The footballing focus will be on Manchester this Sunday afternoon with Man Utd visiting their noisy neighbours at the Etihad in an EPL thriller. But it is the ladies and the Women’s Super League that grabs the Sunday spotlight first, with the Emirates staging the North London Derby (12:30).
Arsenal ladies soared into the International break a fortnight ago following a dominant performance against Man Utd at the Emirates Stadium. Tottenham are looking to regain their winning touch after failing to taste victory in their last three WSL games.
The Gunners are back at the stunning Islington venue once again this Sunday and will be looking to maintain their momentum. Arsenal lost the previous North London Derby against Spurs at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium back in December. So there’s even more incentive for the Reds to come out all guns blazing in front of their adoring red masses.
Embed from Getty ImagesArsenal Keep Raising The WSL Attendance Bar
Tottenham are the fifth Women’s Super League visitors to the Emirates Stadium this season. Leicester will be the sixth and final scheduled side to play there with a WSL fixture in April. Until this season, the North London Derby staged at the Emirates in September 2022 was the biggest ever WSL crowd (47,367).
That record has been broken another three times this season. All of those matches taking place at the Emirates. Versus Liverpool in October (54,115), then vs Chelsea in December (59,042) and once again vs Man Utd last month (60,160). Games at clubs’ main grounds have become more regular occurrences in the WSL in recent seasons. It is Arsenal though who have definitely found the most success and who seem to have the most effective system in place. Sunday’s game has been announced as another sell-out, so could the attendance record go again?
Embed from Getty ImagesArsenal & Tottenham – Recent Form Analysis
This season’s Women’s Super League now looks to be a three-horse race following the pre-International break games. With Man Utd losing to Arsenal, the Red Devils slipped 7pts behind the leading trio. One of either of those three clubs at the top, Man City, Chelsea and Arsenal, have been WSL champions for the past nine seasons. Arsenal may have lost their FA Cup 5th Round clash against Man City at Borehamwood last month, but they have been impressive in home matches this season.
Following a defeat in their season opener against Liverpool at the Emirates, the Gunneresses have racked up six home wins on the spin in the WSL. Those six wins include games against all the other sides in the WSL top-4. Jonas Eidevall’s Reds can’t afford to rest on their home laurels though.
They looked almost infallible during their 4-1 romp against Chelsea in December. Then a week later they suffered a shock 1-0 loss at Tottenham. Another concern for the Gunners will be the fact they’ve already suffered three WSL defeats this season. No side with that number of losses has ever claimed the title.
Tottenham currently sit in sixth spot and will still have hopes of beating their previous best Women’s Super League finish of 5th. However, they are currently on a winless streak of three games in the league. Not having recorded a WSL victory since their 4-3 thriller against West Ham in January. The Lilywhite ladies are going to struggle to contain their rivals too. They haven’t kept a clean sheet on the road in the WSL for sixteen matches, since beating Brighton 8-0 in October 2022. Robert Vilahamn’s Hotspurs are also still in the FA Cup and could have one eye on their huge Quarter-Final clash with Man City next weekend.
Embed from Getty ImagesHistory Of The Women’s North London Derby Match-Ups
Sunday’s Emirates encounter is the third meeting of the season between North London’s big two. Arsenal’s 1-0 WSL defeat at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium came just three days after Arsenal had knocked Spurs out of the League Cup on penalties at Meadow Park.
Tottenham will have taken a lot of heart from their 1-0 WSL success over their arch-rivals. As it finally broke their North London Derby hoodoo. They hadn’t won any of their previous eleven games with Arsenal prior to that.
Arsenal v Tottenham – Team News
Arsenal are without the services of Vivianne Miedema and will be for several weeks. The Dutch star had to cut short her Nations League plans and has undergone knee surgery.
More positive news for the Reds is that Leah Williamson, Katie McCabe & Victoria Pelova could all feature against Spurs in some capacity. For the visitors, Ashleigh Neville and Drew Spence, both have chances of getting some game time, Vilahamn stated. Jamaican international midfielder, Spence, has been sidelined since November and her and Neville’s return will be a welcome boost.
Also Read:
Alphonso Davies Set to Join Real Madrid
Formula 1 Bahrain Qualifying: Max Verstappen on Pole!
On Your Marks for the World Athletics Indoor Championships
LIV Golf Jeddah – He’s Kim, He Saw, He May Not Conquer
Countdown To The 2024 Cheltenham Festival
Image Credit: Deposit Photos