Some big names miss out.
Throughout the Premier League era, some derby matches have lost their edge. A derby should make you feel nervous almost to the point of vomiting because you can’t bear the thought of losing to them. That is still the case in North London. When Tottenham play Arsenal, the hatred is real. Both teams still have players who are genuine fans of the club; for Harry Kane and Jack Wilshere, this is the first match they will look for on the fixture list, desperate to earn the bragging rights.
The Premier League kicks off with a bang this weekend as Arsenal travel to Wembley for the second North London Derby of the season. Arsenal won the previous encounter at the Emirates comfortably on an afternoon when Spurs simply didn’t turn up. Spurs will be desperate to win today, hoping to extend the gap between them and their neighbours from four to seven points. Both squads have a lot of talent, especially after Arsenal’s January arrivals of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Henrikh Mkhitaryan. With that in mind, making it into the combined XI is no easy task. Here are the players fortunate enough to be selected.
For clarification: only fit and available players are eligible for this combined XI.
That makes everyone available except Danny Welbeck and Toby Alderweireld, who hasn’t made the squad despite being reported to be fit.
Goalkeeper: Hugo Lloris
The Spurs captain is by no means perfect and there are certainly one or two better keepers in the league but he is excellent nonetheless. His sweeping abilities are key to the way Pochettino wants Spurs to play and both his shot stopping and distribution are vastly superior to Petr Cech’s.
Right-back: Hector Bellerín
Last season, the back five of this combined XI would have been very Spurs-heavy. However, since the departure of Kyle Walker to Man City and Danny Rose struggling to reach the level he was at last season before his injury, the Arsenal boys edge it in the full-back areas this time. Serge Aurier and Kieran Trippier both have ability but are flawed in almost equal measure. Bellerín plays with a maturity beyond his years and his pace can be a lethal weapon.
Right centre-back: Laurent Koscielny
Arsenal’s captain just pips Toby Alderweireld into this team due to fitness reasons. Alderweireld was reported to be fit for this derby but has not made the match day squad, making it a no brainer to put Laurent Koscielny in. The France international may not have much time left at the highest level after playing through an achilles injury for so long, but he remains one of the best central defenders in the Premier League.
Left-centre back: Jan Vertonghen
Vertonghen has been nothing short of world class over the past three seasons. In the absence of Alderweireld during the past few months, he has led the Spurs defence with a series of flawless performances (ignore Mo Salah’s second goal last weekend.) There are very few defenders in the world who can bring the ball out like he does, but he is more than just a ball-player. He also reads the game expertly and is strong in the tackle.
Left-back: Nacho Monreal
As suggested earlier, Monreal takes the left-back slot. He has shown his versatility, playing on the left of a back three, or at full-back in a back four, and been Arsenal’s most consistently solid performer. Danny Rose has returned from a long-term injury but is not putting in the performances that made everyone label him the best left-back in England. I can’t move on without giving an honourable mention to Ben Davies, who has improved immeasurably under the full-back whisperer, Mauricio Pochettino.
Right-central midfield: Aaron Ramsey
Channeling my inner Tim Sherwood, this side will not include a defensive midfielder. Aaron Ramsey was back to his best against Everton, bagging a hat-rick, linking up with Mkhitaryan as if the pair had been playing together for years. His Lampard-esque late runs into the box are his best weapon and with the abundance of creativity in front of him, he would score for fun in this team.
Left-central midfield: Mousa Dembélé
The player every single one of his teammates hates playing against in training, Dembélé is not your typical modern central midfielder. His dribbling is better than his passing, but his unique skillset makes it near impossible to dispossess him.
Right-attacking midfield: Mesut Özil
It speaks volumes that many Arsenal fans were glad to have kept Özil rather than Alexis Sánchez this January. He’s come under a lot of criticism during his time at Arsenal, but he has continually shown why he was labelled the world’s best player in his position while he was at Real Madrid.
Central-attacking midfield: Christian Eriksen
The Dane is Spurs’ midfield metronome. His combination of energy, technical skill and versatility make him Pochettino’s dream player, and therefore he makes it into this team ahead of Mkhitaryan and Dele Alli.
Left-attacking midfield: Heung-min Son
There are only four attacking spots in this teams, meaning someone has to miss out. Unfortunately for Dele Alli, he has drawn the short straw here. His numbers have remained decent this season, but his overall performances have been outshone by Heung-min Son who has been key to Spurs’ attacking threat down the left, offering pace and direct dribbling.
Striker: Harry Kane
Spurs’ talisman continues to rack up goals while his all round game gets better and better. He has no stand-out attribute other than his finishing, but he also has no stand-out flaw. It is hard to argue against Kane being the best striker in the world right now. Maybe next year, Pierre.
