Tottenham vs Arsenal – Most Significant North London Derby in Decades

As Tottenham and Arsenal prepare to lock horns on Sunday afternoon at White Hart Lane we are possibly looking at the most significant north London derby in decades. ‘Times, they are a-changin’ in north London – slowly but could this be the year when Tottenham end decades of Arsenal dominance.

Andre Villas-Boas looking to strengthen Spurs league position. [Photo: Jav The_DoC_66]The Tottenham vs Arsenal derby  used to be one of the most important matches in the football calendar, not just in terms of local bragging rights but with regards to their final League placing and claiming the mantle of ‘top London club’. Throughout much of the Premier League era, however, Tottenham have lanquished far behind their local rivals, finishing above them on only two occasions, with the last being in 1994-95 when Gerry Francis’ team which included Jurgen Klinsmann and Teddy Sheringham finished 7th to Arsenal’s 12th.

from bleacherreport.com

In recent seasons, as the gap between Tottenham and Arsenal has narrowed the match has reclaimed its position of importance. The N5 club, however, have shown a stubborn resistance to the Tottenham challenge for their top spot in north London. As far back as 2006, Martin Jol’s team worked at a slight chink in the Arsenal armoury, holding 4th place for much of the season. There was a late chance to take full advantage in what was the last derby at Highbury, but a late Arsenal equaliser meant the contest for the Champions League finish rolled on to the final day of the season and Tottenham’s infamous ‘Lasagne-gate’ defeat at West Ham.

There have been occasions when Arsenal have come into the ‘derby’ game not in the best of form, giving Tottenham some belief that they might be able to take advantage. Arsene Wenger, however, somehow managed to galvanise his team into getting a result to stop Tottenham in their tracks. Recent results in the ‘derby’ have shown that Tottenham have reached a level where they are capable of competing in the challenge to end Arsenal’s supremacy. Two wins and two draws from the last Premier League matches at White Hart Lane with a win at the Emirates in 2010 show the change that there’s been in the local rivalry. Tottenham, however, owe the fans a big performance following the last two results at the Emirates where Arsenal have run away with the game after Spurs had established an early supremacy. Tottenham mustn’t allow this to happen on a third occasion.

Last season’s defeat at the Emirates was the start of Tottenham’s decline through the latter stage of the season, allowing Arsenal to recover from a seemingly impossible position. For the brief period, before half-time, when Tottenham held the two goal advantage at Arsenal twelve months ago, if the score had remained unchanged, they were looking at a 13 point lead in the race for the Champions League. From that point on, everything seemed to conspire against Spurs as they ultimately ended up in the Europa League. This season Spurs managed to shoot themselves in the foot at the Emirates when Emmanuel Adebayor was sent off for a rash challenge so early in the game having put Spurs ahead.

Last season Tottenham knew that a result at the Emirates would have have given them an almost unassailable advantage over their neighbours but the defeat revitalised Arsenal’s season in their annual quest to ensure qualification for UEFA’s top money-making competition. This year the contest is much closer and both clubs have been stressing the importance of the game. Tottenham want to move on in their upward climb having snatched 3rd place from Chelsea after Monday’s evening’s win at Upton Park. When interviewed after the game about the prospect of achieving 2nd place Andre Villas-Boas spoke of Tottenham’s aim to secure their position over their rivals. He was reported in a London24 web-site report,

"“We just have to keep getting points……..We face Arsenal Sunday and it is a big opportunity to build the distance to them and that is first on our minds. Our priority is to establish our position and hopefully get more comfortable distance to Chelsea and Arsenal.”"

Arsenal are aware that they can’t afford to allow Tottenham to increase their advantage with only 10 matches remaining  to the end of the season after this weekend’s games and Arsene Wenger was quoted in the Metro,

"“The game on Sunday will have a psychological importance for the rest of the season……We cannot drop points. Every game is a must-win game.”"

Every Tottenham fan will be hoping that Spurs can achieve the win at White Hart Lane that will establish a lead over Arsenal in the battle for Champions League but are well aware that one win won’t make the season. The race is not over and Tottenham face a considerable challenge in the coming months if their ‘goal’ for Andre Villas- Boas’ first season in charge is to be fully realised.