Jurgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola have shown Mikel Arteta how Arsenal can succeed in the North London derby on Thursday evening.
Both managers have struggled to beat Spurs with neither able to take a victory from the north London side this season.
The Liverpool and Manchester City managers set up attacking teams against Tottenham, which Antonio Conte benefitted from.
He sets up his side to be dangerous on the counter-attack meaning Spurs thrive when under attacking pressure from the opposing team.
Arteta should have taken note of this and seen how the top two teams in the Premier League have struggled to overcome Conte’s side despite the attacking prowess they have.
The Arsenal boss has already used a rigid system at a tough away ground this season, and he will need to repeat this.
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Arteta used a more defensive system against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge this season, and the Gunners thrived as they came out 4-2 winners.
This was after a bad run of form where Arsenal had lost three consecutive matches.
With Arteta’s side now in better form defensively and in the attack, being able to use more of a rigid system will come with its benefits.
Especially against Conte’s Tottenham team who seem to struggle more in games when coming up against sides who have set up to defend rather than attack.
Tottenham have taken a maximum of six points from Manchester City this season, and have also taken two points from Liverpool, without losing a single game.
No other side in the Premier League has achieved that in this campaign.
With Arsenal being four points ahead of Spurs in fourth place, it gives Arteta’s side a feeling of maintaining safety rather than going on the hunt for goals.
It would make sense to have more of a defensive lineup due to the mentality of defending the lead in the league table.
This differs from Manchester City and Liverpool, who at the time needed all three points to boost their chances in the race for the league title.
It was because of this that Conte could benefit and absorb all of the pressure before pouncing on the counterattack.
The linkup between Harry Kane and Heung-Min Son is most dangerous when Spurs have a counterattack, as seen in the games against Klopp and Guardiola’s sides as both players have been on the scoresheet against them this season.
A draw would be seen as a good result for Arsenal on Thursday evening as they will maintain the four-point gap.
Klopp and Guardiola have shown why it is not a good idea to attack Spurs this season, and with the Gunners‘ already being ahead in the league table, they do not need to risk unlocking Spurs‘ biggest strength.