Match Preview: Arsenal v Tottenham; Hoping for an early St. Totteringham’s gift.

Eerily, I wasn’t worried about this match until the final whistle of the Chelsea v Aston Villa tie.  Before that I figured Chelsea would win and we would win trying to keep the gap down. Now, with Aston Villa seemingly aiding everyone in the top 4, Arsenal have a shot at getting back into title race by taking care of business against Tottenham.

When you look at the match, you have to ask yourself which side is worse off. Arsenal are suffering a rash of injuries and our squad size has left us a little tired. Tottenham are doing what Tottenham do best and being their own worst enemy. Neither club comes into this match without a plethora of questions and issues.

When the season started the narrative was that it would be Arsenal who would chase Tottenham for a top 4 spot. Spurs had spent their Gareth Bale money wisely and rebuilt the team while Arsenal were signing (at the time) Mathieu Flamini. The first match, the following weeks and the FA Cup tie put the gap into perspective and it proved that Tottenham’ s rise and Arsenal’s fall were greatly exaggerated.

Arsenal went on to force themselves into the title picture and Tottenham were struggling to stay in the top 4 race. Throw in Spurs changing managers and it’s easy to see why we in Arsenal don’t feel we’re ceding the power in North London any time soon.

We head into this match with the race for silverware still very much on and having made a good show of it in Germany. The worry in Germany was that if we got soundly beaten it would have a negative knock-on effect and hurt the boys as they squared off against our derby rivals.

The injury to Mesut Özil is a blow and no one knows when he will be back. It could be 3 weeks, it could be six. But for the most part Arsenal have their pride intact and aren’t (hopefully) experiencing any lingering effects from getting knocked out of the Champion’s League.

Tottenham, were complete shambles on Thursday night in the Europa league at their own home. Benfica outclassed them Tim Sherwood was wanting tactically. It created further evidence of the gulf between the two.

But all that has to get thrown out the window. This is a derby. Pride should and could matter more today than anything else. We’ve gotten the best of them in two matches already.. Early in the season we had the 1-0 at home and then our first FA Cup tie of the year was an emphatic 2-0 win where we simply showed who was boss.

Arsenal would love to take the third and final match of the season, especially on their ground where it hasn’t been especially easy to play. The heartbreak of last season’s visit was the catalyst for the focus that carried the team through the final third of the year and on to Champion’s League qualification. The world isn’t currently falling apart for Arsenal at the moment, but if we want to stay with the title chasing pack then today needs a similar focus.

The Starting XI are devoid of some of our biggest names but it’s still a pretty good and strong group of players.  The question for us will be can that XI get it done with minimal use of a bench that will seem rather light in face of all the injuries.

The talent is there in this group to get it done.  The question that remains is, have the missteps of late affected the team negatively to the point where they are coming back to reality. Or is the mental toughness of the early season and early year what this team is all about.

One thing for sure, we’ll find out either way today.

Projected lineups:
Injuries & Suspensions:
Arsenal: Diaby (knee), Walcott (knee), Özil (hamstring), Ramsey (thigh), Wilshere (foot),  Gibbs (calf – test)

Tottenham: Capoue (ankle), Chiriches (back), Dawson (hamstring), Lamela (thigh), Dembélé (hamstring – test), Walker (pelvis – test)

Match Officials:
Referee: Mike Dean (19 matches, 73Y, 4R, 5Pk)
Assistant Referees: Collin, McDonough
Fourth Official: Marriner

Head to Head:

Broadcast Information
UK: Sky Sports 1 16.00 GMT

US: NBC Sports Network: 12:00 PM EST

YAMA Prediction
Tottenham 1 – 2 Arsenal

Match Facts (courtesy FourFourTwo)

• Tottenham have kept four clean sheets in their last five Barclays Premier League home games but shipped five against Man City in the other match.
• Arsenal have kept only one clean sheet in their last seven Barclays Premier League away games and have won none of the last three (D1 L2).
• Spurs have had loss/loss results in their last five home defeats against top-six teams
• Only Liverpool v Newcastle (126) has seen more goals than Arsenal v Tottenham (125) in Premier League history.
• Emmanuel Adebayor has scored more goals than any other player in north London derby history (10 – eight for Arsenal and two for Spurs).
• Spurs have had more goals in the second half in their last five matches against top-six teams
• Arsenal have won none of the last five Premier League north London derbies at White Hart Lane (W0 D2 L3) with all three defeats by a 1-2 scoreline.
• Per Mertesacker has scored in two of his last three Premier League games against Spurs.
• Arsenal have had both teams scoring in their last six away matches against top-six teams
• Olivier Giroud has scored the opening goal in seven different Premier League matches this season; more often than any other player.
• Tottenham have kept just one clean sheet in their last 30 Premier League north London derbies (Feb 2009).
• Spurs have had 2-1 scorelines in their last four home wins against Arsenal
• Tottenham are seeking their 50th league win over the Gunners. Arsenal have won 63 and there have been 41 draws.
• Tottenham have made 13 errors leading to goal in the Premier League this season, three more than any other side. Three of them came last weekend against Chelsea.