What Tottenham and Arsenal are saying ahead of Premier League title decider vs Man City
Arsenal supporters will be watching proceedings at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium intensely on Tuesday night as they pray their fierce rivals can do them a favour against Manchester City.
The Gunners returned to the top of the Premier League on Sunday as they beat Manchester United 1-0 at Old Trafford. Arsenal's result confirmed that the title race will go down to the last day of the campaign no matter what happens in North London in midweek.
However, the result of the clash between Ange Postecoglou and Pep Guardiola's teams will determine whether or not it will be City or Arsenal who have the advantage heading into the final day. Ahead of the match, football.london has taken a look at everything you need to know about this huge fixture.
What have Arsenal said about the game?
Unsurprisingly, Arsenal have been keen to put rivalries aside to support Tottenham for one night only. When asked about supporting Spurs in midweek, Kai Havertz told Sky Sports: "I am going to be the biggest fan of Tottenham ever, we are all going to be. So let's hope for the best."
The Gunners' fanbase has shared this sentiment albeit they are not holding their breath that Tottenham will do them a favour. Former midfielder Paul Merson claimed he would get a Spurs tattoo if they managed to beat City.
"If Villa got beat tomorrow [Monday] by two or three, all of a sudden that goal difference changes a bit," he told Sky Sports. "If they go and get beat by one or two at Palace...
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"If they lost their next two games by two clear goals, I am not talking about the extraordinary here, that's four goals, then all of a sudden Tottenham...if they get a draw against City I am having a tattoo, and then they go and put six past Sheffield United.
"It all goes down to Tuesday, I am starting to want Arsenal not to win it now. It would be the little cockerel on the ball, but I will have it. I will have it."
What Spurs have said about the game
Tottenham's squad have not been flying kites as Fulham players did ahead of their weekend game with City because they know a result could be just as important for their season as it is for Arsenal. Should Aston Villa drop points against Liverpool on Monday night, Spurs could realistically still finish in the top four with a win over the Blues.
While a lot of Spurs fans have joked about celebrating City's goals on Tuesday, Postecoglou stressed he did not think any supporter would openly root against their own team. "A proportion of our fans? What does that mean? What proportion? Really? 50 per cent? 20 per cent? One per cent? You don’t know, OK," he said.
"So let’s answer a question we don’t know the answer to. Yeah, that’s fine. People are allowed to feel the way they do.
"I think I have been really consistent and I think really strong in my beliefs that it is important for this football club if they want to get to where they want to be, to a) not look for some silver bullet that is going to get us to where we want. It is hard work, it is perseverance, it is resilience, it is quality that will get us where we want. Not to fall for any sort of false dawns or short-term result reactions. Stick to the course. Thirdly, know what real success looks like.
"Real success looks like trophies. Anything else in between, bragging rights, whatever it is, it is absolutely meaningless to me, to anyone involved with me. We have a game tomorrow we want to win."
Permutations on the title race
If City win, they will move two points clear at the top of the Premier League. A three-goal or more victory over Spurs would eradicate Arsenal's goal difference advantage and ensure the title is firmly in the Manchester club's hands. Depending on the margin of victory, they could win the title with a draw against West Ham so long as Arsenal do not have a stronger goal difference.
If it is a draw, Arsenal will be in control of the title race. Both teams would be level on points going into the last game and the Gunners would only need to match City's result against Everton to win the league. They would also have a three-goal advantage on goal difference.
If Spurs win, Arsenal will be in an incredibly strong position. They would know a victory of any margin would be enough to win the Premier League. The Gunners would also lift the title if they lost and City drew to West Ham.