Spurs are yet to receive a red card this season, they’ve picked up the second-most yellows of any Premier League side, 26, and average the most fouls per match – a whopping 14.
Clearly, the positives have outweighed the potential negatives so far this season, with Tottenham boasting the second-best goals conceded record in the Premier League.
But Arsenal boast three prolific free-kick takers in Santi Cazorla, Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil, all of whom are capable of punishing the Lilywhites from dead ball situations. Likewise, Per Mertesacker, Olivier Giroud and Laurent Koscielny are all formidable aerial threats. The Gunners have already scored four times from set pieces this term and, coincidentally, they’re the fourth-most fouled side in the Premier League.
Of course, fouls are inevitable in most local derbies. In fact, it’s that level of feistiness that makes them so exciting. But the test for Spurs on Sunday will be where they concede the free kicks – Pochettino must make sure his players aren’t giving them away cheaply in dangerous areas.
HOW CAN SPURS TAKE ADVANTAGE OF ARSENAL’S INJURY PROBLEMS?
In typical Arsenal fashion, the Gunners enter the north London derby amid an eight-man injury crisis. Indeed, Hector Bellerin, Danny Welbck, Theo Walcott, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Aaron Ramsey, Tomas Rosicky and Jack Wilshere will all be absent on Sunday, whilst star centre-back Laurent Koscielny is another serious doubt.
Spurs can’t afford not to take advantage and must look to punish Arsenal in their weakest areas – the right flank particularly, with resident No.2 Bellerin and four players who all could’ve started in right midfield sidelined.
The Lilywhites have attacked in a fairly balanced manner so far this term, with 38% of their forward play coming from the left, 29% through the middle and 34% from the right, but it could be worth focusing play down Arsenal’s right on Sunday, which is likely to be occupied by Joel Campbell and Mathieu Debuchy. The duo have seen just 151 minutes’ worth of Premier League action between them this season.
Alternatively, a slight change in personnel could be in order. The aforementioned Heung-Min Son could run riot on the left if he’s fully fit for Sunday, whilst Clinton N’Jie’s pace could also cause huge problems against two players lacking match sharpness.