On his best memories of the north London derby: “Probably afterwards, especially when you win at home and you celebrate with your supporters and you know how much it means. It’s something special and we have so many huge Arsenal supporters since the day that they were born and looking at our staff, we have some good examples around the first team as well. They come in after the game and you can see the emotion and what it means for them. It’s a privilege to have the power to contribute to making someone really happy.”
On Raheem Sterling and if he could be involved against Tottenham: “He looks great! First of all, because he’s got a big smile on his face, a lot of energy. He’s at it and wants to prove a point. When someone has got that in their belly, you sense it straight away. Obviously, I don’t need to discover anything about his quality and what he can bring to the team.”
On the respect he has for Ange Postecoglou: “I admire him. I respect him. I think he’s been an inspirational coach because he’s done things in his own way in various contexts and in various countries. He has a really unique way of thinking about the game and his philosophy, and I love it. He stands by it and I think he represents himself and the club in a really good way.”
So to perhaps the most consistently entertaining Premier League fixtures of the past two decades.
Unlike other derbies which boast a similar historic pedigree, Spurs vs Arsenal always seems to deliver on the pre-match hype, at least of late.
And this year, again, there feels to be more riding it on than just partisan loyalties.
Arsenal, chasing a first Premier League title under Mikel Arteta, will be five points off Man City if they lose today with a trip to the Etihad upcoming next Sunday.
Add to that mix the absences of midfield linchpins Martin Odegaard and Declan Rice and you have a storm brewing that Mikel Arteta will be eager to assuage.
“I want to have the energy, the enthusiasm for the next day, the next game and prepare that in the best possible way and that’s what we’re going to do,” Arteta said.
“ We’re going to go to Spurs with unbelievable energy and believe that we’re going to go there to be ourselves and try to win the game.”
For Spurs, this has had the feeling of a season that has not really gotten going. Despite being on top for large swathes of their three games, they have only four points to show for their efforts.
A 2-1 loss to Newcastle before the international break stung and despite the undoubted confidence the club has in Ange Postecoglou, a loss here would turn up the pressure gauge that bit more.
“It’s a great measure but it’s not just about winning. You can win a game like this and walk away knowing they played us off the park in reality,” Postecoglou said.
“ I’ve always said to go out there against the best and perform, that’s the best measure.
“Then hopefully you will win the game as well, because ultimately that’s what you want to do.
“If we go out on Sunday, dominate this game, create more chances, really nullify them, then I think, irrespective of the result, the players will walk off thinking ‘okay next time we’ll have another crack at it’.”