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North London derby preview: Tottenham

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Tottenham Hotspur host Arsenal in the first north London derby of the season on Sunday in the latest instalment of one of the Premier League's fiercest rivalries. The visitors will likely have to do without captain Martin Ødegaard, Declan Rice and Riccardo Calafiori for the crunch clash, while Spurs are looking to record their first win in the fixture since May 2022.

Ange Postecoglou's team will be hoping to put a dent in their near-neighbours' title credentials while re-establishing themselves as contenders for a spot in next season's Champions League after managing just one win from their opening three games and losing both star summer signing Dominic Solanke and Richarlison to injury in August -- more details on team news, how to watch, the form guide and more below.

Key details:

Date: Sunday, Sept. 15 at 2 p.m. BST (9 a.m. E.T.)

Venue: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium

Referee: Jarred Gillett

VAR: Stuart Attwell

How to watch:

The game will be shown live on Sky Sports in the UK and NBC Sports in the United States. You can also follow along live with ESPN's live updates.

Team news:

Tottenham will be hoping £65 million summer signing Solanke can return to the starting line-up after he missed their win over Everton and defeat to Newcastle with an ankle blow he suffered during the team's opening-weekend fixture against Leicester.

Micky van de Ven did not travel with Netherlands for the international break after hurting his knee in the Everton match and should be fit after he too missed the game at St. James' Park, though Richarlison is set to miss a few more weeks after picking up a knock in training before the break. Yves Bissouma is a doubt for the match after picking up an injury in the second half of Mali's win over Eswatini on Tuesday.

Arsenal's build-up to their biggest game of the season so far has been dominated by confirmed and potential absences from the clash, with Declan Rice's controversial red card in the second half against Brighton ruling him out, while Calafiori and captain Ødegaard both suffered injuries while away with Italy and Norway respectively over the international break.

Calafiori, 22, who joined Arsenal from Bologna this summer, was hurt when Ousmane Dembélé caught him on the back of the leg with his studs after being tackled by another player during Italy's victory over France.

Ødegaard, meanwhile, covered his face with his hands while being treated on the field midway through the second half of a 2-1 Nations League win over Austria. He appeared to turn awkwardly on his left ankle in a tough challenge with Austria midfielder Christoph Baumgartner as both chased and stretched for a loose ball.

Ødegaard limped out of the game two minutes later and was consoled by his teammate Erling Haaland.

The news of both injuries will not be welcomed by Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta who has already lost another new signing, Mikel Merino, to injury during his first training session.

Merino, a €32.5 million ($36m) addition from Real Sociedad, sustained a fractured shoulder when colliding with centre-back Gabriel Magalhães during practice at London Colney.

In his Friday news conference, Arteta did not confirm whether Ødegaard and Calafiori would be absent for the game, saying the club's medical team were continuing to evaluate both players and waiting on more test results.

Latest news:

Arteta signs three-year Arsenal contract extension

ESPN reported the news earlier on Thursday, with sources adding that Mikel Arteta will receive a significant increase on his existing £9m-a-year salary.

Arsenal home shirt deemed 'too white' for north London derby

Arsenal will wear their away kit against rivals Tottenham in the north London derby on Sunday due to their red-and-white home kit featuring "too much white," the club said on Tuesday.

Both sides traditionally wear their home kits when they play each other, with British media reporting that Arsenal last wore their away kits in the fixture 38 years ago.

Bentancur charged over offensive Son comment

Spurs midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur has been charged by the Football Association for saying that all South Korean people "look the same" during a television appearance.

The Uruguay international apologised on June 20 in a post on Instagram for the remark that he said was a "very bad joke." Five days later, Son, Tottenham's captain, said that he had accepted his teammate's apology.

England boss Lee Carsley tells Ben White: Three Lions role up to you

Lee Carsley said he has no plans to contact Ben White over a possible England call-up and believes the responsibility lies with the Arsenal defender to make himself available.

Carsley's predecessor Gareth Southgate said in March that the Football Association's technical director John McDermott was told in a phone call from Arsenal sporting director Edu that White did not want to be considered for England.

Manager talk:

Both head coaches gave their thoughts on a range of issues during their respective news conferences on Friday.

Postecoglou on rivalling Arsenal: "Not specifically Arsenal -- we want to be a club that can challenge everyone. That's what we are trying to aim to become. To do that, you've got to perform at a certain level, at a consistent basis, the squad's strong enough to do that. We've started the season fairly solidly, from a performance perspective. The results haven't reflected that but I think we're in a good place to push on from last year and improve on all areas. There's no reason why we can't this year."

