In November 2017 it will be the 130 anniversary of the first meeting between the teams we know today as Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur. Back in the Victorian age this was of course a North v South of the river clash, with the first ever game between the two rivals being played on Plumstead Common, which today opposite a McDonalds and Belmarsh Prison. That game had to be abandoned with Spurs leading 2-1 due to “darkness”.
Fast forward 129 years and 183 meetings since, the first meeting of the season between the two rivals has never been more eagerly awaited by the two sets of fans as well as those with an interest in online sports betting. Whilst Arsenal’s position in the top four of English football has been undisputed for nearly 20 years, Tottenham’s emergence as a challenger to the title has been more recent. After kissing a number of frogs, the club seems to have found their prince in the form of Mauricio Pochettino who almost brought the first title to N17 for over fifty years last season and is yet to experience defeat in the Premier League this season.
The Spurs fans I know have become much more mellow with things off the field too. The wisdom of Daniel Levy is now not a heated discussion, especially as the emergence of the new stadium is visible at every home game. Once complete, it could act as a catalyst to power the club commercially forward. According to the annual study by Forbes, Spurs are the tenth most valuable football club with an estimated worth of just over £700m, around 50% of the value attached to Arsenal. The key to creating more value is the bigger stadium with more opportunities to drive commercial revenues. It is no surprise that the teams that hold the top five places in the list all play in front of sold-out stadiums with capacities over 60,000. Joining that list is the clear ambition of Spurs in the next five years. It is clear from the ticket sales for their Champions League games at Wembley so far this season that if you can build it, they will come.
Whilst the Spurs fans are happy with life at the moment, Arsenal fans continue to enjoy a love/hate relationship with the owners and the manager. Best ever one week when they destroy Chelsea, showing them the door the next when they fail to beat Middlesbrough at home. There can be no denying that they are a major challenger for the title this season, having scored three or more goals in 60% of their Premier League games so far this term, whilst hitting the back of the net on 17 occasions in their cup games so far, including nine against the Bulgarian champions Ludogorets, already booking their spot in the knock-out phases of the Champions League. Whilst some fans may bemoan a lack of dynamism in the transfer market, Wenger has managed to shuffle the pack when required this season.
Sunday’s game won’t decide the league title – especially this season where there are half a dozen teams who have a legitimate shout but it will make Monday a potentially uncomfortable day at work for half of North London as the winners will earn the bragging rights until the end of April at least.