After Wednesday night’s dismal draw with Wolves, Arsenal are on the brink of sparking chaos amongst their own fanbase, and their season is at a crunch point as they prepare to face Tottenham Hotspur this weekend.
Wolves’ 94th-minute equaliser at Molineux will have sent chills down all Gunners supporters’ spines, as the prospect of another trophyless season dawned on them. There is no need for Mikel Arteta and his team to panic, as they remain five points clear at the top of the Premier League, but failure to win in N17 on Sunday will certainly be the catalyst for their fans to start tearing their hair out.
The North London club’s followers should rest assured, however – Spurs come into this particular derby in as bad a position as they ever have. Languishing just five points above the relegation zone, winless in their last eight league games and now under the stewardship of an unproven manager, it’s certainly a good time for Arsenal to play Tottenham.
Perhaps more damagingly than anything else for the Lilywhites, they may be without 13 senior players for the visit of their hated rivals.
Every player Tottenham won’t have available against Arsenal
Arsenal may be without Martin Odegaard and Kai Havertz for their trip to N17, while Mikel Merino is unlikely to feature again this season.
These absentees are certainly significant for the Gunners, but they pale in comparison to what new Spurs boss, Igor Tudor, is set to have to put up with. Tottenham are in the midst of an unprecedented injury crisis, and the team they’ll field on Sunday will be makeshift to say the least.
In their backline, hothead Cristian Romero is suspended after being sent off against Manchester United earlier this month. Meanwhile, Pedro Porro, Kevin Danso, Destiny Udogie and Ben Davies will all be unavailable due to various injury issues, leaving Tudor with the bare bones defensively.
In midfield, the damage isn’t quite as severe, although the newly appointed head coach is still limited with what he can conjure up. Rodrigo Bentancur is out until May with a thigh problem, Lucas Bergvall will miss the next seven weeks with an ankle issue, while James Maddison is still recovering from an ACL injury.
In the forward areas, Mohammed Kudus, Dejan Kulusevski and Wilson Odobert aren’t expected to play much of a role in the remainder of this season as they recover from significant setbacks. Richarlison, who had been in with a small chance of featuring in the North London Derby until this week, will now miss out due to a thigh strain.
To add salt to the wounds, Dominic Solanke is now a doubt with a throat infection.
| Player | Reason for absence | Potential return date |
| Wilson Odobert | Knee injury | 28/11/2026 |
| James Maddison | Knee injury | 01/06/2026 |
| Dejan Kulusevski | Knee injury | 02/05/2026 |
| Rodrigo Bentancur | Thigh injury | 02/05/2026 |
| Mohammed Kudus | Thigh injury | 11/04/2026 |
| Ben Davies | Ankle/foot injury | 11/04/2026 |
| Lucas Bergvall | Ankle/foot injury | 11/04/2026 |
| Cristian Romero | Suspended | 15/03/2026 |
| Destiny Udogie | Thigh injury | 15/03/2026 |
| Kevin Danso | Ankle/foot injury | 15/03/2026 |
| Richarlison | Thigh injury | 05/03/2026 |
| Pedro Porro | Thigh injury | 05/03/2026 |
| Dominic Solanke | Throat infection | 22/02/2026 |
Tottenham’s Predicted XI vs Arsenal
It’s fair to say that Spurs are stretched, and they have very few options for their clash against Arsenal. This should help the Gunners, although the unpredictable nature of a North London Derby means anything could happen.
As for how Tudor may actually line up in his first game in charge, he’ll essentially pick every senior player who is actually available. Guglielmo Vicario will start in goal, while Micky van de Ven alongside Radu Dragusin is the only viable centre-back partnership.
Meanwhile, Djed Spence is a shoo-in for one of the two full-back positions, and it’ll then depend on which of the two young defenders Tudor wants to opt for, out of Archie Gray and new signing Souza.
Tudor actually has a handful of options in the middle of the park. He can choose from three of Joao Palhinha, Yves Bissouma, Conor Gallagher and Pape Sarr. Going off the basis that Solanke isn’t fit, the only conceivable front three consists of Xavi Simons, Mathys Tel and Randal Kolo Muani.
It looks dire for Tottenham, and Arsenal simply must capitalise.
Predicted Tottenham XI vs Arsenal: Vicario; Gray, Dragusin, Van de Ven, Spence; Palhinha, Sarr, Gallagher; Simons, Kolo Muani, Tel.
