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Arsenal host Tottenham Hotspur in the North London Derby right after the international break.

The Gunners will go into the game as the favourites, but it must be said that it will be a much more difficult challenge than last season.

Thomas Frank has made Spurs a better side, and former Tottenham star Sandro has liked what he has seen from his old side.

However, ahead of the North London Derby, the Brazilian has made a claim about Spurs’ two central defenders that is beyond ridiculous.

Sandro says Tottenham have the best defensive partnership in the Premier League

Tottenham’s defence has improved a lot compared to last season.

Micky van de Ven has been fit all campaign, which has been a boost, and he has looked settled whenever he has played with Cristian Romero.

Spurs fans absolutely love their two central defenders and rightly so, but Sandro has gone a bit overboard with his assessment.

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The former Tottenham midfielder has boldly claimed that Romero and Van de Ven share the best defensive partnership in the entire Premier League.

That is a laughable claim, as it has been common knowledge for over two years now that Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba have formed the best defence – not just in the Premier League but Europe as well.

Sandro told Football London: “I think so, I believe that it is the best defensive partnership in the Premier League, because you can see the quality that Van de Ven has and his speed.

“Yes, he made a mistake against Chelsea, but who doesn’t make a mistake? Everybody does, and if you balance the mistakes and the good things that he does, he’s amazing.

“The leadership that Romero has, it’s unbelievable. You can see straight away the way he manages the game, the way he talks with the referees, with the midfielders. I love Romero. Proper leader.”

Arsenal’s defence compared to Tottenham’s in 2025/26

Arsenal have conceded just five goals in 17 games in all competitions this season, while Tottenham have let in 16 goals in 18 games.

Romero and Van de Ven have not played all of those games together. They have been on the pitch together 12 times this season, but Spurs have still conceded 10 goals in those fixtures.

Gabriel and Saliba, on the other hand, have started 14 games together in all competitions this season and have let in five goals.

One of those was a screamer from Dominik Szoboszlai against Liverpool – Saliba wasn’t even on the pitch when that strike went in.

The data clearly shows that Saliba and Gabriel are levels above their Tottenham counterparts and share the best defensive partnership in the Premier League.

Sandro’s comments make no sense whatsoever.

Arsenal’s first game after the November international break is the North London Derby against Tottenham.

The Gunners will go into the clash as the favourites after their brilliant start to the season. They are on top of the Premier League table, eight points and four places above their fierce local rivals.

However, form goes out of the window in a derby, and Tottenham fans will be hoping to finally get one over Mikel Arteta’s side.

Jermaine Jenas predicts Arsenal vs Tottenham North London Derby outcome

Tottenham have improved a lot compared to last season, but they are still nowhere near Arsenal’s level.

Spurs have conceded twice as many goals as the Gunners in the Premier League this term and will go into the North London Derby with just one win in their last four games in all competitions.

Arsenal dropped points in their most recent fixture as well – a 2-2 draw against Sunderland at the Stadium of Light.

Arteta will want his side to return to winning ways right away, and Jermaine Jenas, who once wanted to join Arsenal but ended up signing for Tottenham, is convinced that three points will go to the red side of North London.

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Speaking on the Wildcards with Jermaine Jenas and Jermaine Pennant podcast, he said: “Then you’ve got North London Derby, which I fully expect Arsenal to win, unfortunately.

“I just think, look, Spurs are better away from home at the minute, currently, and I think they could cause Arsenal a few issues. But I just don’t think they’re playing well enough.”

Tottenham’s record at the Emirates Stadium makes Arsenal firm favourites

Tottenham must hate playing against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.

The Gunners have been the dominant team at home in North London Derby history, and their record against their neighbours in their backyard is incredible.

Spurs have won just twice in 23 visits to the Emirates. The last victory came all the way back in 2018 – in the Carabao Cup against Unai Emery’s side.

Arsenal fielded a back-four of Nacho Monreal, Granit Xhaka, Sokratis Papastathopoulos and Ainsley Maitland-Niles that night.

The Brazil national team are using the Sobha Realty Training Centre over the November international break, and Arsenal fans aren’t happy.

It’s good news for Mikel Arteta that his star defender, Gabriel Magalhaes, isn’t travelling over the November international break.

Instead, Gabriel couldn’t be closer to home, training at Colney and playing at the Emirates Stadium with Brazil.

Though Arsenal fans are overjoyed that the 27-year-old doesn’t have to travel the thousands of miles that he usually would, supporters do have one problem.

