Set-pieces & midfield issues - where north London derby could be won

Image source, Getty Images

Gary RoseBBC Sport journalist

• Published13 September 2024
• Comments

The rivalry between Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal resumes on Sunday with the first north London derby of the season.

It will be the 175th league meeting between the clubs, with the Gunners victorious in 71 of them.

BBC Sport takes a closer look at the statistics behind the derby and examines where the key battles could be.

Gunners with upper hand in recent games

Arsenal won 3-2 when the sides met at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in April.

It was their second successive win at Spurs, the first time since September 1988 they had won consecutive top-flight matches at the home of their fiercest rival.

Prior to winning there in the last two seasons they had only won two of their previous 17 away games against Spurs in the Premier League (D6 L9).

Recent results suggest the most likely outcome from this fixture is a victory for one of the sides, because just one of Tottenham's last 49 Premier League home games has been drawn (2-2 v Manchester United in April 2023), and none of the last 22 (W15 L7).

Of all the grounds in Premier League history, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium - which opened in 2019 - has witnessed the lowest percentage of draws (9% - 9/101) and remarkably has yet to host a goalless league game.

• Cesc Fàbregas On North London Derby & 900 Ronaldo

How will midfield losses affect Arsenal?

Arsenal go into the game depleted in a key area, with Declan Rice suspended and captain Martin Odegaard set to be missing for three weeks after injuring his ankle on international duty.

New signing Mikel Merino is also ruled out with a fractured shoulder, leaving Mikel Arteta with a problem to solve in midfield.

Rice has been brilliant with the ball so far this season, boasting a passing accuracy of 97.1% - better than any other top-flight player to have featured for at least 90 minutes so far this term.

The loss of Odegaard would mean the loss of their most creative spark, with no Arsenal player having created more chances than the Norwegian since the start of last season.

Most shots so far in 2024-25

Team	Shots
Nottingham Forest	53
Tottenham	48
Liverpool	48
Manchester City	48
Brighton	46

Source: Opta

Son and Saka to dictate outcome?

The first meeting between these two sides last season ended in a 2-2 draw at Emirates Stadium, with Saka on target for Arsenal and Son Heung-min scoring for Tottenham.

Both players are expected to be key once again on Sunday.

Son loves the north London derby. He has scored eight goals against Arsenal in all competitions. Only Harry Kane (14), Emmanuel Adebayor (10) and Bobby Smith (10) have netted more than the South Korea striker in the fixture.

Meanwhile, Saka scored home and away goals against Tottenham in the Premier League last season.

The only Arsenal players to score in three or more consecutive north London derby appearances in the competition are Adebayor (five between 2006 and 2008) and Robert Pires (four between 2002 and 2004).

Both had similar attacking statistics last season, with Son having the slight edge by scoring one more goal than Saka (17-16) and providing one more assist (10-9).

Set-pieces could be key

Arsenal were deadly from set-piece situations last season, scoring 22 times from them - more than any other team.

That is twice the amount Tottenham managed, with Spurs conceding 16 times from dead balls last term including two in the 3-2 defeat against Arsenal. Only Sheffield United, Luton Town and Nottingham Forest conceded more.

The Gunners have seen a big improvement in this area since set-piece specialist Nicolas Jover joined in 2021.

In the 111 matches before Jover's arrival, Arsenal scored a goal every 32 corners. In the 111 fixtures since his arrival, they have found the net every 16 corners - a significant improvement.

We are only three games into this season, so a minimal amount can be read into any team's set-piece strength this campaign, but Arsenal are yet to score from one but Tottenham have.

However, Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou has previously indicated that set-pieces - both defending them and scoring from them - is not something he is overly concerned about.

"I'm not interested," he said in May., external "Never have been. Not in the least.

"It's not the first time I've been questioned about set-pieces in my coaching career. There is an underlying reason for that, which I'm very, very comfortable with."

A derby with a different look

Image source, Getty Images

For the first time in 38 years, Arsenal will wear their away kit after their red-and-white home shirt was deemed to clash with Tottenham's colours.

The Gunners will use their black away strip at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium after referees' body Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) said their home shirt "features too much white".

Arsenal also said wearing their home shirt with red shorts and socks was discussed but not agreed on.

As part of PGMOL's decision, Tottenham will also wear their away kit when they visit Emirates Stadium in the reverse fixture in January.