Arsenal fans' complaints about Tottenham wearing thin ahead of North London derby

Aditya Devavrat 17:35 01/12/2018
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  • Tottenham are the rising force in North London these days.

    Arsenal welcome Tottenham on Sunday in what is quickly becoming a familiar position for them in the north London derby: below their fiercest rivals in the Premier League table.

    Granted, the gap is only three points, and a home win will see the Gunners leapfrog their hated rivals, albeit on goal difference. But as the two teams have become regular competitors for a prize that was once a guarantee for the red side of the north London divide – a top-four finish and Champions League football – Arsenal have become less secure about their place in this rivalry.

    And the fact Spurs are closing the gap is clearly grating on Gunners fans, who feel the hype is unwarranted, particularly as for all their pretty football, it is yet to present them with trophies.

    The gripe is now common. Arsenal fans wonder why Spurs and manager Mauricio Pochettino are getting so much credit for consistent top-four finishes and no trophies amid limited transfer spending and a stadium move when Arsene Wenger was given a rough ride for achieving – if that is the right word – exactly the same thing over his final 10 seasons.

    There are accusations of media bias, of observers and pundits falling in love with the Spurs story. Buying smart rather than spending too much on any one player, selling some of their best talents when the right fee is offered, and relying heavily on youth, both in transfer strategy and in promoting from their academy. These were hallmarks of Arsenal under Wenger from 2004 to 2014, that yielded the infamous 10-season long barren spell.

    The hypocrisy is obvious. Arsenal fans had a huge role to play in Wenger’s exit, which eventually came this summer. The rancour and bitterness that had built up over those trophy-less years continued even after three FA Cups in four seasons, and Wenger was booed at his own home stadium, as well as being castigated on Twitter and in infamous YouTube videos compiled by fans – most notoriously AFTV (Arsenal FanTV).

    To suddenly get annoyed that Spurs are being given more favourable treatment, when they were part of the reason the coverage of Arsenal became so negative and poisonous, is not just hypocritical but also betrays the point they were originally trying to make.

    The reason they, and pundits, were so disapproving of Arsenal’s perceived underachieving was because of what had come before. Wenger had won the league three times, the last of those coming in arguably the Premier League’s greatest-ever triumph, the famous ‘Invincibles’ season of 2003/04 when Wenger’s side went through the entire league campaign without losing a game.

    Simply competing for the top four was unacceptable because fans had become used to competing for bigger prizes, the biggest prizes. That point seems to have been forgotten amid the ire directed at White Hart Lane.

    Spurs have won only the League Cup during the Premier League era. The best they’ve ever finished in the league is second, and even that was as distant runners-up to Antonio Conte’s Chelsea side in 2015/16.

    Just being in a title chase is an achievement for them, as is consistently finishing in the Champions League spots, because there is no recent history of success and splendor.

    And let’s not forget, Tottenham have faced the likes of Real Madrid, Juventus and Barcelona during this phase of their club’s development without suffering multiple 5-1 losses. Unlike Arsenal, this Spurs side can actually still compete with Europe’s biggest clubs, despite the huge financial gap.

    Plus, they’ve finished ahead of Arsenal for two straight seasons, having not done so in 22 years previously. And last year came with the bonus of finishing as the best-placed side from London.

    There aren’t trophies handed out for those achievements. And Tottenham’s success story hasn’t included any silverware – a fact that the media does point out, if not as often as Arsenal fans would like.

    But the basic difference is this: Arsenal’s was a story of a club in decline. Tottenham are very much on the rise.

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