Arsenal fans are furious that Tottenham striker Richarlison is training at Colney

One of Gabriel’s teammates isn’t a loved figure in N5, and that’s Tottenham striker Richarlison.

Gabriel Jesus will be watching Richarlison closely over the international break in a bid to steal his spot ahead of the World Cup, but for now, it’s Arsenal fans who have been keeping tabs on the Spurs player.

On YouTube, Hayters posted footage from a Brazil training session at Colney, and it’s fair to say Arsenal fans weren’t happy to see Richarlison using the club’s facilities.

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Below is a selection of comments underneath the video from Arsenal fans about Richarlison’s mere presence at Colney.

With the North London Derby awaiting the Gunners after the international break, it’s unsurprising that the Tottenham and Arsenal divide is generating discussion.

That being said, it’s not only Richarlison’s association with Spurs that might’ve roused supporters.

Gabriel Magalhaes’ feud with Richarlison

Despite being international teammates, Gabriel and Richarlison feel their club’s rivalry deeply.

Back in 2024, after Arsenal’s 3-2 win at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Gabriel and Richarlison confronted each other.

Soon after, the Brazilian striker taunted the Arsenal star on social media, reposting a video of their confrontation that was captioned, ‘Brazil’s first choice striker vs Brazil’s last choice CB’.

Richarlison then apologised to Gabriel rather unauthentically, taking his petulant behaviour to Instagram.

The two players will be friends over the international break, but in the back of their minds will be the upcoming North London Derby, where any niceties will conclude.

Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur are gearing up for the North London derby after the international break, but Thomas Frank has just issued an update which could worry Riccardo Calafiori.

The Gunners will be baying for blood, having been held to a frustrating 2-2 draw with Sunderland over the weekend.

Mikel Arteta and the team will be eager to bounce back to winning ways in the North London derby, however, they could face a Spurs team with a key player back.

Thomas Frank has issued some early injury team news ahead of the derby, and it could well be a concern for Riccardo Calafiori.

Thomas Frank expects Mohammed Kudus to be back for the North London derby

Tottenham boss Thomas Frank expects Mohammed Kudus to be available for the North London derby at the Emirates Stadium.

Kudus, who was linked with Arsenal, missed Tottenham’s 2-2 draw with Manchester United over the weekend due to injury.

According to Football.London, the 24-year-old has not reported for international duty with Ghana and is set to remain in North London during the break.

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Speaking to the media ahead of the clash with Man United, Spurs’ new manager told the media: “Very confident that he (Kudus) should be available for the next one (versus Arsenal).”

The winger has been in great form for Gunners’ bitter rivals this season, and Spurs have certainly missed him whilst he’s been out.

Tottenham will now hope the former West Ham United star will be fully fit and raring to go after the international break.

Riccardo Calafiori versus Mohammed Kudus could be an interesting match-up

Calafiori is the most likely candidate to face Kudus, given that the Spurs man will start on the right-hand side for the Lilywhites.

During this campaign, Calafiori has been one of the best full-backs in Europe, but there has been one noticeable weakness which the Italian has shown.

At times, the 25-year-old has struggled with one-versus-one defending, and if there’s one player you don’t want to get into a duel with from Spurs, it’s Kudus.

The Italian defender has been superb offensively this term, but in defence, he’s been accused of being over-aggressive and over-committing early in one-versus-one situations.

No player has completed more take-ons this season in Europe’s top five leagues than the Spurs star, and this could be a concern for Calafiori.

Tottenham midfielder Joao Palhinha is the latest player to fall into Jamie Carragher’s bad books.

Carragher has shared some strong opinions about Arsenal this season on Sky Sports, but the Gunners aren’t the only club who have come under attack.

After the action on matchday ten, the pundit took a moment to share his dissatisfaction about Palhinha, who signed for Tottenham on loan from Bayern Munich in the summer transfer window.

Though Arsenal and Tottenham are the fiercest rivals, those at the Emirates might have something to say about Carragher’s review of the midfielder.

Arsenal won’t agree with Jamie Carragher’s scathing review of Tottenham’s Joao Palhinha

Spurs’ defeat to Chelsea turned ugly as at full time, Thomas Frank was ignored by two of his players.

The full-time scenes at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium were to be expected, as the Lilywhites were terrible against Chelsea, with Palhinha being one of the worst on the pitch.

