Ange Postecoglou improves Spurs ready for Arsenal challenge

Ange Postecoglou says his side are “in a good position to move forward” as he takes charge of Tottenham Hotspur in another north London derby on Sunday.

Spurs will be hoping to bounce back from their 2-1 defeat to Newcastle in what has been an indifferent start to the 2024/25 season, with one win, one draw and one defeat in their three games so far.

The derby is a crucial fixture every season and Tottenham have a slight advantage as they are at home and Arsenal are suffering an injury crisis, but Postecoglou believes the Gunners will be a “tough nut to crack”.

Mikel Arteta’s side had the best defence in the Premier League last season, but Postecoglou’s flowing style of football could help Spurs defeat them.

“We want to be a club that can challenge everyone, that’s what we’re trying to become,” the Tottenham boss said in his pre-match press conference on Friday.

“To do that you have to perform at a certain level, consistently, and the team is strong enough to do that. We started the season quite solidly from a performance perspective. The results didn’t reflect that, but I think we’re in a good place to build on last year and improve in all areas. There’s no reason why we can’t (challenge) this year.”

Postecoglou also acknowledged what winning the north London derby would mean to fans and how triumphing in big games like that can help a team gain momentum.

He added: “Every derby is a bit different, obviously this one, you can tell it’s quite intense between the two clubs geographically situated in the same part of the city. On the same pitch, there’s a bit of an advantage. I thought both games last year were entertaining. I thought we played well in their shoes and really matched them. We know what it means for our fans and the club that we have to go out there and perform.

“I’ve never felt like there was an easy path to success, I don’t think one thing can change the trajectory to a big effect. It helps to win a big game, a derby, but it’s a game against one of the best teams, so that gives you more belief and confidence and potentially that can inject some real momentum into our season.”

The manager was also asked about the allegations against Rodrigo Bentancur for misconduct and for an update on injuries to his squad, to which he replied: “It’s not unexpected from our perspective. We know it’s something the league will look at and we need to let the process unfold. Rodrigo is well aware of the ramifications. We’ll just wait and see what they do.

“(Yves) Bissouma is the only one who has a problem. It’s not serious, but he’s receiving treatment today. We’ll see if he can train tomorrow and we’ll make a decision there.

“Micky (Van de Ven) is fine, he trained fully during the international break. Dom (Solanke) is back with the first team, training today, then again we have training tomorrow, if they do well I think they will be available. Richarlison and Will Lankshear are the only two rehabbing.”