Spurs relish favorites tag against London rival

LONDON - One of the most fiercely contested Premier League fixtures of the season will take on even more importance than usual on Sunday when Arsenal plays Tottenham Hotspur in the 150th north London league derby at the Emirates Stadium.

Victory for Spurs, who won 3-2 there last season after trailing 2-0 at halftime, would move Harry Redknapp's side 13 points clear of its archrival and keep it on the coattails of leaders Manchester City and Manchester United with 12 matches to play.

City should keep up its title challenge with a 13th successive home league win of the season when it plays 17th-placed Blackburn Rovers on Saturday while United travels to Norwich City for a Sunday lunchtime kickoff.

City, with Argentine Carlos Tevez back in town after his unauthorized trip back home, lead the table with 60 points from 25 matches, followed by United on 58, Spurs on 53 and Arsenal on 43, level with troubled Chelsea who is at home to relegation-threatened Bolton Wanderers on Saturday.

For most of the past 20 years Arsenal has been the dominant force, with Spurs traveling to play them more in hope than expectation.

But now Spurs start as favorites and a win would give them their first League double over Arsenal since 1992-93.

Arsenal, beaten 4-0 at AC Milan in the Champions League and 2-0 at Sunderland in the FA Cup in its past two matches, is facing a seventh successive season without a trophy.

Coach Arsene Wenger's future has been the topic of much speculation after an erratic season which has left it battling with Chelsea, Newcastle United and Liverpool for fourth place and another shot at the Champions League, its natural footballing habitat for the past 16 seasons.

Spurs have more to play for than just local bragging rights.

A victory would not only keep their title hopes alive but would also send a clear message they are beginning to accumulate the mental steel that for so long was at the very core of Arsenal's DNA.

However, no-one in the blue half of north London will under estimate Arsenal knowing that victory would pull it out of the doldrums and give the Gunners renewed hope they can catch Spurs and finish higher than them again as they have done every season since 1996.

Reuters

(China Daily 02/24/2012 page24)