Carragher didn’t hold back when analysing the midfielder’s performance on Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football, claiming that the former Fulham man is incapable of playing at this level.

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“He is not capable, I don’t think, of doing this,” Carragher says, before his criticism hit a new level.

“There’s a reason why teams in the Premier League didn’t buy him from Fulham and there’s a reason why Bayern Munich bought him and didn’t play him.”

It was staggeringly harsh criticism that even Arsenal would argue, as the Gunners wanted to sign Palhinha in the summer.

Arsenal wouldn’t agree with Carragher’s claims, as Andrea Berta had eyed the Portugal international before a deal for Christian Norgaard was agreed.

Though Arsenal were urged not to sign Palhinha, the thought was there, and the club clearly saw his quality, emphasising the inaccuracy of Carragher’s criticism.

Mikel Arteta is glad Arsenal signed Christian Norgaard

A deal for Palhinha couldn’t be struck, which led the 30-year-old to N17 and opened the door for Norgaard to sign for Arsenal.

Norgaard’s transfer to Arsenal has been celebrated, as the Gunners acquired a player with significant Premier League experience, having captained Brentford.

It’s fair to say that Mikel Arteta hasn’t looked back since signing the Dane instead of Palhinha, as the Arsenal manager praised Norgaard in a press conference.

“Exceptional,” Arteta said of Norgaard.

“I knew very clearly the role that he was going to have, exactly what he is doing.”

The way things have turned out has worked just fine for Arteta, but for Frank, the pathway to a balanced midfield is currently blocked.

North London’s Premier League representatives had contrasting afternoons on matchday ten of the season.

Tottenham lost to Chelsea to extend their winless run at home, while Arsenal made it five consecutive Premier League wins and clean sheets.

When the full-time whistle blew at Turf Moor, the away end erupted as the Arsenal squad celebrated a hard-fought win, scenes that the Gunners’ rivals could’ve only dreamt of.

There was a lot of discourse about what happened at full-time when Spurs lost to Chelsea at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, as one of Thomas Frank’s requests was ignored by two of his players.

Contrasting scenes between Arsenal and Tottenham at full-time on matchday ten

On X, Tottenham fan Chris Cowlin shared a video of Djed Spence and Micky van de Ven ignoring Frank’s plea for the duo to thank the fans despite the defeat.

The two defenders were seen to refuse Frank’s demand, heading straight down the tunnel, clearly unhappy with the result.

Being Tottenham’s biggest rivals, Arsenal fans would’ve loved what they saw unfold in N17, even more so when reflecting on what happened at Turf Moor.

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That’s because at full-time, Mikel Merino unknowingly headed towards the tunnel without thanking the away support.

Instantly, Mikel Arteta, William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes whistled to the Spaniard, changing his direction to see him join the squad in heading over to the away end.

Merino was one of the last players to say goodbye to the travelling fans, applauding their support for a lengthy amount of time after his accidental mishap.

The differences between what happened at Turf Moor and the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium were there for all to see, with the Gunners making their rivals look even worse without a ball in play.

Thomas Frank’s record against Mikel Arteta as the North London Derby looms

It’s not only his own players who would’ve caused Frank to feel unnerved on week ten of the season.

Arteta might’ve frightened Frank with his injury update ahead of the upcoming North London Derby, which will be played after the international break on matchday 12.

Tensions are rising at Spurs, which could heighten if the Lilywhites lose at the Emirates.

Aside from Arsenal’s form and Tottenham’s lacklustre performances, Frank will feel the nerves ahead of the derby, as his record against Arteta is far from ideal.

While at Brentford, Frank faced Arteta nine times, achieving a win rate of 11% and falling to an aggregate score of 7-14 in Arsenal’s favour.

The Gunners will naturally feel more confident heading into the derby, but when it comes to a clash as emotionally fuelled as Arsenal vs Tottenham, anything can happen.

The North London Derby between Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur is not too far away.

The Gunners have had an excellent start to the new season and are currently on top of the Premier League table ahead of their 10th game.

Tottenham, on the other hand, are third in the table, five points behind Mikel Arteta’s side.

That makes the derby right after the November international break a fascinating watch, but Spurs boss Thomas Frank will not be too pleased with some news now coming out of Arsenal.

Arsenal and Tottenham have three different games to play before the North London Derby, but both teams will already be looking forward to that fixture.

The Gunners have a fantastic recent record against their North London rivals.

Arteta’s side have lost just one of their last nine games against Spurs. That came all the way back in May 2022, when Antonio Conte was still their manager.

