EPL Preview: Arsenal vs Tottenham - North London pride up for grabs

AVB’s Spurs travel to Arsene’s Arsenal

The Emirates will host arch rivals Tottenham in the second big fixture this campaign, after United took on Chelsea last Monday. A high stakes fixture like this will either exonerate Wenger’s no-spending attitude, or it will plunge Arsenal in to a panicked eleventh hour buying spree. It is also the first tangible test that AVB’s newly reinforced squad will face. In a nutshell, it is a big game for both Arsene Wenger and Andres Villas-Boas and it will set the tone for the remaining campaign.

History

Arsenal should ideally be able to cruise through this one if one draws solely from the game gone by. The last two games at the Emirates ended in spectacular 5-2 victories for Arsenal. Spurs did pip Arsenal 3-2, back in 2010, but that was their only second victory away since the inaugural Premiership season. Overall, in 152 meetings, Arsenal have chalked up 62 wins, with Tottenham at 49 wins.

A very lively encounter, the North London derby has dazzled almost unfailingly in the recent years. One such roller coaster was the 4-4 draw at the Emirates, when Tottenham came back with 2 goals in the dying minutes to equalize. It wouldn’t be too unrealistic to expect fireworks, as Arsenal have more to prove this time, especially, since they lack the depth that Tottenham have already picked off the global shelves.

Squads

A brilliant representation of the Tottenham Hotspur squad is doing the rounds of the internet (courtesy @HotspurRelated), and it puts in to perspective how AVB has the luxury of fielding two respectable outfits at any given point in time. Their recent additions, three of which were completed yesterday, are ready to replace the ‘still outgoing’ Gareth Bale.

Tottenham’s Squad Depth

They picked up midfielder Christian Eriksen from Dutch champions Ajax for a reported £11.5 million. At 21, he has already featured in 161 games at Ajax and netted 32 goals in the last 5 years. Spurs also signed Romanian defender Vlad Chiriches and Argentina striker Erik Lamela.

Lamela, with Soldado and presumably Defoe, will ensure that the attack has enough teeth to eat in to the Arsenal backline. The summer spending has put the Tottenham bill at £105 million, way ahead of the pack in the Premiership.

Arsenal, on the other hand, have managed two free transfers in the form of Yaya Sanogo and Mathieu Flamini. Wenger, in his best moods, threatened fans to unleash Nicklas Bendtner if he fails to secure a move away from the Emirates. Wenger reportedly has upwards of £70 million to splurge on reinforcements but with the clock ticking down on him, it will certainly prove to be too late once again.

Arsenal are already weighed down immensely by injuries, inclusive of Jack Wilshere and Aaron Ramsey, who are doubtful. Lukas Podolski is out with a hamstring pull; Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is still recovering from the knock he picked on day one while Mikel Arteta, Thomas Vermaelen and Abou Diaby are on the slow road to recovery.

Tottenham only have Aaron Lennon to worry about. But as a boost to Arsenal’s defense, Laurent Koscielny is back from his one match suspension and has also recovered from the head injury he suffered against Fenerbahce.

Preview

Tottenham’s new signings might be the difference

Tottenham will be all set to take charge of the midfield, and one man to look out for will be Nacer Chadli. He has impressed immensely since his £7 million move from FC Twente, and only Chelsea’s Eden Hazard has created more chances this campaign. Same goes for Paulinho, who has taken to the Premiership like a fish to water. Etienne Capoue has performed the role of a smokescreen in front of the defense, but handling slick movement with Cazorla and Walcott will be increasingly difficult, which will only lead to more questions about his temperament.

Soldado has already scored twice in his first two appearances for his new club, but both of them came from penalties. Even though Tottenham look alarmingly mighty on paper, they haven’t been able to translate it to goals. They may have created 39 chances in the current campaign, but have failed to score from open play, which is surprising given their attacking framework. That being said, the defense has been water tight, with the sensational Hugo Lloris getting better by the game week.

A major factor that Tottenham seemed to have added to their gameplay is their ability to physically challenge an opposition. The physical aspect will certainly help them derail the home side’s strategy, or at least pull momentum.

Arsenal will certainly need to step it up a notch, if they want to replicate the 5-2 wins. With AVB’s defense, pumping 5 goals is certainly too optimistic, and Arsenal will be busy scurrying around after the ball, getting pushed around occasionally.

Aston Villa showed us why the Arsenal fort is not impenetrable, but convincing victories at Fulham and the games with Fenerbahce have restored morale. How far this carries Arsenal, without any significant signings, is still to be seen, because it may just a typical case of megalomania.

Olivier Giroud has been prolific at the Emirates, having scored 11 of his 13 goals for Arsenal in the lavish green at Ashburton Grove. Theo Walcott should be another man to watch, but it will be hard to him to play his ‘drifting wide’ game with Walker and Dawson set to be snapping at his jet fueled heels.

Szczesny, in particular, will need to pull off a spectacular game to earn a fighting chance for his team and prove to his manager his ability to be the first man on the team sheet.

Another crackling contest is on the cards, and Wenger may just regret not doing any decent transfer business. If the worst may come true, this might just prove to be this season’s 8-2 for the Gunners. AVB is all set to prove his worth a world class manager, and the transfers have at least given the Spurs a foundation to build on.

Men to Watch

Nacer Chadli and Theo Walcott

Prediction

Arsenal 1 – 2 Tottenham