Tottenham vs Arsenal: Match Preview

 

On Wednesday night Tottenham Hotspur host Arsenal in the Capital One Cup in what looks to be another intense fixture. Tottenham go into the game in decent form after their 1-0 victory over Crystal Palace at the weekend, but will still be concerned over Harry Kane’s lack of goals for Spurs this season. The Englishman put in a stunning performance last time the two teams met, scoring two goals to seal a 2-1 win.

Arsenal on the other hand go onto the game in worrying form, as the Gunners have lost their last two games and will be in desperate need of a win over their bitter rivals. This game is a perfect opportunity to rectify the poor displays in recent weeks, and Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger will be hoping his players put in a strong and committed away performance, something that they have failed to do recently.

Although this is  a North London derby and the fans will be as passionate as ever, how much does the Capital One Cup mean to them? In recent years the managers of big clubs have used this competition as an opportunity to experiment with different tactics and to give some of the youth players and opportunity to prove themselves. However, are either managers in a position where they can do this come Wednesday night? If Arsenal were to put out a weakened side and lose the Arsenal fans would be on Wenger’s back instantly and once again would be questioning his future, but with two loses on the bounce already, can he afford to put out a weaker side? He attempted to rotate some players against Dinamo Zagreb, which back fired massively with the likes of Debuchy and Arteta struggling to keep up with the pace of the game. Despite this, I still expect Arsene Wenger to play a slightly weaker side to what we would normally see in the Premier League.

Mauricio Pochettino on the other hand may take a more serious approach to this game. It is seven years since Tottenham last won a trophy and the Argentine would love to be the man to end this trophy drought, and he’ll be looking to take Spurs one step further after losing in last season’s Capital One Cup Final. With the other big clubs such as Manchester City and Chelsea being focused on Champions League and Premier League glory, this is a perfect opportunity for Spurs to win a trophy, which would give the players a sense of belief that they can achieve more and possibly finish in the top four places. The one issue Tottenham face is the form of Harry Kane. After scoring 21 goals in the Premier League last season expectations were high for the 22 year old. He is yet to hit the heights he reached last season, but I’m certain that once he gets his first goal of the season he will soon rediscover his fine form from last season.

Of course Arsenal will be slight favourites going into the game, but if Pochettino sets his team up in the correct way, he could frustrate Arsenal and expose them with pace on the counter attack, which Dinamo Zagreb executed to perfection last Wednesday.

Predicted starting line ups:

Tottenham:

Lloris, Walker, Alderweireld, Vertonghen, Davies, Dier, Alli, Son, Lamela, Chadli, Kane

Arsenal:

Ospina, Debuchy, Koscienly, Mertesacker, Gibbs, Arteta, Ramsey, Chamberlain, Ozil, Alexis, Giroud