Arsenal vs Tottenham Preview: Recent Form, Team News, Prediction & More

The first north London derby of the season is almost upon us and it's sure to be a cracker. 

Tottenham Hotspur travel to the Emirates to take on their bitter rivals Arsenal, where Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino will look to once again get one over his counterpart Arsene Wenger.

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Both teams have a lot to play for. For fans, everything is on the line. Points, pride, and bragging rights are all to play for here.

Here is everything you need to know going into the north London derby. 

Recent Form

Compared to what we have been used to, there has been somewhat of a role reversal between the two north London clubs. 

Tottenham have once again started their season brightly. They sit in joint second place in the Premier League table and find themselves eight points behind leaders Manchester City. 

Qualification for the last 16 of the Champions League completes Tottenham's almost perfect start to the campaign.

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And then you have Arsenal, whose recent form has been uneven to say the least. They are four points behind Spurs in sixth place after losing four of their first 11 league games. 

Pressure is growing around the players and the manager with speculation circling around the futures of star players Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez, as well as boss Arsene Wenger. But at least they have qualified for the last 32 of the Europa League, right?

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Spurs will be confident going into this one. They have won five of their last six league games. 

But Arsenal will be boosted by the knowledge that they have won their last 10 home Premier League matches. They have also scored at least two goals in their last eight home league games.

Team News

Arsene Wenger has confirmed that Danny Welbeck, Alex Iwobi, and Skhrodran Mustafi will require late fitness tests before the game, and will be unlikely to feature in this tie. Olivier Giroud has been ruled out after the Frenchman picked up a thigh injury while on international duty.

The defensive trio of Laurent Koscielny, Per Mertesacker, and Rob Holding are all expected to be fit for the clash.

Spurs have had a lot of players on the sidelines for the last couple of weeks. Toby Alderweireld remains unavailable as he recovers from a thigh injury, as does Victor Wanyama, who has only just returned to training.

But Pochettino will be boosted by the fact that Harry Winks, Hugo Lloris, Dele Alli, and Harry Kane have all returned to full training this week and are expected to be available on Saturday.

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Potential Arsenal Starting Lineup: Cech; Koscielny, Mertesacker, Monreal; Bellerin, Xhaka, Ramsey, Kolasinac; Ozil, Lacazette, Sanchez

Potential Tottenham Starting Lineup: Lloris; Dier, Sanchez, Vertonghen; Trippier, Winks, Dembele, Rose; Eriksen, Alli; Kane

Prediction

Neither team can afford to lose this one. Tottenham will be the favourites going into the North London derby, as they have been scoring for fun on the road this season.

Arsenal have been the weaker of the two sides of late, but they are a more difficult side to beat at home.

A well-fought draw may well be the result on Saturday.

Arsenal 1-1 Tottenham Hotspur