Paul Merson made a bold prediction and backed his former side, Arsenal, to secure an emphatic victory over Tottenham in the north London Derby.
The North London Derby is in the Premier League, and there’s growing excitement among both sets of fans. Tottenham have started the season in solid form under Ange Postecoglou, who has rebranded the way they play football.
The Australian manager has transformed their approach on the pitch, which has seen Tottenham play a different style of attacking football. Spurs are one of the four teams alongside Arsenal, Man City and Liverpool to have an unbeaten start, and Postecoglou will hope that remains the case after Sunday’s NLD.
They are also aided by the form of summer arrival James Maddison, who has had a stellar start to the campaign with two goals and as many assists. Heung Min-son, who recently claimed Arsenal will be afraid to face Tottenham on Sunday, has also hit top form since the season began.
Moreover, Spurs also have fresh legs as they do not play in any European competition this season; hence, they could have a fitter squad ahead of Sunday’s clash, as Arsenal played a big game on Wednesday in the Champions League.
Paul Merson believes Tottenham will be 'blown away' by Arsenal in the North London derby 🔴⚪ pic.twitter.com/QqNkg2UHPe
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) September 21, 2023
However, former Arsenal star and one of the big performers in many North London Derbys, Paul Merson, in his column in Sportskeeda, predicted the Gunners towards an emphatic victory over Tottenham on Sunday. The pundit was bullish about his bold prediction but had his reasons for it.
Merson said, “I’m very bullish, but I think Arsenal will win this game easily. Tottenham have started the season well – there’s no question about it. However, if they play gung-ho football and look to take the game to Arsenal, the Gunners will destroy them.”
“If they stay quiet and look to nick a goal on the counter, they could be in with a chance, but I can’t see that happening as that’s not how they’ve played so far under Ange Postecoglou.”
Merson then cited Burnley’s example and how Tottenham should not play against Arsenal. He continued,“Earlier this month, Burnley had 16 shots against Tottenham and scored twice despite losing 5-2. If Spurs adopt a similar brand of football against Arsenal, I’m afraid to say it won’t end well for them.”
“Arsenal are coming on the back of a resounding win against PSV Eindhoven in the UEFA Champions League and should top that up with another impressive result at the Emirates Stadium.”
Arsenal, for their part, had a slow start to the season, but in recent games, they have looked like a different animal. Mikel Arteta’s side may have yet to begin proceedings emphatically, but they have focused on asserting more control in games.
So far in the season, teams, including Manchester United, have set up low blocks anticipating waves of attacks from the Gunners. Barring Fulham, none have managed to take anything against them, and since that game, Arteta’s side have looked a level above the rest and on par with Man City.
They showed what they could do to teams who openly attacked them, and PSV were the victim of that strategy. Hence, Tottenham may suffer if they deploy an attacking mindset against this Arsenal side and pay the price on Sunday in what promises to be an exciting north London Derby.
