Spurs have made a superb start to their 2023/24 campaign winning four of their first five matches but next up, they have a stern test in the form of the North London Derby.
Tottenham Hotspur are sitting second on the Premier League table with 13 points and have already beaten Manchester United this season but without a doubt, this Sunday’s Arsenal game will be their toughest challenge so far.
In the 22/23 season Arsenal did the double over Spurs but to be honest, the Lilywhites were a mess last campaign. However, this time around under their new manager Spurs are a totally different beast. Last season we would have confidently said that the Gunners are the overwhelming favourites to win the North London Derby but under Ange Postecoglou, Spurs have made a swift turnaround so this weekend’s tie is going to be very evenly matched.
Going into the derby, Spurs and Arsenal are tied on points so a loss could push the Lilywhites out of the top four but there’s a big chance that these two sides will share points at the end of the 90 minutes.
Tottenham’s team news and injuries:
Ryan Sessegnon and Bentancur have been out since the summer and the duo are close to a return. Sessegnon underwent surgery for his hamstring while Bentancur is recovering from a cruciate ligament injury and the pair should make a comeback sometime next month.
Ivan Perisic has also picked up a cruciate ligament injury in training and will have to undergo surgery. The full-back is expected to miss the rest of the season as part of the recovery process.
An official club statement has confirmed: ‘We can confirm that Ivan has suffered a complex Anterior Cruciate Ligament injury in his right knee. The experienced Croatia international sustained the injury in non-contact training and will undergo surgery.’
Giovani Lo Celso is very close to full fitness and will be assessed before the Arsenal game however, there’s a very slim chance that he will be available for selection.
Hugo Lloris and Bryan Gill are also ruled out but the Spurs boss won’t be too worried about them.
Richarlison came off the bench to score one and assist one goal against Sheffield United but we don’t think the Spurs manager will hand the Brazilian international a start on Sunday. Everyone thought Harry Kane’s absence was going to be a big issue but it looks like Son has seamlessly taken up that position, scoring three goals so far.
Ange Postecoglou has more or less settled on his favourite starting line up so unless absolutely required the Spurs manager is not going to make unnecessary changes to the first XI which won 2-1 against Sheffield.
Spurs predicted line up vs Arsenal:
Predicted Starting line up(4-2-3-1): Vicario; Udogie, Van de Ven, Romero, Pedro Porro; Sarr, Yves Bissouma; Solomon, James Maddison, Kulusevski; Son.
