After several matches were postponed in honour of the demised Queen Elizabeth 11, followed by the international break, the Premier League return this weekend with a cracker. Two of the most popular derbies would be on parade as Arsenal welcome Tottenham in the North London derby today, while the Manchester would be divided on Sunday with City hosting United at the Emirate Stadium
The Premier League returns following the international break with a blockbuster North London derby at lunchtime today, as Arsenal play host to Tottenham Hotspur at the Emirates.
One week after the women’s teams made history in their North London derby, the men’s crops will battle for supremacy and the chance to sit pretty at the top of the Premier League table.
A total of 47,367 supporters made the journey to the Emirates to watch Arsenal Women thump Tottenham 4-0 during the men’s international break, and if today’s contest is anything as one-sided as the Women’s Super League version, Gooners are in for a treat.
Taking after his namesake Patrick, Arsenal new boy Fabio Vieira scored the pick of the bunch as Arsenal ran out 3-0 winners over Brentford on September 18, during which William Saliba and Gabriel Jesus headed home for the dominant Gunners in the first half.
Having successfully avenged their 2-0 loss at the Brentford Community Stadium last year – Arsenal ensured that they would head into the international break one point clear of Spurs and Manchester City in first place.
Ending a four-game run without a clean sheet was also a sight for Mikel Arteta’s sore eyes, as his Arsenal side continue to demonstrate a ruthless streak notably absent in teams gone by, even if their only Big Six clash so far this season ended in a 3-1 defeat to Manchester United.
The hosts have also prevailed in each of their last six Premier League matches at their Emirates headquarters, although they have conceded at least one goal in all of them, and Tottenham’s famed attacking line have more than one incentive to silence the home crowd.
After facing countless calls from Tottenham fans to drop the goalless Son Heung-min to the bench, Antonio Conte’s bold move paid dividends against Leicester City, as the South Korea international ended his profligate streak in some style.
Son was introduced into the match in the 59th minute, and by the 86th minute he was confirmed to be walking home with the match ball, as his 13-minute hat-trick complemented strikes from Harry Kane, Eric Dier and Rodrigo Bentancur in a 6-2 romping.
Conte joked that Son can expect to be benched week in week out if he delivers similar super-sub performances in the future, as Tottenham remain on the coat-tails of Arsenal and reigning champions Man City in third spot prior to the trip across the capital.
The Lilywhites bounced back from their Champions League disappointment at Sporting Lisbon in perfect fashion versus Leicester, but only two of their last seven competitive matches away from home have ended in victory, and the Emirates is not their happiest hunting ground.
A 3-1 Arsenal triumph in this fixture last season means that Spurs have failed to win any of their last 11 North London derbies away from home in the league, but they served their capital counterparts a slice of humble pie with a 3-0 win in May, and Conte’s crop are not the same side that Nuno Espirito Santo led to their demise at the Emirates last term.
Meanwhile, two bitter rivals with a taste for victories lock horns in Sunday’s Manchester derby at the Etihad Stadium, as Manchester City play host to Manchester United.
The Red Devils have not been in Premier League action since getting the better of Arsenal 3-1 on September 4, while Pep Guardiola’s side ran out 3-0 winners over Wolverhampton Wanderers before the international break.
Another day, another goal for Erling Braut Haaland. Now sitting on a remarkable 11 for the Premier League season, the 22-year-old scored his side’s second in a comprehensive 3-0 win over Wolves following Jack Grealish’s opener 55 seconds into the contest.
Any hopes of Wolves staging a remarkable comeback were dashed when Nathan Collins received a straight red card for an inexcusably high challenge on Grealish, and a 69th-minute strike from Phil Foden completed the job for the reigning champions.
Guardiola’s side had briefly returned to the top of the pile with that 3-0 success, but Arsenal’s subsequent win by the same scoreline over Brentford meant that the champions went into the international break in second place – one point adrift of the North London club.
At least one of Arsenal or third-placed Tottenham Hotspur will drop points in the North London derby, which could potentially open the door for Man City to reclaim their rightful spot at the top of the pile with a 10th successive home win in all competitions.
It comes as little surprise that Man City are the Premier League’s leading scorers on home turf this season – racking up 14 in just three of such games and conceding a joint-low two – and all seven of their last top-flight wins at home have been accompanied by at least three goals.
The reigning champions could hardly be better prepared for this contest, but nor could Man United, who would have been disappointed to see the international break come around when it did as they seek to maintain their rich vein of form.
The death and state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II means that the Red Devils will be taking part in their first Premier League fixture for nearly a month since that 3-1 success over Arsenal.
Having overseen a dramatic upturn in fortunes at Old Trafford with four consecutive top-flight wins, Erik ten Hag earned a nomination for the Premier League’s Manager of the Month award for September after leading his side to fifth in the table – five points adrift of Man City with a game in hand.
A run of three successive away wins, with three clean sheets, represents a potential recipe for success for Ten Hag at the Etihad, but no man since Alex Ferguson has been able to steer the Red Devils to victory in their first Manchester derby in charge of the club.
Man City did the double over Man United by an aggregate scoreline of 6-1 last season – inflicting a heavy 4-1 defeat upon their rivals at the Etihad back in March – but no fixture in the Premier League has seen the away side win on more occasions-21 to be exact.
