• As Gunners, Tottenham battle in north London derby

By Monica Iheakam with Agency report

Arsenal manager, Arsene Wenger has insisted that his side will not be the underdogs in today’s north London derby against Tottenham Hotspurs.

The Gunners, will try to end their six-game winless run against  their arch rivals  in the Premier League when the two teams meet at the Emirates Stadium today.

The last time Arsenal defeated Spurs in the league was on March 16, 2014, when Tomas Rosicky’s second-minute strike earned  a 1-0 victory for the Gunners at White Hart Lane.

Tottenham have won twice and held four times since then, and that run without a victory remains Arsenal’s longest against their rivals in league competition.

Although Arsenal have won their last 10 Premier League games at the Emirates ,  their longest winning run at home since the stadium opened in 2006 , they have gone four home league games against Spurs without a victory, having last won on Sept. 1, 2013.

For Arsenal, their main concern is Olivier Giroud, who twanged a thigh muscle against Wales last week, after he’d put Les Bleus 2-0 up in Paris.

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In his press conference , Arsene Wenger bristled at the suggestion that Arsenal are underdogs heading into the match with their archrivals.

“I think Tottenham are a good side but we have the quality to win this game and that’s what we want to show,” he said, perhaps more out of hope than expectation. 

“In the table we need to make some ground up on the top teams. But at home we have been strong.”

Like Wenger, Maurico Pochettino is always careful with his words and so it is little surprise that he has repeatedly declined to indulge the press pack by discussing ‘statement’ wins.

After the recent 3-1 victory over Real Madrid, surely the most impressive performance during his four years at the club, that is virtually all he was asked and yet Pochettino saw the win as a culmination of many months of hard work. 

“After wins against Real Madrid, Liverpool or Manchester United it’s always statement, statement, statement,” he said with a resigned smile when pressed on the topic. “It’s about our performance every week and trying to keep things moving on.”

Despite their rapid improvement under Pochettino, Spurs are still in search of their first trophy since their League Cup triumph over Chelsea back in 2008.