It is the second north London derby of the season when Tottenham host Arsenal at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday February 22, in a Premier League game which will kick-off at 4.30pm GMT.
Thomas Frank’s men sit fifth in the table, and went into the November international break with just one win from four matches in the league.
Tottenham predicted lineup vs Arsenal
Tottenham (3-4-2-1): Vicario; Dragusin, Van de Ven, Spence; Gallagher, Bissouma, Palhinha, Sarr; Tel, Simons; Solanke.
New Spurs manager Igor Tudor is expected to favour a 3-4-2-1 formation, although his options are limited by a long list of injuries.
Tottenham team news vs Arsenal
Striker Richarlison and full-back Pedro Porro look the only two players on Tottenham’s lengthy injury list who could feature, but they are still classed as doubts and it would be a surprise if either started.
Central defender Cristian Romero remains suspended following his red card in the recent defeat at Manchester United.
Wilson Odobert and James Maddison are both out with long-term knee injuries and it looks increasingly unlikely that Dejan Kulusevski will be seen in a Spurs shirt again this season.
Rodrigo Bentancur, Mohammed Kudus, Ben Davies, Lucas Bergvall, Destiny Udogie and Kevin Danso will also miss the big game.
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Spurs put faith in Tudor
Tottenham embark upon another new start this week and incoming manager Tudor faces a baptism of fire as his team face their arch-rivals Arsenal in the Croatian’s first match at the Spurs helm.
A 2-1 home loss to Newcastle was the final straw for the patience shown towards Thomas Frank, who had replaced Ange Postecoglou in the summer, despite the Australian leading the north London outfit to their first trophy in 17 years when they beat Man Utd in the Europa League final.
Frank’s spell at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium has left the London club just five points above the relegation zone and big concerns among the supporters that they could actually slip into the bottom three since rivals West Ham, who recently won 2-1 at Spurs, are showing signs of life in their battle against the drop.
READ MORE: Tottenham vs Arsenal predictions and betting tips
Tudor has been given the keys to the manager’s office until the end of the season and is seen as a stop-gap before the board move to make a permanent appointment in the summer.
This has led many to believe they will make a move to reappoint Mauricio Pochettino, the man who led them to the Champions League final in 2019, who could become available after leading the USA in the forthcoming World Cup finals.
For now, though, all eyes will be on Tudor, who has a reputation as a firefighter who can get the best out of teams over a short period.
He has been out of work since he was sacked by Juventus in October and he is a much-travelled coach, who has also had spells at Lazio, Marseille, Galatasaray and Udinese.
This is the first time he has managed in the English top-flight, and the primary aim of his tenure will be to make sure Spurs stay there and a win over their biggest rivals on Sunday would give everyone at the club a huge lift.
