Tottenham v Arsenal: All eyes on Bukayo Saka as Gunners aim to keep their title push going

All eyes will be on Bukayo Saka Sunday when Arsenal lock horns with Tottenham Hotspur in the 195th north London derby as they aim to get the win necessary to keep their title push going.

Saka has scored twice and provided two assists in eight games against their north London neighbours but has never scored home and away in the same Premier League season against them.

The 22 year old scored in their first meeting back in September, restoring the Gunners lead after Heung-min Son scored on 42 minutes to restore parity following a Cristian Romero’s own goal that gave Arsenal lead on 26 minutes.

If he scores Sunday at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium, Saka will become the first Arsenal player to score home and away against Spurs in a single campaign since Alexandre Lacazette in 2019/20 and the first Englishman to do so since Ian Wright in 1993/94.

The Gunners may not have recorded a back-to-back win at Tottenham since 1988 but they’ll be heading to their neigbhours ground full of confidence on the back of their longest run without conceding on the road in their league history, helping them to remain unbeaten in their last seven domestic trips.

That’s in stark contrast to Spurs who have kept just two clean sheets at home all season, but they have had the benefit of a 15-day build-up to this game.

Tottenham have won just one of their last six league games against Arsenal, with their four defeats in this run as many as they’d suffered in the previous 16 and they have conceded 49 Premier League goals this season and could concede 50+ in back-to-back campaigns for the first time since 2015.

Up to the end of 2015/16, Arsenal v Tottenham was the most drawn fixture in Premier League history, with 20 of the 48 meetings ending level (42 per cent). Since then, just four of 15 matches have finished in a draw (27 per cent).

Meanwhile, Arsenal have lost just one of their last 11 away London derbies in the league since the start of last season (W8 D2), keeping a clean sheet in all eight of those victories.

They have kept a clean sheet in their last six Premier League away games, with only two sides ever doing so in seven (Chelsea and Manchester United, both in 2008/09). However, Arsenal have never kept a clean sheet in consecutive league visits to Spurs.

In Premier League history, no side has dropped more points from winning positions against a single opponent than Tottenham have against Arsenal (45).