Rivalries will be renewed on Sunday when Arsenal host local antagonists Tottenham Hotspur at the Emirates Stadium, in what will be the first North London derby of the season.
The table-topping Gunners have been setting the pace at the summit of the division, and Mikel Arteta’s title chasers are odds-on favourites to claim a ninth Premier League victory of the campaign at Tottenham’s expense.
Spurs are still adapting to life under new boss Thomas Frank, though they hold the league’s only remaining unbeaten away record and will be determined to end a rotten run of derby day defeats this weekend.
Arsenal team preview
Arsenal have started the 2025/26 season with trophy-winning intent and look capable of chasing silverware on multiple fronts.
Mikel Arteta’s side have been collecting an impressive 2.36 points per game in the Premier League, and they failed to win for only the third time in 11 fixtures when they were held to a 2-2 draw by Sunderland before the international break.
That was the first time the Gunners conceded more than one goal in a single sitting since the summer. Indeed, Arsenal have been remarkably robust, shipping just five Premier League goals in total and conceding just a single goal in eight games combined at the Emirates Stadium in all competitions.
Some quibbles remain about Arsenal’s style of play – however, their approach has been reaping dividends. The dead-ball specialists have scored more goals from set pieces (10) than any other outfit in the top tier, with goals from set plays accounting for 50% of the Gunners’ total goals haul, which is another league-high figure.
Arsenal will be eager to lean on their set-piece prowess again on Sunday, though Brazilian defender Gabriel Magalhães, who has been a big contributor in both boxes for Arsenal, is likely to miss Sunday’s derby.
Captain Martin Ødegaard and summer signing Viktor Gyökeres are also expected to miss out, while wingers Gabriel Martinelli and Noni Madueke remain major doubts.
Arteta has quality in reserve, however, with Riccardo Calafiori, Jurrien Timber, Cristhian Mosquera and Piero Hincapié all capable of stepping in to partner William Saliba in Gabriel’s absence.
Further forward, in-form pair Leandro Trossard and Bukayo Saka should continue on the flanks, with the increasingly influential Eberechi Eze pulling the strings at number 10. Mikel Merino could be given another run as a converted centre forward if Gyökeres misses out.
Arsenal predicted XI: Raya, Timber, Saliba, Mosquera, Calafiori, Zubimendi, Rice, Eze, Saka, Trossard, Merino
Tottenham team preview
Tottenham continue to be a difficult puzzle to solve. On paper, their early-season results under summer hire Thomas Frank have been solid – however, many of their underlying performances have been suspect.
At the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Spurs have won only once in six attempts. However, their away form has been contrasting in the extreme, with Tottenham ranking joint-first for points collected (13) and for goals scored (12) on the road.
Tottenham fans seem divided about Frank, though optimists would say that the Danish coach has done well to lead Spurs to fifth spot in the face of a major injury crisis.
James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski haven’t kicked a ball this season, while first-choice striker Dominic Solanke has played only 31 minutes of Premier League football due to a lingering ankle complaint.
All three will miss Sunday’s derby, as will Ben Davies, Ragu Drăgușin, Yves Bissouma, Archie Gray, Pape Matar Sarr and Randal Kolo Muani.
Spurs have managed to win only two of their last seven Premier League assignments, though they were denied a third victory during that run by a 96th-minute Matthijs de Ligt leveller in a 2-2 draw with Manchester United before the international break.
Richarlison thought that he had scored the winner in that contest and Frank will need the Brazilian to shine again against Arsenal. With Heung-min Son, who scored nine career goals against Arsenal, gone, Spurs are in need of a new North London derby talisman.
Richarlison, along with several of his fellow lacklustre teammates, need to step up to fill the void. Tottenham’s leading scorer in all competitions this season is Dutch defender Micky van de Ven (six), which speaks to how poorly their attackers have performed.
Tottenham Hotspur predicted XI: Vicario, Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Spence, Palhinha, Bergvall, Bentancur, Kudus, Simons, Richarlison
H2H record
Arsenal have been the dominant force in North London derbies in recent seasons. The Gunners have won five of their last six Premier League encounters with Spurs, including the last three in a row, which is their longest winning streak over their rivals since the late 1980s.
