There's a lot of time - nearly two weeks, in fact - until Tottenham Hotspur face Arsenal FC in the North London Derby on Nov. 23 at the Emirates Stadium, but, as of right now, Spurs will be coming into that matchup as major underdogs.
Once again, Spurs couldn't get the job done this past weekend in the Premier League, dropping more points with a 2-2 draw against Manchester United. Although Man United have improved markedly over the past few weeks, this was a game Spurs should have won. They had even come back after inspired performances off the bench from young forwards Wilson Odobert and Mathys Tel, but a brief moment of madness and poor marking in the final minutes doomed Spurs.
That said, Odobert's and Tel's strong displays in the last half hour will be key takeaways for Frank and the club to bring with them into the derby. These two stepped up when the others didn't in the absence of Mohammed Kudus, who has quickly become the second most important player on the team after world-class center back Cristian Romero.
Tottenham can't lose him vs. Arsenal
Kudus has been sorely missed these last couple of weeks with an unspecified injury, and with Randal Kolo Muani now likely out for a few weeks with a jaw injury, Spurs doubly can't afford the Ghanaian to be out for the North London Derby.
According to Thomas Frank himself, via The Spurs Express, he is "very confident" the young right winger will be out there for Tottenham next, next Sunday against Arsenal, ready to be available and fully recovered from this ailment.
Spurs will be going up against an Arsenal back line that is so good it is approaching historic levels, and without their most dynamic threat and wide creator, it could be a long day. Tel, Odobert, and maybe even Xavi Simons are capable of cooking some quality, but against a team like Arsenal, no Kudus would be almost akin to showing up to lose, given they've had matches in the past approaching 0.00 xG.
Tottenham fans remember that 0.05 xG performance the previous weekend against Chelsea in their first real derby (apologies West Ham) of the 2025/26 season under Frank, and repeating that kind of performance against Arsenal would be an embarrassment almost beyond reproach. So Spurs fans getting word from Frank that Kudus is in line to return is massive, because it's a sign of hope.