Both Arsenal and Tottenham are enjoying an amazing form right now. Emery’s side is unbeaten in 18 games now while Pochettino’s Tottenham has beaten Chelsea and Inter Milan in their previous two fixtures. They will be meeting at the Emirates Stadium for an exciting North London Derby this weekend.
Let’s look at the 3 best North London Derby matches of the Premier League era.
Tottenham 2 – 2 Arsenal (2016)
Arsenal had already lost against Swansea City and Manchester United before they faced their local rivals at White Hart Lane. The Gunners started well as Aaron Ramsey got them an early lead. However, Toby Alderweireld and Harry Kane struck two goals in the space of two minutes to turn the tide of the match massively in their favor. Francis Coquelin’s red card in the early second half meant that the Gunners had to play with ten men.
Hector Bellerin who provided the assist for the first goal came to Arsenal’s rescue again. His superb pass saw Alexis Sanchez get the equalizer for Arsenal in the 76th minute and hence the Gunners were spared from another humiliating defeat.
This draw boded very well for Arsenal as they went on an amazing unbeaten run and finished second in the table by the end of the season. This was their best Premier League result since 2004-05.
Arsenal 5 – 2 Tottenham (2012)
Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal met in February 2012 at the Emirates. After winning the home fixture, the Spurs were in a perfect position to record back-to-back victories against their local rivals.
Louis Saha’s early strike and Emmanuel Adebayor’s penalty goal meant that Spurs had gotten themselves in a good position for victory. What followed, however, was greatly shocking for the Spurs’ fans.
The Gunners equalized by the end of the first half through goals from Bacary Sagna and Robin van Persie. And in the second half, Tottenham was completely destroyed as Tomas Rosicky and Theo Walcott struck three goals combined. Hence, the Gunners registered an emphatic victory against their rivals.
Arsenal 4 – 4 Tottenham (2008)
This North London Derby draw is one of the highest-scoring draws in the Premier League history. Both teams played their level best to give an amazing footballing display to their fans.
Tottenham got the lead in the 13th minute of the game through David Bentley goal but Mikael Silvestre equalized for the Gunners soon. In the second half, Arsenal dominated initially. Both William Gallas and Adebayor scored to make the scoreline 3-1. And when Darren Bent got one for the Spurs, Robin van Persie struck one more to make a strong case for their victory.
However, Tottenham fought to the very end for an extremely thrilling contest. First Jermaine Jenas scored in the 89th minute, then Aaron Lennon fired a goal in the dying seconds of the match to earn a brilliant draw for the Spurs.
And lastly, we can accept the just played Arsenal v Tottenham at the Emirates on Sunday night was an interesting match that end 4-2.