High stakes in North London Derby

Opinion

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This article was published 13/09/2024 (359 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

How to define Sunday’s North London Derby… Nerve-racking? Must-win? Weird?

Yes.

This latest encounter of archrivals Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal (Sunday, 8 a.m., FuboTV) will be unlike anything most fans of either club have ever seen. Literally.

In a funny-to-everyone-else development, the very serious Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) has banned Arsenal wearing their traditional red shirt for a Tottenham match — something that hasn’t happened in almost 40 years. It has “too much white,” apparently, and therefore “clashes” with their opponents’ home kit.

Depending on how you look at it, the PGMOL, having given up trying to properly execute VAR, is turning its attention to men’s fashion (presumably footwear is next); that, or Arsenal are really, really desperate to be Spurs.

Assuming it’s not the latter, the much-anticipated showdown has taken on an element of the very silly. What with the anxious build-up that inevitably accompanies North London Derbies, this unexpected bit of levity has provided a rather awkward emotional juxtaposition as kick-off approaches.

Not that the Gunners should be expected to find it, or anything, all that amusing in the aftermath of the tragedy (or three-week injury – again, depending how you look at it) that recently befell ace midfielder Martin Odegaard. Too soon. TOO SOON!

No, the Arsenal nerves are much too frayed for humour these days. This was supposed to be the season they finally got over the hump and won the Premier League title. To be fair, with Odegaard sidelined and Declan Rice suspended, in addition to the injury absences of Mikel Merino, Gabriel Jesus and Riccardo Calafiori, those three points will be much harder to take from Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Then there is next weekend’s visit to champions and chief title rivals Manchester City. Rice will be back for that one, but Odegaard may once again miss out. Unbeaten with a 100 per cent record so far this term, City won’t be dropping many points between now and the end of May, which is why Arsenal are telling themselves they’ll more than likely be eliminated from contention by Sept. 22.

They won’t be, of course, but these things do tend to morph into self-fulfilling prophecies.

The stakes aren’t nearly as high for Tottenham, which, unfortunately or fortunately (depending how you look at it), is part and parcel of being a Tottenham fan.

Through the first three rounds of the schedule, Spurs have a win, a loss and a draw, which seems about right. So long as they can go into October without having to explain the difference between Tottenham and a fork, they’ve made a decent start to the campaign by their standards. To that end, job done. Even if their lone victory came at home against an absolutely woeful Everton side.

No one expects Spurs to do much of anything this season — or most seasons — and in other circumstances the almost complete lack of pressure would work to their advantage versus an Arsenal team so tightly wound.

The present circumstances, however, are unpleasantly tense after midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur aimed a racial slur at teammate and Tottenham captain Son Heung-min, also the South Korea skipper. The club went so far as to say Bentancur’s comments were “utterly reprehensible,” and if found guilty of breaching the FA’s racism rule he faces a suspension of up to 12 games.

Naturally, Bentancur has put the whole thing down to an “unfortunate misunderstanding” and is sorry “if someone felt offended,” which is always helpful. He could nevertheless find himself in the Spurs XI on Sunday should manager Ange Postecoglou determine Yves Bissouma isn’t quite fit.

Bissouma, who sustained a knock while on international duty with Mali, has featured in two of Tottenham’s first three matches. He missed the other when his club suspended him for filming himself inhaling nitrous oxide, which is definitely normal behaviour.

Back to Arsenal, manager Mikel Arteta risks squad disruption of his own – albeit related to football, and not racism or inhalational anaesthetics — should he once again exclude Leandro Trossard from his line-up despite the openings left by injuries.

Trossard, who was subbed in 16 times last season, was furious at not getting the start at Aston Villa in late August, and earlier this month his club prevented him moving to Saudi Arabian outfit Al-Ittihad. The Belgian won’t be in the mood for any excuses on Sunday, even if club legend Cesc Fabregas has recommended Arteta opt for 17-year-old Ethan Nwaneri instead.

And what of Raheem Sterling? Remember him?

The former Liverpool-Manchester City-Chelsea attacker is currently at the Gunners on loan and available for selection against Spurs. He has yet to make his Arsenal debut, so it’s possible the PGMOL kit clash intervention was made to ensure he knows which team he’s on. That’s important, as the upcoming 90 minutes promise back-and-forth football, wild momentum changes and goals, goals, goals.

This is a match-up that hasn’t produced a nil-nil since 2009 – 34 matches ago.

How to define Sunday’s North London Derby? How about “can’t-miss.”

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