We rarely see eye-to-eye with our fierce north London rivals.
As your old man probably laments, the hatred isn't quite as prevalent as it once was, with social media's influence reducing the online rivalry to childish point-scoring among supporters.
Nevertheless, few can argue that the North London Derby remains one of the most watchable fixtures not only in England's but Europe's football calendar, even if it's reverted to its ugly, one-sided self in recent years.
While Tottenham are slumming it out in the depths of despair, Mikel Arteta's project has ascended the Gunners to bridesmaid status. They ought to have walked the Premier League this season, but find themselves locked in a battle with Pep Guardiola's Manchester City down the stretch, which rarely ends well.
Moreover, Arsenal's admittedly excellent European record under Arteta has continued this term. Atlético Madrid separate them from facing football's answer to the Harlem Globetrotters in next month's Champions League final.
Arsenal join Tottenham in complaining about Atléti's pitch
The first pictures of the Atletico Madrid pitch have come out ahead of their fixture vs Arsenal tonight. pic.twitter.com/sa96WRyImT
— Toshi.bet 🈺 (@ToshiBet) April 29, 2026
The first leg of their semi-final was never going to match the all-timer that came the night before, but Wednesday's clash in Madrid was pretty intriguing and, of course, marred by refereeing controversy. Match official Danny Makkelie, by the way, was the bloke who played a part in ruling out Harry Kane's perfectly legal goal at the last against Sporting CP in 2022.
As Spurs discovered recently, this Atlético Madrid team is not a vintage Diego Simeone outfit. They're swashbuckling going forward, but defensively porous. We were blown away at the Metropolitano in the opening leg of our round of 16 tie in February. However, a slippery surface most definitely played a role in our demise (and the most humiliating night for young goalkeeper Antonín Kinsky).
The club complained about an over-watered pitch after the event, having also seen Barcelona suffer in the Copa del Rey weeks before.
Arsenal seemingly weren't going to allow the playing surface to compromise their continental dream, as they lodged a complaint to UEFA about the state of Atléti's pitch before Wednesday's game. According to The Athletic, they were concerned about the length of the grass and the watering of the surface.
It certainly wasn't a major factor, with our foes earning a 1-1 draw that supposedly hands them the advantage ahead of the return leg. However, I'm sure the nervy Emirates will find a way to embolden Simeone's men in north London. This isn't a great Atléti team, but there's a sense of destiny about them.
I fancy their chances next week, but I also thought Thomas Frank would guide Spurs to a fifth-place Premier League finish.
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