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The second North London Derby of the English Premier League season is set to take place on Saturday at Tottenham's home stadium, Wembley. With the 28th matchday over, Arsenal are just 4 points behind their arch-rivals Tottenham, who sit 3rd in the league table.
On Wednesday, Tottenham registered a shambolic 2-0 defeat against an out-of-form Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. Tottenham's approach to the NLD would not be as confident as Arsenal's, but they would certainly look to seal a victory over their rivals in order to get their season back on track.
Arsenal will also be eager to bag the three points as Manchester United are in a great form since the change of managers and are just a point behind. The Red Devils are playing Southampton at home this weekend. If the Gunners lose, they risk dropping to fifth place. Whereas a win for Arsenal would mean they are just a point behind Tottenham after matchday 29. Given the recent performances from both sides, here are four reasons why Arsenal will take the three points against Spurs.
#4 Arsenal's incredible current form
Though Tottenham are above Arsenal in the league table, it is Arsenal who are the favourites to win the North London derby as they are coming into this game with 7 goals scored in their last two Premier League games. Whereas Tottenham will take on Arsenal after back to back defeats in the Premier League; 2-1 against Burnley and 2-0 against Chelsea.
However, a derby is always full of surprises. Mauricio Pochettino's ability to motivate and inspire his squad will do the trick for Tottenham, whereas the Gunners will have to rely on their defence to hold that lethal attacking duo of Harry Kane and Son Heung-min.
Arsenal have won five of their last six Premier League games, so that tells fans Arsenal are not in the mood to drop points at Wembley. They could bring their great form over to Wembley and seal victory there.
#3 Back-to-back defeats for Tottenham in EPL
On one side, there is an incredibly motivated and determined Arsenal. On the other side, Tottenham are going into the game with back to back defeats against Burnley and Chelsea.
They may have a world class squad, but they are certainly are not in their best form right now. The loss to Burnley seemed to have taken away some of their confidence. At one point, the Lilywhites were regarded as title contenders, but if they lose to the Gunners, fans could see them struggle for the top four.
The derby has been one of the most renowned derbies across the globe. The intensity, the passion and the determination to thrash the opposition is unmatchable. Tottenham have to prepare mentally for this game. On paper, they are a much superior side compared to Arsenal, but the Gunners have that upper hand when it comes to mentality.
We have seen Arsenal come from a goal down to win the derby with a scoreline of 4-2 earlier in the season. Unai Emery's team talks at half-time have been magical and the Gunners tend to be more influential in the second-half. Pochettino's men have a huge task, and if they fail, it could mark the downfall of the club this season.
#2 The return of Mesut Ozil and Henrikh Mkhitaryan
Mkhitaryan played his first game against BATE in Bulgaria, after being sidelined for almost two months due to a metatarsal fracture. Arsenal lost to BATE Borisov in the first leg of the Round of 32 in the Europa League, which sent shockwaves across the social media and questions were asked about the Gunners' mentality in away games and Emery's tactics.
However, in the second leg, they comfortably strolled past the same side defeating them 3-0 at home. In that game, everyone witnessed the inclusion of Mkhitaryan and Ozil. Mkhitaryan is becoming a key player for Emery and so is Ozil's confidence returning.
Since the victory against Bate, it seems that Ozil has gotten his confidence back and Emery trusts him to be consistent for Arsenal. Though he was benched against Southampton on Sunday, Ozil played a brilliant role as a substitute. Eventually, he got his start against Bournemouth on Wednesday and the German ended the game bagging a goal and an assist.
Arsenal look like a different team when Ozil is in the starting line up. With Mkhitaryan, Aubameyang and Lacazette all playing, they can score against the best of defences. Mkhitaryan has bagged two goals and three assists in his last two games. The Arsenal forwards are in hot form, and it would not be surprising to see Tottenham concede a couple of goals against this rejuvenated Arsenal side.
#1 Unai Emery's tactical brilliance
One can never predict how Arsenal are gonna line up for a particular game. Emery does not have a fixed starting eleven. Throughout the season, he has continuously rotated the squad, depending upon the opposition.
Against Tottenham at the Emirates, Unai Emery played a 3-man defence and scored 4 past Spurs. Against Chelsea, he played a 4-4-2 and registered a comfortable 2-0 win. Very often, Emery has switched to a 4-2-3-1, which appears to be his favourite formation.
The players have not shown difficulty in adjusting to various systems and therefore, Emery has the freedom to select the perfect formation for the Gunners without having the fear of dropping points.
The manager is fast transforming his team to play more attacking football, have possession of the ball and start playing from the back. When they take the lead, the players drop back and attack lethally on counters. Emery is building a team who can not only hold possession and attack steadily but can also attack efficiently in quick transitions.
Predicted Arsenal XI: Leno, Mustafi, Sokratis, Koscielny, Kolasinac, Lichsteiner, Xhaka, Torreira, Mkhitaryan, Aubameyang, Iwobi.
Predicted Tottenham XI: Lloris, Vertonghen, Alderweireld, Sanchez, Rose, Aurier, Sissoko, Eriksen, Winks, Son, Kane
Prediction: Tottenham 1 - 4 Arsenal
