While it’s unclear (at the time of writing) as to whether Robbie Keane will ‘do a Defoe’ and re-sign for Tottenham Hotspur this season, Harry Redknapp will be firing his charges up for the visit of their North London rivals on Sunday. The Spurs boss will have happy memories of the way his team drew 4-4 at the Emirates earlier this campaign, while a victory this weekend will not only help them move away from the relegation zone, but also mean that Arsenal’s chances of Champions League football next term are dangling by a thread.
The Gunners were pretty poor against West Ham on Saturday, barely troubling Robert Green and the opposition defence. While the Press Association reports that Arsene Wenger is looking on the bright side of life, he must be desperate to see Cesc Fabregas and Theo Walcott return, two players who can help unlock the most stubborn of opposition defences. It’s clear that the likes of Denilson, Eboue and Diaby simply can’t provide the sufficient penetration.
“We gave everything for 90 minutes and restricted them to nothing,” said the Arsenal boss. “There was a great desire and I could not fault the spirit, but we did lack some creativity in the final ball and some sharpness because we had played a difficult game on Wednesday night at Everton.”
Perhaps it’s a blessing in disguise that Arsenal’s FA Cup replay with Cardiff has been postponed this Tuesday, thus giving the Gunners chance to fully prepare for the showdown at White Hart Lane. However, Tottenham fans will certainly not be fearing their deadliest rivals in the same way they might have done a few seasons ago, and a Robbie Keane-inspired Spurs would like nothing better than to bring their opponents down a peg or two.