Football - Arsenal v Tottenham preview
Arsenal v Tottenham preview
Arsene Wenger admits Arsenal's growing injury list is becoming a major concern ahead of the north London derby against Tottenham Hotspur at Emirates Stadium on Sunday.
The Gunners, who sit level on points with Manchester City at the top of the Barclays Premier League, have a string of first-team players unavailable. Hector Bellerin (groin), Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (hamstring), Theo Walcott (calf), Aaron Ramsey (hamstring), Jack Wilshere (ankle), Tomas Rosicky (knee) and Danny Welbeck (knee) are all out of action.
Laurent Koscielny (hip) and Mikel Arteta (foot) will undergo late fitness tests to see if they can be fit to face Spurs, leaving Wenger worried ahead of a crucial period of the season. "I am very concerned because we are only in November and we have so many players out," said Wenger, whose side suffered a 5-1 UEFA Champions League defeat to Bayern Munich on Wednesday. "We go into the Christmas period and I am concerned because we have too many out.
"I give Koscielny 80 per cent chance [to play Spurs]. He will have a test Saturday morning, so will Mikel Arteta." Wenger feels it is still premature to properly judge whether his side can win the league, but is happy to be in a position of strength after 11 matches.
He added: "It is too early to say [if Arsenal can win the title]. We want to be in the fight and I believe we can but it is too early. "At Christmas we will see better. Now it is down to consistency and turning up for every game.
"You want to be up there at the top and we are at the moment. After the first game against West Ham [a 2-0 home defeat] it is absolutely remarkable what we have done and we want to stay there. "I enjoy the derby because I believe you want to play important exciting games in football that have meaning and special emotions."
Spurs go into the derby on a fine run of form. They are five points behind Arsenal, but have lost just once in the league this term - and that was their opening-day defeat at Manchester United. Spurs have won five of their last seven BPL matches and head coach Mauricio Pochettino has been thrilled to see Harry Kane return to goalscoring form with five goals in the last three matches in all competitions.
"We never had any doubts about him," said Pochettino. "Always the top players sometimes have times when they struggle to score. We are very pleased with him, very happy he has started to score again. "Playing on a Thursday [a 2-1 win against Anderlecht in the Europa League] and then Sunday is not easy but we will be ready to compete and try to win the game, it is the north London derby and we know this is a very important game for us."
The Lilywhites expect to have Danny Rose fit after a knock and Clinton N'Jie will undergo a late check on a hamstring problem. Nabil Bentaleb and Nacer Chadli are both out with ankle injuries.
Arsenal (from): Cech, Ospina, Chambers, Debuchy, Gabriel, Gibbs, Koscielny, Mertesacker, Monreal, Arteta, Cazorla, Coquelin, Flamini, Ozil, Campbell, Giroud, Sanchez.
Tottenham Hotspur (from): Lloris, McGee, Vorm, Alderweireld, Davies, Dier, Fazio, Rose, Trippier, Vertonghen, Walker, Wimmer, Alli, Carroll, Dembele, Eriksen, Lamela, Mason, Onomah, Pritchard, Son, Townsend, Winks, Kane, N'Jie.
Match Appointments
Referee: Martin Atkinson Assistants: M Mullarkey, S Child Fourth Official: A Marriner