TOM LOVE (@TomLove_18) has perused the markets ahead of Saturday's big North London derby between Tottenham and Arsenal in the Premier League at Wembley.
Tottenham v Arsenal | Saturday 2nd March 2019, 12:30 | BT Sport
It’s been a hectic few weeks of football and that continues with an eagerly-anticipated North London derby on Saturday lunchtime.
Let’s start with Spurs… They’ve lost two on the bounce – something they’re not used to – and surprisingly those two defeats coincided with the return of Harry Kane. Tottenham struggled to create a great deal midweek at Stamford Bridge; it was an uncharacteristic performance but they will be keen to bounce back as soon as possible and this is the game to do that in.
Arsenal cruised to a 5-1 win over Bournemouth at the Emirates on Wednesday and those kind of results are pretty commonplace when the Gunners are on home soil. It’s on the road where Unai Emery’s men struggle; their recent win at Huddersfield was their first away from home in seven, that run includes defeats at Southampton and West Ham, plus a draw at Brighton.
Team news
Kieran Trippier could be dropped after his nightmare against Chelsea which was summed up by that comical own goal, Serge Aurier May come in as a replacement. Spurs are still without Dele Alli and Eric Dier who are recovering from injury and illness respectively.
Carl Jenkinson received a rare start midweek due to injuries to Stephan Litchensteiner and Ainsley Maitland-Niles and he could start again here. Laurent Koscielny and Sead Kolasinac are not 100% fit but could feature. It will be interesting to see if Alexandre Lacazette and Granit Xhaka come back into the fold after being rested against the Cherries.
Gunning for goals
If we focus on the Gunners’ away games, just once have they failed to score and that was against West Ham. They have however conceded in every single league game on the road and therefore Both Teams To Score has banked in all but one. Arsenal see an average of 3.50 goals when playing away with a vast majority seeing Over 2.5 Goals and BTTS bank.
That’s where I’m heading for this one and we can get a more than fair 20/21 with Boylesports on Over 2.5 Goals and Both Teams To Score. Spurs haven’t been as prevalent on the BTTS coupon but have started to concede more, over half of their games see goals for both sides and 64% of produce three or more goals in total.
I’m also happy to take a punt in Bet365’s Bet Builder for BTTS, over three corners for each team and over one card each, which is 5/1 and looks fair in what should be an entertaining and feisty affair. Both have been good on the corners this season, and with it being a North London derby and a chance for Arsenal to close the gap on their near neighbours to one point, it’s likely to be a card-heavy encounter.
Best Bets
Tottenham v Arsenal – Over 2.5 Goals and Both Teams To Score (20/21 Boylesports)
Tottenham v Arsenal – Both Teams To Score, both teams to earn Over 3 Corners, both teams to receive Over 1 Card (5/1 Bet365)
