Following a disappointing 3-1 defeat to Liverpool, Arsenal boss Unai Emery will have a point to prove as his side faces Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday. This will be the first-ever north London derby of the new season, with both teams coming on the back of a defeat.
Arsenal, however, are slight favourites, having started the campaign quite well while also having the home advantage this weekend. But, there are steps Emery must take in order to ensure a victory for his side against Spurs this weekend.
Don’t offer room out wide
One of Tottenham’s biggest strengths under Mauricio Pochettino is their ability to attack from the flanks. The Lilywhites can manoeuvre the ball quite easily out wide, and their attackers are adept in creating passing triangles to break through the opposition defence.
Arsenal, in that regard, could struggle, especially with both of their premier fullbacks in Hector Bellerin and Kieran Tierney out injured. That means the onus will be on the attack-minded duo of Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Sead Kolasinac to deliver. These two players will need to be much more effective during defensive phases and keep out the threat of Son Heung-Min and Christian Eriksen if Arsenal are to salvage anything from this game.
Winning the midfield battle
With Tanguy Ndombele a doubt, Arsenal midfielders should take advantage of Tottenham’s decimated midfield unit and dominate the game. We expect the trifecta of Granit Xhaka, Lucas Torreira and Matteo Guendouzi to be deployed in the 4-3-3. But, Dani Ceballos may not be a bad option either as the Spaniard can ease the club’s transition play.
But at the same, Torreira could exploit Dier’s lacklustre passing while Harry Winks is also prone to losing concentration during the game. And given the quality of the two sides, it’s fair to say that whoever rules the midfield this weekend, should likely come out as the victors.
Taking advantage of Spurs’ right-back crisis
Pochettino is currently devoid of options in the right-back slot prior to the start of the north London derby. Kyle Walker-Peters and Juan Foyth are both struggling with injuries along with new signing Ryan Sessegnon. Serge Aurier, meanwhile, is being considered to be offloaded this summer. That means we could expect Moussa Sissoko to be deployed at right-back this weekend.
And that’s where the likes of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Nicolas Pepe need to take advantage of the Spurs backline that could easily be exploited through the right-hand side. Sissoko is clearly not the most effective fullback and is bound to struggle against the mighty Arsenal attackers, giving them a massive advantage over this tie.