Postecoglou on what winning would mean for the rest of the season: "It's hard to say. I've never felt like there is an easy way to success, I don't think one thing can change the trajectory to a great effect. It helps, a win in a big game, in a derby, but it's a game against one of the top sides so that gives you more belief and confidence and potentially that can inject some real momentum into our season."

Postecoglou on what makes Arsenal difficult to play against: "Consistency and approach and mentality. The last two years they've had a real relentlessness about them. They haven't had to change their team too much. They have this confidence in themselves that they can challenge over the course of a Premier League season."

Arteta on Raheem Sterling's adaptation to the club and potential to play on Sunday: "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."

Arteta on wearing the away kit for this game: "It's not ideal -- we wanted to play with our home kit and our colours, but it's not our decision. We'll adapt, we did it against [Aston] Villa and won, so hopefully it's going to bring good luck as well."

Arteta on Martin Ødegaard's injury: "We need some more tests so let's see what happens in the next day or so, this afternoon probably, and see what happens, what the extent of the injury is and how quickly we can get him back. He's super positive about everything. We know Martin -- he wants to be there every single day but we have to wait and see."

Arteta on Postecoglou's management style: "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."

Form guide:

Arsenal won both of their opening two matches to start the season before being held to a 1-1 draw with Brighton ahead of the international break.

Their most resounding result came away against Aston Villa, where Leandro Trossard scored with his first touch after coming on as a substitute to set the Gunners on their way to a 2-0 win, aided by some heroics from David Raya.

Jarred Gillett, the Australian referee assigned by PGMOL to this weekend's game, has already angered Arsenal fans this season after failing to show a card to Wolverhampton Wanderers defender Yerson Mosquera after he appeared to grab Kai Havertz throat during an altercation between the pair in the first game of the season, a 2-0 home win for Arteta's side.

Meanwhile, Tottenham have been more inconsistent, opening with a draw to Leicester and a convincing win over Everton before falling to a defeat away at Newcastle in their last game before the hiatus owing to a late winner from Sweden international Alexander Isak.

Cutting edge has proved to be Spurs' downfall so far this term as the team has enjoyed a league-high 68.5% of possession on average but failed to convert that into meaningful chances.

That issue reared its head most obviously during the 1-1 draw with Leicester where they could have been out of sight after an impressive first-half showing, only to be pegged back by a Jamie Vardy equaliser that buoyed the King Power.

Key players:

Son Heung-Min: The South Korea star has scored eight times in 19 appearances in all competitions against Arsenal since joining Spurs in 2015 and will be confident of adding to that tally on Sunday.

Bukayo Saka: Arsenal's talisman has scored or assisted in all three of their games to start the season -- the Gunners have only lost one of the last 15 games in which he has contributed.

Key questions:

Can Ange Postecoglou's daring style of football withstand Arsenal's attacking prowess?

Postecoglou earned a plethora of plaudits for Spurs' high line and swashbuckling brand of attacking football in his debut season in the Premier League, but he also came in for criticism when that style played a role in heavy defeats -- most notably the 4-1 home defeat to Chelsea.

Arsenal's forward line will no doubt be hoping to exploit that shape with the likes of Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and new signing Raheem Sterling all posing a considerable threat on the counter attack.

Will Arsenal's midfield be able to cope without Declan Rice?

Debate around whether Chris Kavanagh was right to send Rice may still be rumbling on in the red corner of Islington, but on the pitch, focus now shifts to whether Thomas Partey, Jorginho and co. can adequately step in for the England international as he serves his ban.

Rice featured in all 38 of Arsenal's Premier League games last term, starting all but one, so whatever combination Arteta selects in his absence will be relatively untested.

Stats:

Sunday's game marks the 196th contest between Tottenham and Arsenal, and the 65th in the Premier League.

Arsenal have won 82 of the meetings, with Spurs winning 61.

Arsenal have won five of the last seven meetings between the sides since the start of 2021, losing just one.

Arsenal have won the last two games at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium; another away win would mark their longest such run since 1987.

What happened last year?

The last time Arsenal made the short trip to their north London rivals was a five-goal thriller as the away team kept pace with Manchester City in the 2023-24 season's title race with a 3-2 win.

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Arsenal home shirt deemed 'too white' for north London derby

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Arsenal will wear their away kit against rivals Tottenham Hotspur in the north London derby on Sunday due to their red-and-white home kit featuring "too much white," the club said on Tuesday.

Both sides traditionally wear their home kits when they play each other, with British media reporting that Arsenal last wore their away kits in the fixture 38 years ago.

