Tottenham will be looking to do the double over Arsenal on Sunday when the arch-rivals meet at the Emirates Stadium with much more than three points at stake (Arsenal 6/4, 12/5 draw, Spurs 7/4 – 90 Minutes).
If the rumour mill is to be believed – always a dangerous idea in the roller-coaster world of Premier League football – this weekend’s north London derby could mark Spurs chief Harry Redknapp’s final appearance in the dug-out for this domestic firecracker of a fixture.
The popular Londoner is the new England boss-elect in many people’s eyes and he would do well to glance over to the home bench on Sunday to see just how quickly fortunes can change at the highest level.
It’s not so long ago that Gunners chief Arsene Wenger was being linked with top jobs, like the one at Real Madrid, although it maybe feels like a lifetime away for the Frenchman given his side’s current struggles both at home and in Europe.
It may be stretching the point to suggest Wenger would struggle to walk into another job these days, but it shows how far his side has slipped that next season’s first north London showdown might well see new managers on board for both sides.
Clearly Wenger’s future will not be decided this weekend, but how much would a win over the men from White Hart Lane lighten the mood at the Emirates?
But enough about the sub-plots as Sunday’s game is all about the here and now for both sets of fans, with Spurs looking to back-up October’s 2-1 home Premier League win over Arsenal. A repeat scoreline pays out at 10/1.
Derby games are notorious for the form book going out of the window and this is a match Arsenal simply cannot afford to lose if they are going to keep the chance of a top-four finish in their own hands.
So the incentive is there for the Gunners, while it could also be argued Spurs’ relatively comfortable status as the third best team in England this season might see them just fall short at the Emirates.
Redknapp’s men still have the FA Cup to go for this term but they are unlikely to edge past both Manchester City and Manchester United to defy odds of 16/1 about them winning the title.
Spurs duo Emmanuel Adebayor (knee) and Rafael van der Vaart (calf) are expected to be fit while Benoit Assou-Ekotto (groin) and Luka Modric (illness) also look like they will make it.
Arsenal defenders Laurent Koscielny (knee) and Kieran Gibbs (groin) face fitness tests but midfielder Aaron Ramsey (ankle), defender Francis Coquelin (hamstring) and centre-half Sebastien Squillaci (groin) are still sidelined.
Prediction: Stalemate at the Emirates – 2-2 pays at 14/1
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