Arsenal will host rivals Tottenham Hotspur in the first North London derby of the season on Sunday seeking to continue with their streak of Emirates supremacy against their arch nemesis.
The Gunners have won four of the last five meetings with Tottenham, who have not won a match at the Emirates Stadium in 13 years.
Both clubs have garnered 13 points from their opening five games of the Premier League, but Mikel Arteta’s side come into this blockbuster clash on the back of a convincing Champions League victory over PSV Eindhoven after a six-year absence from the competition.
PSV were unbeaten in 26 matches in all competitions but Arsenal rained four goals on them courtesy of Bukayo Saka, Leandro Trossard, Gabriel Jesus, and Martin Odegaard.
Prior to this victory, Arsenal had previously struggled to penetrate the low block defense of Everton in the Premier League, but theu were rescued by a brilliant finish from Trossard.
The Gunners are the only team in the top seven spots yet to hit double figures in goals this term, but Tottenham know the Gunners arr capable of firing.
Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglu is off to a great start in the Premier League. Postecoglu’s team has scored 13 goals in five matches. They will want to keep this goal-scoring form running, especially against their bitter rivals. They have scored at least twice in each of their matches this season, and sit second on the table.
With no European football after finishing 8th last season, Tottenham are expected to play better this season. They managed to come from behind last weekend against Sheffield United to score two goals in added time thanks to Richarlison. The Brazilian scored one and set up another.
Sunday’s contest will be the 208th competitive North London derby since Arsenal and Spurs first played each other in 1896.
Team news
Thomas Partey (groin), Mohamed Elneney (knee), and Jurrien Timber (knee) are all out injured. Gabriel Martinelli, who limped off with a hamstring problem last weekend against Everton, is not entirely ruled out for this fixture even if he sat out the PSV encounter. He will be assessed.
As for Tottenham, Ivan Perisic sustained an ACL injury in training. He is set for surgery. He joins Bryan Gil (groin), Rodrigo Bentancur (knee), Ryan Sessegnon (hamstring), Alfie Whiteman (ankle), and Giovani Lo Celso (thigh) in the Tottenham hospital. Everyone else is available.