Arsenal are looking near-unstoppable now, and that will strike fear into Frank, who knows their side will go into the game as the underdogs.

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What will scare him even more is that the Gunners could be significantly stronger by the time they face Spurs because three key players could return from their injuries – Noni Madueke, skipper Martin Odegaard, and Kai Havertz.

When asked if his hope is that the trio will be back for the derby, Arteta said, as relayed on HaytersTV: “Yeah, and I’m excited because they are tremendous players.

“I see them work every single day, how desperate they are to be part of the team, the huge boost that is going to be for the squad to have those players available again after such a long time.

“I’m really happy that I think it’s going to be very soon.”

Tottenham haven’t beaten Arsenal in the Premier League at the Emirates since 2010. If Madueke, Odegaard and Havertz are all back for the upcoming derby, that record is unlikely to change.

The North London Derby week could define Arsenal’s season

Arsenal had the toughest start out of any team in the Premier League this season.

Games against Manchester United, Liverpool, Manchester City and Newcastle United in the first six fixtures terrified some fans, but the Gunners did well and came out of it on top of the table.

The next tough run of games for Arsenal will be after this month’s international break, and that week could define their season.

Arsenal take on Tottenham to kick things off before welcoming Bayern Munich in the Champions League just three days later. Then, they head to West London to take on Chelsea in the Premier League.

If Arteta’s men take maximum points in the two London derbies that week, they will become even bigger favourites to win the title.

Arsenal had to work really hard to beat Crystal Palace at the Emirates Stadium.

The Eagles showed up with the best defensive organisation that the Gunners have faced this season, and many of Mikel Arteta’s men looked lost for large parts of the first half.

However, a set-piece led to Eberechi Eze’s first Premier League goal for Arsenal, and that proved to be enough for the three points.

Former Tottenham manager Tim Sherwood had his say on Eze after the game.

Tim Sherwood says Arsenal signing Eberechi Eze ahead of Tottenham was ‘disgusting’

Eze’s transfer story was one of the biggest in the summer window.

The England international had decided that he wanted to leave Crystal Palace, and he had a couple of admirers.

Arsenal were one of them, but the other club who were desperate to sign him was Sherwood’s beloved Tottenham Hotspur.

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Eze was all set to join Spurs, but he made a last-minute phone call to Mikel Arteta to see if Arsenal would hijack the deal.

After Kai Havertz’s injury, the Gunners obliged, and Eze got his dream move to the Emirates Stadium.

Now, after watching him score the winner for Arsenal against his old club, Sherwood shared his thoughts on Tottenham missing out on Eze.

The former Spurs boss said on Premier League Productions: “He was already a hero before he went to Arsenal.

“The analogy I use is: It was like Tottenham had got a Christmas present on New Year’s Eve under the tree, and when they got down in the morning, it’s gone! And it’s gone to your best friend, à la Arsenal. It was horrendous, but for Arsenal fans, it was amazing news.

“He’s an incredible player. What a player that kid is. He doesn’t have to settle. The boy has played hundreds of games in the Premier League at the top level. He knows that the transition was easy.

“Going in and around the quality of players that Arsenal have as well, it was just an easy transition for him. But to steal him from Tottenham like they did was just disgusting.”

Eberechi Eze’s worst performance at Arsenal helped them win their most important game

When you think about Arsenal’s most important games of the season, your mind goes straight to their clashes against Manchester City and Liverpool.

However, in a weekend where Liverpool had lost again and Manchester City were losing to Aston Villa at the same time, the Gunners simply had to win their game against Crystal Palace.

Even Arteta told his players after the game that it was ‘the biggest victory that we have had this season’. (Arsenal.com)

Eze wasn’t great at all against his former side. In fact, it was arguably his worst performance since he joined the Gunners this summer.

Yet, it was his goal that won Arsenal the game, and they are now six points above Manchester City and seven clear of Liverpool.

A former Tottenham Hotspur manager has admitted that he actually grew up supporting Arsenal.

The Lilywhites have had a number of players on their books who have openly admitted that they had ties with the Gunners before moving to N17.

The likes of Harry Kane, Darren Bent and Matt Doherty have all been linked to Arsenal, although few members of non-playing staff at White Hart Lane or the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium have had these traitorous ties.

That was until one of Spurs’ most successful modern managers revealed that he grew up attending matches at Highbury.

