Gunners to continue dominance over Spurs in north London derby

It is fair to say that Arsenal (9/1 title chances with Coral) have got the better of bitter north London rivals Tottenham (7/2 to finish in the top four) in recent history. The Gunners have managed not to end a Premier League campaign below Spurs since the 1994/95 season.

On top of that, Arsene Wenger’s men have won five of the last six head-to-heads in all competitions, which is why they are odds-on at 8/11 for another victory here at the Emirates. In all three meetings last season in league and cup, meanwhile, Arsenal beat Spurs to nil, and they are 9/4 to do so again.

New Tottenham boos Mauricio Pochettino is not deterred by these figures and, when asked about finishing above Arsenal in the table, he said: “We are ambitious.”

The Argentine then continued: “We (his coaching team) arrived three months ago and we need to make our way but we are focused on the game and know the history. But it is also important to write the history, starting now.

“This is a big game, a tough game, I know. It is always an important game. We need to prepare for the game, to have a good performance and be aggressive. We need to play the game when the referee starts the game and not before. We need to play 90 minutes aggressively and stay focused on our job.”

“But yes, after [the 1-0 home loss to] West Brom we feel something special – but we always need to feel the same feeling,” he added. “We need to arrive at that moment that every game feels the same as if we are preparing for a game against Arsenal.

“We need to be aggressive and focused on our job, never give up and try to get the victory – this is the winning mentality we need to have.”

Pochettino’s words certainly do seem inspiring on the face of it, but Spurs genuinely do “need” to improve their form, that currently stands at one win in their last five games in all competitions.

They are 7/2 chances to beat their north London neighbours away for the first time since 2010, when they were 3-2 victors. Tottenham are 40/1 to record that scoreline again.