Arsenal vs Spurs(North London derby). This is one of the most fiercely contested derbies in the world; the hatred in this derby is as real and as raw as they come, with both sets of fans despising one and other. But, how did this great rivalry start?
Daily Mail 2019
In the early days of these teams, this wasn’t a North London derby. Arsenal were previously called Woolwich Arsenal and were actually located in South London instead and Spurs fans still, to this day, chant about the fact that Arsenal don’t belong in the North of London. And at this time Arsenal and Spurs weren’t rivalries, due to them two teams being so far apart.
The Saleroom 2016
Early Matches
The first game these two played between each other was in 1887; this game ended with 15 minutes to play because of bad lighting, but Spurs were winning 2-1 at the time. The first, full game they played was in 1888 and Arsenal won that day with a score of 5-2, but this day Spurs could only manage to field 9 players. The first notable match they played was in 1898 when there was a huge crowd of 15,000 people; this match was the last match played at Northumberland park. After this match, Spurs believed the needed a new stadium so then they moved to White Hart Lane, where they would go on to play 2,533 games. The First league match between the two came in 1909, in the First Division, where Arsenal would go on to win the game 1-0.
The Rivalry starting to heat up…
However, these games I have mentioned were all before Arsenal moved to the North of London. The first game they played after Arsenal had moved to North London was in 1914, after their move in 1913, and this is where the rivalry started to gather momentum.
So, what happened in that first game? Arsenal, although being in the second division, came out 5-1 winners at White Hart Lane, to a Spurs side in the First Division. However, after this, due to WW1, the rivalry dipped for a number of years until in 1919, when Arsenal were promoted back to the top flight due to an expansion in the number of teams in the first division by two teams. However, this was extremely controversial, at the time, because in the 1918-19 season Arsenal only finished 6th and Spurs finished in 3rd however, due to Arsenal bidding the most, they got promoted to the First division whereas Spurs were laid out to rot still in the 2nd division. This, as you can imagine, riled up the Spurs fans and this started the huge rivalry we know and love today. People believe this to be the main catalyst of the hatred that is presented in this rivalry. However, Arsenal were not away from the bitter rivals for long as in the 1919-20 season Spurs were promoted back to the First Division with a point to prove. However, due to set backs out of each team control they didn’t play in 1920 the next game they played game in 1921 season where Spurs came out victorious. with the score ending 2 goals to 1.
The next game they played in 1922 was so bitter that the next fixture was threatened to be played behind close doors due to the immense animosity in this particular fixture. However, due to regular setbacks, e.g. one team being relegated then the next, the rivalry didn’t really start to gather real speed until 1950. There was one notable game between the two in this period ,however, which was a 6-0 trashing over Spurs from Arsenal at White Hart Lane; the biggest ever win away in this fixture. Although, since 1950 there has only been one season that these two giants have not faced off, and that season was in 1977-78. In view of this, every big rivalry win felt like one huge leap towards a great season and there were plenty of great seasons for these two mammoth clubs.
Tottenham Successes
Spurs have had many great times in the 137-year history. Winning two League titles, eight FA Cups, four League Cups, seven FA Community Shields, one European Cups Winners Cup and two UEFA Cups
Bill Nicholson
Tottenham Hotspur 2018
Bill Nicholson took over in 1958 and went on to be Tottenham’s best manager of all time. One of their main successes came under him in 1960-61 season where Spurs became the first club in the 20th century to win the League and FA cup double. However, Bill Nicholson boys didn’t end there as they held the F.A. Cup the year after, before becoming the first English club to win a UEFA competition (European Cup Winners Cup) which they won in 1963. Their success continued as they won the UEFA cup in 1972 again becoming the first team to win 2 European trophies. Overall, Nicholson managed to win 8 major trophies during his 16 years in charge; a phenomenal record.
Arsenal’s Success
Arsenal, like Spurs, have also had a brilliant 133 year history winning 13 league titles, 13 FA Cups (the highest over any club in the country), two League Cups, 15 FA Community Shield, the only League Centenary Trophy, one UEFA Cup Winners and one Inter-cities Fairs Cup.
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George Graham
Arsenal 2019
George Graham played for Arsenal and also managed Arsenal but, his great success came through management. Graham took charge in 1986 and was an instant success, winning the League Cup with Arsenal in 1987. They then went on to win 8 Football League Centenary Trophy’s’s, and followed it up with the 1988-89 Football League title. They then won another title in 1991 and went the whole season only losing one match. Furthermore, he then won the FA Cup and League Cup double in 1993. He finally left as Arsenal Manager in 1995, due to a fall out with the board of directors.
Arsene Wenger
Premier league 2019
Arsene Wenger took charge in 1996; just like George Graham, he also was an instant success winning League and Cup double in 1997-98. Arsene quickly brought in some astute signings with Patrick Viera in 1996 and Thierry Henry in 1999. These two especially would contribute tremendously to the success Arsenal were about to achieve in the near future.
Things just got better and better for Arsenal and Wenger as he added another league cup double in 2001-02 season. To add to this, they achieved two more F.A. Cups in 2003 and 2005. However, the main achievement and what this amazing manager and team were famous for, was the 2003-04 season where not only did Arsenal win the league, but they won the league without losing a single match. This means they have now got the great and well-known name of “The Invincibles” this is known across the world as one of the greatest sporting achievements of all time. However, after 9 great years for Wenger, it started to slow down from here and it took until 2014 for the next trophy to arrive which was an F.A. Cup in 2014. He then won the F.A. Cup in 2015 and 2017 however, some critics state that he stayed too long and that could have dampened some of his great achievements.
Main Incidents in the rivalry
So, what are the main incidents that have happened in this rivalry? Firstly, one of the biggest incidents is the player, Sol Campbell, switching from Tottenham to Arsenal in 2001. This caused outrage of the utmost effect among Spurs fans and he was also named “Judas” by the Spurs fans for this shock move as he also was part of the Invincibles team under Arsene Wenger.
Another notable incident was in 2014 when Theo Walcott was subbed off injured in the 83rd minute and, as he left the field of play, coins and bottles were launched at him from the Spurs fans. But how have the results been over the years?
The most recent incident between the two came in 2018 when a Spurs fan threw a banana at Aubameyang, Arsenal’s Gabonese striker, this caused outrage all over the media and the football industry, due to the outright scandal of a banana being thrown as the Spurs fan was abusing Aubameyang, due to his ethnicity, is a completely unacceptable and racist act and shook the whole world when this was found out about. The fan was rightly banned from football events.![]()
This is a infamous photograph taken that day.
Guardian 2019
At the moment, the record between these two stands at Arsenal on 82 wins, Tottenham on 64 wins, with the remaining 53 games ending in draws. The most capped player in this rivalry is David O’Leary, with a staggering 35 appearances in the North London derby. The top scorers in this derby are Bobby Smith, Emmanuel Adebayor and Harry Kane, who all sit with 10 goals each. The latest meeting came on 1st September 2019, where the game ended 2-2, with goals coming from Lacazette and Aubameyang of Arsenal and the Spurs goals coming from Erikson and Kane.
By Scott Worrall
UCFB Football Business and Media
Football Club Rivalries 