Saturday's north London derby will not just be the biggest in Premier League history; I believe it will also represent a changing of the guard in this great football rivalry.

The iron grip Arsenal once maintained over this fixture has been steadily loosening in recent years - not just this season - and that's due to a profound transformation of the ethos at both clubs.

The Arsenal I remember from the early days of my career, when I was playing for Newcastle for instance, were a team that always looked upwards. Trying to improve, to be the best, to make history. But somewhere along the line they took their eye off the ball. Instead they became happy to stick with what they've got. Namely, regular Champions League football.

[PICTURE THIS: THE BEST SPURS V ARSENAL CLASHES EVER]

[JENAS: LASAGNA-GATE STILL HAUNTS ME]

[TIREDNESS NO EXCUSE FOR SPURS - REDKNAPP]

Tottenham, meanwhile, have been moving in the opposite direction. In my Newcastle days, I viewed Spurs as a team that hovered around eighth position in the league - often lower. But one of the things that attracted me to the club when I left St James's Park for White Hart Lane in 2005 was that they had a vision for the future. Namely bringing in young English players, changing the mentality of the club and trying to strive for something better.

Arsenal have settled. They have decided that fourth position equals success, especially from a financial perspective. But by taking that stance, they have lowered the expectations of the club as a whole.

Meanwhile, Spurs have been chasing a dream - and this season that raw ambition has propelled them beyond a point where even they expected to reach. And with it, beyond Arsenal.

That's why this is the first occasion in my time in football that I can look at a north London derby and predict with confidence that Tottenham will win it.

Gunners lose their winning mentality

The 1-1 draw between the sides at the Emirates earlier in the season was a key moment for Tottenham. It was the day that showed them exactly where they stood in this title race; when that young Spurs team looked at each other and realised they were capable of winning the league.

They didn't scream and shout about it, but they knew they had destroyed Arsenal on their own patch. Even though they didn't win the game, it generated huge belief.

At the time, given the problems at Chelsea and Manchester City, Arsenal were emerging as favourites for the championship. I admit that they were my picks, whereas I didn't expect Spurs to have the maturity to win the league.

[WENGER REJECTS SANCHEZ BELIEF FEARS]

[ARSENAL 'DON'T HAVE THE BALLS' TAUNTS PAUL SCHOLES]

But the choking we are witnessing by the Gunners now is the result of the seeds that have been sewn by the club's chronic lack of ambition. Arsenal's players have become conditioned to be second best.

We're in a situation they have spent so long settling for fourth place that - now they're in a position where they could actually aim for something higher - they don't know what to do.

The Arsenal of old were able to handle this kind of situation, but they have turned into something that resembles the Tottenham of old - a team that invariably falls apart when the pressure is on.

From a business standpoint, Arsenal's model is excellent. They have spent less money than their rivals while delivering Champions League football every season, and they will do it again this year. But they've completely lost what they used to represent.

Sure, they have won a couple of FA Cups, but they haven't even been in the shake-up for the league title on the last day of the season since they last won it in 2004. That aura they had when I was at Newcastle; from a player's perspective it was intimidating.

But the mentality has changed from winning things being an achievement, to the top four being an achievement.

Tottenham's team spirit trumps Arsenal's individual flair

When I look at Leicester, Spurs and Arsenal - the only three teams still capable of winning the league in my opinion - Leicester and Spurs share the same strength, which is their team spirit.

The difference between Spurs and Leicester is that Spurs have more quality to go with that spirit. That's the thing that would be most likely to cost the Foxes the title.

Arsenal's strength, on the other hand, is that they have some world class players. Three, if we're being strict: Petr Cech, Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil. That's three players they can turn to in their hour of need - and this is their hour of need right now.

This is the moment Arsene Wenger will look at his squad and ask, who can I fall back on? Where is my Patrick Vieira? My Thierry Henry? My Tony Adams?

Although Spurs have good players, and collectively they are a better team than Arsenal, the dynamic changes slightly when you boil it down to individuals. But Cech is injured for Saturday's game and Sanchez is not in his best form.

In the game at the Emirates, it was the outstanding Ozil who saved them with an assist for Kieran Gibbs, but this time I don't think that will be enough. It's just another reason why I think Tottenham will win this weekend.

Spurs can bounce back from Hammers defeat

Although Mauricio Pochettino has managed Spurs to perfection all season, my only concern is that he sticks to his best XI from now on. We can never know the full situation behind the scenes, with regards to players getting tight muscles or little knocks or suffering from fatigue, and I suppose we will find that out when he names his starting line-up against Arsenal.

But as good as Kieran Tripper and Ben Davies have been this season, Kyle Walker and Danny Rose is the best full-back pairing at the club, just as Eric Dier and Mousa Dembele is the best midfield pairing (with Dele Alli playing just ahead).

And if Spurs are serious about the title, I believe they should be going with their strongest XI in all their remaining league games, even if that means shuffling it around for the Europa League.

When I saw the Spurs line-up against West Ham on Wednesday, it was clear to me it wasn't the strongest team Pochettino had at his disposal. But even though Spurs were a clear second best to the Hammers, I don't think this result will have an impact on the title race, especially given their rivals' results.

Yes they missed the chance to go top, but it's not a time to be disappointed about that.

Sometimes when you play that badly you can just put it down as a blip and wipe the slate clean, and that's what Spurs will do ahead of the derby. Pochettino doesn't seem like the type to dwell on defeats, and I don't think his players do either. For one thing, there will probably be four or five changes for the next match.

You can never completely write off a team with players of Arsenal's quality - and I wouldn't - but it certainly seems as if something isn't right with this Gunners side.

That's why I believe we are on the cusp of a huge turning point in the north London football landscape. I look at Arsenal now and wonder whether they can hold onto the likes of Ozil and Sanchez. Plus, there's uncertainty about their manager.

There isn't an Arsenal fan around who isn't grateful to Wenger for what he has done for the club, but he has been there a long time and many of them feel it is time for him to move on.

When you look at Spurs, however, you find almost the opposite situation. A young, fresh team with a good young manager and you can see that everyone wants to be there.

The stage is set for Spurs to take over. It's not just about Saturday's derby, or even about this season's title race. What we are witnessing is a longer-term shift where Spurs are poised to become north London's dominant force.