Harry Redknapp says he grew up as an Arsenal fan

Harry Redknapp did an impressive job at Tottenham between 2008 and 2012.

Inheriting a side in the midst of a relegation battle, he reversed the North London club’s fortunes, eventually taking them to Champions League qualification in the 2009/10 season.

During this period, he established himself as one of the most popular managers in Spurs’ recent history, but little did the Tottenham fanbase know that he held allegiances to Arsenal.

Speaking to OTB Football on TikTok, Redknapp revealed that his father was ‘Arsenal mad’ and that he regularly attended games at Highbury as a child.

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“I grew up as an Arsenal fan,” Redknapp explained.

“Oh my god, me and my dad went every week. I lived in the East End of London in a big council estate. Everybody was West Ham. It was a West Ham area. My dad was Arsenal mad.

“We used to get the bus, the 106 bus, the 277 bus every Saturday. My dad was a fantastic non-league footballer. He packed up, and then we used to go. He was Arsenal mad and his favourite all-time player was a man called Jimmy Logie.”

Redknapp rejected the chance to sign Ian Wright for Bournemouth back in the 1980s. Perhaps he subconsciously knew that Wright would go on to become an Arsenal legend, and that signing him for the Cherries would prevent this from materialising.

Will we ever see another Arsenal or Tottenham mercenary?

While boyhood fans of Tottenham have played for Arsenal recently, there have been few pure mercenaries who have happily plied their trade at both clubs in recent years.

The last to play for both North London sides was Emmanuel Adebayor, whose Gunners stint was from 2005 to 2008, and whose Spurs spell was between 2011 and 2014.

William Gallas came not too long before the Togolese, while before that, it was David Bentley and, famously, Sol Campbell.

After what Campbell experienced in terms of abuse following his controversial move across North London, it’s difficult to envisage another player repeating this.

In fact, gone are the days of players moving between arch-rivals in the Premier League. Not too long ago, players would regularly swap Manchester City for Manchester United, or vice versa.

This hasn’t happened for some time, and it appears players are now more reticent to complete such moves, possibly out of fear of the reaction.

Arsenal and Tottenham share a big rivalry in England.

The North London Derby is among the biggest spectacles of the season, and the Gunners have had the upper hand more times than Spurs.

Arsenal have almost always been the bigger side, so players, naturally, prefer moving to the red side of North London over the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

That was the case for one player in 2005, but a deal didn’t materialise.

Jermaine Jenas says he wanted to join Arsenal before Tottenham signed him

Jermaine Jenas played for five different clubs in a career spanning over a decade.

The Englishman started off at Nottingham Forest and made his senior debut for the club. Then, he moved to Newcastle United, for whom he played 152 times in three seasons.

In the summer of 2005, Jenas wanted to leave St James’ Park, and there was a fair bit of interest in him in that window.

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The midfielder, at one point, believed he was on his way to Arsenal and wanted the move as well.

However, Arsene Wenger’s side decided against it, and Jenas ended up signing for the Gunners’ fierce rivals, Tottenham, instead.

Speaking on the Beast Mode On podcast, Jenas said: “When I left Newcastle, I thought I was going to Arsenal, if I’m honest with you. That kind of didn’t transpire, and I was like, ‘Look, I need to get out,’ and I ended up at Tottenham.

“Me and the Tottenham fans got off to a slow start because of that, because in their minds, they were like: ‘You wanted to go to Arsenal and now you’re here.'”

“You did want to go to Arsenal, though?” Adebayo Akinfenwa asked Jenas.

He replied: “I did, yeah. I mean, Arsene Wenger was there. He was like the Pep Guardiola of football at that time. If you wanted to go to Harvard and gain a better education, Arsene Wenger and Arsenal were where it was at as a young player.”

Arsene Wenger once explained why Arsenal didn’t sign Jermaine Jenas

Arsenal’s interest in Jenas back in 2005 was genuine.

Wenger admitted in a press conference at the time that he was indeed a fan of the midfielder, but Graeme Souness’ demands at Newcastle forced Arsenal to abandon their pursuit.

“I like Jenas, but I’m not intent on any player at the moment,” Wenger said in 2005, as per World Soccer.

“When I heard Graeme Souness’ statement a few weeks ago, it was discouraging. He spoke in the region of £20 million – we are not interested at that price.”

Jenas later revealed that Wenger told him that he should’ve signed him even before he went to Newcastle.

The Frenchman apparently even admitted that not making a move for him was a mistake.