Tottenham Hotspur vs Arsenal - Match Preview
The claim of being the top dog of North London is a stake this late afternoon as rivals Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal meet at White Hart Lane in the live 4pm televised kick-off on Sky Sports.
Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal meet at White Hart Lane in the live 4pm televised kick-off on Sky Sports. And if history tells us anything this should be a cracker of a tie with only one solitary goalless draw between the two teams in their last 31 meetings in all competitions and goals galore in recent times. Out of all the derbies in the world, this one tends to the most open with the best free-flowing football showcased. Plus today there is the added spice of on-loan Spurs striker Emmanuel Adebayor once again tormenting Arsenal fans by playing for their bitter rivals and he's started the season off swimmingly scoring 3 in 3. Could we possibly see a repeat of his Manchester City days of running the whole length of the pitch to rub a strike into the Arsenal fans if he scores today? The North London derby is the big game of the day and it could be an early indicator as to which side is favourite to be challenging Liverpool for that fourth Champions League spot. Team News; After resting a whole host of first team players in the Europa League victory against Shamrock Rovers on Thursday night, Harry Redknapp should recall the majority of them today including the possibility of Steven Pienaar playing his first game of the season after overcoming a groin problem. Aaron Lennon faces a late fitness test on a stiff groin. Michael Dawson (achilles) and Tom Huddlestone (ankle) are out injured and another former Gunner in William Gallas is also ruled out with a calf problem. For Arsenal, Theo Walcott (knee) is likely to return to the side but there's less confidence surrounding Yossi Benayoun (thigh), Gervinho (hamstring) and Laurent Koscielny (ankle). Johan Djourou (hamstring) is definitely missing. Jack Wilshere, Abou Diaby and Thomas Vermaelen are out through ankle injury. Sebastien Squillaci returns to the squad after training with Arsenal this week. Line-ups; Tottenham (from): Gomes, Friedel, Cudicini, Bale, Kaboul, Bassong, Corluka, Walker, King, Assou-Ekotto, Rose, Parker, Modric, Livermore, Townsend, Carroll, Lennon, Kranjcar, Rose, Falque, Sandro, Pienaar, Pavlyuchenko, Defoe, Dos Santos, Adebayor, Van der Vaart. Arsenal (from): Szczesny, Sagna, Gibbs, Koscielny, Mertesacker, Song, Andre Santos, Frimpong, Arteta, Rosicky, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Ramsey, Arshavin, Gervinho, Benayoun, Squillaci, Chamakh, Walcott, van Persie, Fabianski, Park, Jenkinson, Coquelin. Predictions: 2-2 - A rip-roaring and frantic derby at White Hart Lane will end all square.