"Both teams will be wearing their away strips in the fixtures this campaign, after [referees' body] PGMOL and Premier League ruled that our 2024-25 home kit features too much white, thus clashing with Tottenham's traditional colours," Arsenal said in a statement on Tuesday.

Arsenal will wear their black away kit on Sunday while Spurs, 10th in the league, will also wear different colours when they visit in January, Arsenal added.

Mikel Arteta's team will be looking to earn all three points at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in order to maintain the pressure on league leaders Manchester City.

Arsenal drew 1-1 at home with Brighton before the international break in a match that saw midfielder Declan Rice shown a controversial red card during the second half.

The Premier League's Independent Key Match Incidents KMI Panel has unanimously supported referee Chris Kavanagh's decision to send off Rice.

Tottenham are 10th in the Premier League after earning four points from their first three matches of the new season. Ange Postecoglou's side will endeavour to win their first north London derby since May 2022 when the two teams meet on Sunday.

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LIVE Transfer Talk: Man City, Spurs eye Eze's £68m release clause

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The transfer deadline may have passed across Europe's top five leagues but there is still business to be done this summer. And, with only four months until the January window opens, the rumour mill keeps on turning! Transfer Talk brings you all the latest, and you can check out our list of all the major done deals.

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1 Tottenham (Sep 1, 2024) Game Analysis

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Newcastle United's striker Alexander Isak secured a 2-1 win against Tottenham Hotspur with a simple tap-in as they weathered a second-half storm from the visitors to secure the points in an entertaining Premier League clash at St James' Park on Sunday.

Harvey Barnes' first-half opener for Newcastle was cancelled out by a Dan Burn own goal after the break as Spurs dominated the chances in the second period but spurned numerous openings and were beaten by a lightning-quick break from the hosts.

Joelinton's defence-splitting pass was perfect for Jacob Murphy who, after drawing out keeper Guglielmo Vicario, laid the ball on a plate for Isak to secure the three points for manager Eddie Howe's side, who remain unbeaten at home since January.

Adding to Newcastle's delight, midfielder Sandro Tonali made his first league appearance since being handed a 10-month ban for a breach of betting rules and received a rapturous reception from the home supporters.

Newcastle now have seven points from their first three games, while Tottenham remain on four.

"Generally we weren't expecting to have too much of the ball," Isak told Sky Sports. "We wanted to be dangerous on the counter-attack. It wasn't the most beautiful game from our side but we defended really well and scored two so that's good.

"You always have to be concentrated. It's easy to get frustrated. It was a tough game and tough for me -- I wasn't at my sharpest."

Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou was left to rue the scoreline but not the performance as his side had complete control of the contest for long periods.

"It got away from us unfortunately," Postecoglou said. "We had the chances to win the game, probably comfortably, but we walk away with nothing so it's a bitter pill to swallow."

Isak struck the woodwork with an early chance before Newcastle took the lead against the run of play after 37 minutes.

A quick throw-in allowed Lloyd Kelly to fire in a low cross from the left which was superbly guided into the far corner by Barnes.

The visitors levelled when Newcastle goalkeeper Nick Pope failed to deal with a James Maddison shot and pushed the ball to Brennan Johnson, whose effort was cleared into his own net by Burn.

Tottenham continued to pepper the Newcastle goal but it was the hosts who found the winner thanks to the vision of Joelinton and composure of Murphy to set up Sweden international Isak.

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0 Everton (Aug 24, 2024) Game Analysis

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Goalkeeper Jordan Pickford's error and Son Heung-min's brace helped Tottenham Hotspur to a comprehensive 4-0 victory over hapless Everton in the Premier League on Saturday.

Yves Bissouma and Cristian Romero were also among the goals as Tottenham eased to their first win of the campaign in a game they dominated against a visiting side who have conceded seven times in two games this season and are yet to score themselves.

Pickford carelessly miss-controlled a simple back pass in the first half, allowing Son to snatch the ball from him and score Tottenham's second goal into an empty, as the home side produced an accomplished display.

Everton, without several first-choice defenders due to injury, were unable to put pressure on their hosts and manager Sean Dyche will be seeking a quick improvement when they host Bournemouth next week in what is already looking like an important game for his struggling side.

Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou was left frustrated after they let a lead slip at Leicester City in the season opener, but they were in control of this match throughout.

"I think we thoroughly deserved it. We dominated and we felt we should have had three points last Monday (at Leicester)," Tottenham midfielder James Maddison said.

"The performance was there on Monday. It was a case of not putting our chances away. It's important you try and put into practice what the manager wants. It's about us trusting him."