Tottenham have lost seven of their last nine league meetings with their neighbours overall and haven’t won an away test at Arsenal since their famous 2-0 FA Cup quarter-final victory on the Gunners’ patch in 2018. Heung-min Son and Dele Alli scored the goals on that occasion.
We have to wind the clocks further back to 2010 to find Tottenham’s last away victory at Arsenal in the league, however. Spurs came from two goals down to win 3-2 back then, with strikes from Gareth Bale, Rafael van der Vaart and Younes Kaboul, allowing Harry Redknapp to get the better of Arsène Wenger in the opposite dugout.
Tottenham did grind out a 1-0 win over Arsenal in a summer friendly in Hong Kong in July. A stunning goal from the halfway line from Pape Sarr was the difference between the sides in that non-competitive contest.
It’s worth noting that 12 yellow cards were brandished across the two heated collisions between Arsenal and Tottenham in the Premier League last season. Tempers could flare just as wildly on Sunday.
Players to watch
William Saliba (Arsenal) – With his usual central-defensive partner Gabriel Magalhães sidelined, Frenchman Saliba will be the most authoritative player in the Gunners’ defence. Only Gabriel (5.90) has been averaging more clearances per game than Saliba (3.90) for Arsenal this season. The 24-year-old started in both of Arsenal’s wins over Spurs last term.
Bukayo Saka (Arsenal) – Academy product Saka has scored three career goals against Tottenham and the 24-year-old is in the right kind of form to do more damage in the North London derby on Sunday. Saka has scored four times in his last six appearances for club and country, and the winger is approaching peak form ahead of derby day.
Mikel Merino (Arsenal) – With Viktor Gyökeres struggling to shake off a hamstring issue, versatile Spaniard Mikel Merino could be pushed forward to play as a striker against Spurs. Merino is a confident finisher, and last season he scored a goal every 226 minutes in the Premier League for the Gunners.
Micky van de Ven (Tottenham) – Cult hero Van de Ven seems to make an impact in every phase of play for Spurs. His incredible last-ditch tackle on Manchester United’s Benjamin Šeško before the international break highlighted his defensive acumen, while his wonder goal against FC Copenhagen in the Champions League showed how dangerous he can be when marauding forward. The Dutchman faced Arsenal only once last term and he was booked in that skirmish.
Mohammed Kudus (Tottenham) – Kudus swapped West Ham for Spurs in the summer and the attacker has looked the part since crossing the capital. The 25-year-old has already lodged one goal and four assists in the Premier League, and his pace and trickery could make him a menace on the counter-attack on Sunday. The Ghanaian lined up against Arsenal four times for his previous club and came out on the winning side in three of those outings.
João Palhinha (Tottenham) – Sunday’s derby seems tailor-made for Portuguese destroyer Palhinha. The 30-year-old does his best work without the ball and has been averaging a shin-splintering 4.50 tackles per game for Tottenham in the league since joining on loan from Bayern Munich.
Our expert predictions
Arsenal have been outstanding at the Emirates Stadium this season, winning seven and drawing one of the eight matches they’ve contested there in all competitions, and they are fancied to extend their dominance over Tottenham.
Spurs’ recent record in the North London derby is dismal and an eighth defeat in 10 Premier League encounters with their rivals looks likely here.
Tonybet’s markets for Arsenal vs Tottenham have the hosts priced as 1.42 favourites to triumph, though backing the hosts to win to nil massages the odds to a more favourable 2.20.
Arsenal have conceded only one goal in 720 minutes (eight games) of football on home soil this term, with the Premier League’s runaway top scorer, Erling Haaland, the only opposing player to net at the Emirates Stadium since the summer.
Tottenham don’t wield any player of that calibre, so expect them to toil in the final third. Incredibly, Arsenal’s last five Premier League opponents mustered just three shots on target combined against them and they are backed to keep Spurs at arm’s length.
For more of the best Premier League odds, in-play markets and coverage this weekend, make sure to visit Tonybet.
