North London Derby: Memorable Matches

This high profile rivalry is set to take North London Derby by storm, with the Gunners and the Lilywhites set to battle for local bragging rights at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

There are a plethora of iconic derbies played throughout each season in the Premier League, with one in particular being the North London Derby, which, of course, is contested between Spurs and Arsenal in what is a battle for local bragging rights in North London.

This contest will be the first high-profile derby to take place to date in the 2024/25 season, and it will also be the first of at least two North London Derbies to take place in all competitions. Head Coaches Ange Postecoglou and Mikel Arteta will be looking to lead their sides to a derby victory, and three points that could prove crucial to their respective league campaigns this year.

The game is to be played on Sunday 15^th September in what is set to be a 2pm kick-off at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Over the years, there have been a number of iconic moments and matches, where world-class players like Thierry Henry, Bukayo Saka, Paul Gascoigne, and Gary Lineker have featured for the two clubs over the years, and here we are going to be taking a look back at some of the most memorable and iconic matches in the history of the North London Derby.

Spurs 5 – 1 Arsenal (League Cup – 22nd January 2008)

First, we look back at the second leg of the 2007/08 League Cup Semi-Final at White Hart Lane, which came after a 1 – 1 draw at the Emirates Stadium in the first leg. This game would be amongst the most memorable for fans of Spurs, with the Lilywhites securing an emphatic 5 – 1 victory in front of a 35,979-strong crowd.

Tottenham took the lead in the first five minutes of the match through midfielder Jermaine Jenas (3’), before an own goal from Gunners forward Nicklas Bendtner (27’). Michael Keane then made it 3 – 0 at the start of the second half (48’) before fellow forward Aaron Lennon made it 4 with half an hour of the game remaining (60’).

Arsenal did manage to pull one back shortly after that through a goal from Emmanuel Adebayor (70’), but Spurs did get a fifth goal deep into the second half stoppage time to complete the scoring through Belgian midfielder Steed Malbranque (90+4’).

Spurs did of course go on to win the 2008 League Cup after beating Chelsea 2 – 1 after extra time through a Dimitar Berbatov penalty (70’) and a goal from Jonathan Woodgate (94’).

Spurs 4 – 5 Arsenal (Premier League – 13th November 2004)

This game still holds the record for the most goals ever scored in a North London Derby, with a total of 9 goals being scored between Spurs and Arsenal at White Hart Lane on 13th November 2004, with the Gunners coming away as 5 – 4 winners against Tottenham that day.

It was hosts Tottenham who took the lead late on in the first half through Noureddine Naybet (36’) before Thierry Henry scored the equalising goal in first half stoppage time (45+1’). The Gunners then took the lead in the match for the first time through a Lauren penalty (55’) before Patrick Vieira made it 3 – 1 a few minutes later (60’).

Jermain Defoe did immediately pull a goal back for Spurs (61’) shortly before Freddie Ljungberg restored the visitors’ two goal advantage with slightly more than twenty minutes to go (69’).

Ledley King made it 4 – 3 just a few minutes after that (73’) before Robert Pires seemed to put the game beyond doubt when he scored Arsenal’s 5th goal with ten minutes to go (80’). Frederic Kanoute made it 5 – 4 (88’), which is of course how it finished.

Arsenal 4 – 4 Spurs (Premier League – 29th October 2008)

There was an 8 goal thriller between Arsenal and Spurs in a Premier League fixture between them on 29th October 2008 at the Emirates Stadium. It was to be a point each for the two local rivals, who drew 4 – 4 in the end.

David Bentley gave the visiting Spurs side the lead with just over ten minutes gone (13’), before the arrival of an equaliser for the hosts through Mikael Silvestre just before half time (37’). William Gallas gave Arsenal the lead just moments after half time (46’) before Emmanuel Adebayor extended the Gunners’ advantage with less than half an hour to go (64’).

Darren Bent pulled a goal back for Spurs to make it 3 – 2 (67’) before Robin van Persie made it 4 – 2 with his goal a short time later (68’). This was the hosts’ final goal of the game – Jermaine Jenas halved the deficit at the end of the second half (89’) before Aaron Lennon scored a dramatic equalising goal deep into stoppage time (90+4’).

Spurs 3 – 1 Arsenal (FA Cup – 14th April 1991)

The final entry on this list is the 1991 FA Cup Semi-Final tie between Arsenal and Spurs, which ended in a 3 – 1 win for the Lilywhites, with Tottenham going on to beat Brian Clough’s Nottingham Forest 2 – 1 in that year’s FA Cup Final at Wembley.

Back to this memorable FA Cup Final, Paul Gascoigne gave the Lilywhites the lead thanks to a stunning 35 yard strike with only a few minutes gone (5’), before Gary Lineker promptly made it 2 – 0 after just ten minutes (10’). Alan Smith did get a goal just before half time for Arsenal (45’), but Lineker put the game out of Arsenal’s sight with just over ten minutes of the game to go (78’).

This match is set to capture the imagination of Spurs and Arsenal fans alike, and with the 2024/25 Premier League season very much in its infancy at the moment, both sides will be looking to claim bragging rights with all three points which would put them in the right direction to realise their respective ambitions for the current campaign.

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