Bar set-pieces opportunities, Everton offered little attacking threat and the home side made them pay for poor defending.

Tottenham took the lead as Bissouma scored his first for the club when the ball fell to him on the edge of the box and he thrashed it home off the underside of the crossbar.

They doubled their advantage after Pickford was sloppy in controlling the ball on the wet surface and Son's pace and anticipation of the error enabled him to score his first of the afternoon.

England number one Pickford lifted his hand in apology to the Everton fans and teammates.

Tottenham appeared to take their foot off the gas after that, though they remained in control of the game, and it was not until the 70th minute they scored a third.

Romero powered a header into the net from a corner as Pickford stood statuesque on his goalline when he might have come to collect the ball inside his six-yard box.

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1 Tottenham (Aug 19, 2024) Game Analysis

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Veteran striker Jamie Vardy earned newly-promoted Leicester City a 1-1 draw with a profligate Tottenham Hotspur in their Premier League season opener on Monday.

Spurs dominated the first half but Pedro Porro's opener in the 29th minute was the only time they could make one of a host of good chances count.

Further clear-cut opportunities came and went after the break, with the visitors' wastefulness proving costly when Leicester skipper Vardy headed an equaliser into the net with 57 minutes gone.

Brazilian Richarlison missed a golden opening to win it at the death and Spurs had to settle for one point in a match they really should have taken all three from.

"Disappointing night for us," Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou told Sky Sports. "First half excellent and controlled the game but wasteful in front of goal. Second half was the same.

"We started off well and once Leicester scored, the crowd lifted and we lost our composure. It was an issue we had last year as well, we need to keep working hard and be a bit more ruthless in front of goal. At times we made poor decisions.

"It's not our football or effort. To get results you need to be a lot more ruthless in the final third. If we don't we won't get the rewards our football deserves."

Spurs' evening went from bad to worse when midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur was carried off on a stretcher after an eight-minute stoppage in the second half, following a nasty collision.

The Uruguay international was given oxygen as he was surrounded by medical staff, but was later reported to be recovering.

A poor end to last season saw Spurs miss out on a top-four finish in Australian Postecoglou's first year in charge.

The north London club have invested in several new signings in the close season to challenge for the Champions League qualification places once again, with striker Dominic Solanke the biggest outlay.

The former Bournemouth forward, playing Premier League football again after a year back in the second tier, should have opened his Spurs account in the first half at the King Power Stadium.

Some wayward finishing from Solanke ensured Leicester were let off the hook early on, before Porro arrived on the end of a James Maddison cross to guide home the opening goal.

The second half appeared to be a matter of how many Spurs would score, with Solanke again guilty of wasting gilt-edged opportunities.

Vardy, however, made no mistake when presented with his chance to snatch a point for Leicester and the 37-year-old collected the eighth Premier League opening-day goal of his career, a tally bettered only by Liverpool's Mohamed Salah.

"I see age as just a number," Vardy said. "As long as I keep looking after myself and my legs keep feeling great, then I will carry on for as long as is physically possible.

"I wouldn't say I am doing anything differently playing-wise. Probably adapted a bit by dropping in but I think the main thing is I am looking after myself recovery-wise to the maximum."

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Tottenham sign Burnley's Wilson Odobert on five

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Tottenham Hotspur have signed winger Wilson Odobert from Burnley on a five-year deal for an undisclosed fee, the Premier League club said on Friday.

Odobert was 18 when he became the youngest Premier League goalscorer for Burnley, scoring against Chelsea in a 4-1 loss last October.

He made 29 top-flight appearances for Burnley and scored three goals before the club were relegated.

"Everyone here would like to wish Wilson all the best and thank him for his efforts during his time at Turf Moor," Burnley posted on X.

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Dominic Solanke joins Tottenham on six

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Tottenham Hotspur have signed striker Dominic Solanke from Bournemouth on a deal that will run until 2030, the North London club announced on Saturday.

The financial details were not disclosed by either side, but British media reported that the deal is worth around £65 million ($83m), making it a record outgoing transfer for Bournemouth.

"[Solanke] will join Tottenham Hotspur for a significant financial package -- the largest the club has ever received for a player," Bournemouth said in a statement.

The 26-year-old, capped once for England, enjoyed a fine 2023-24 season, scoring 19 goals in the English top flight to help Bournemouth achieve their highest points total in the Premier League era.

Having started his career at Chelsea, Solanke moved to Liverpool in 2017 before switching to Bournemouth in 2019 and netting 77 times in 216 appearances across all competitions.

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