Former Arsenal defender Armand Traore once carried a knuckle-duster to the north London derby out of fear he might be attacked. Traore, 36, joined the Gunners in 2005 before making his first-team debut 12 months later.
Despite arriving in England from France as a teenager, the retired star had witnessed fierce atmospheres previously as a fan. He grew up supporting Paris Saint-Germain and regularly attended their heated encounters against Marseille, where he claimed rival fans would "batter each other." These experiences led Traore to take drastic measures when attending the north London derby as an Arsenal player. Concerned he might be spotted by a Tottenham supporter, he brought the weapon to a derby duel, which resulted in police involvement.
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Speaking in 2017, he said: "Coming from France, I used to go to PSG versus Marseille and the fans there would batter each other. I was only 17, and I had just started playing for Arsenal's first-team. I had these images in my mind.
"I went to the north London derby, but I was convinced someone might recognise me. I thought if a Spurs fan did, then I needed to be ready if something happened. So I had a knuckle-duster in my pocket - which was just stupid.
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"As I walked into the stadium, the police found it on me and I ended up in custody for more than 10 hours. I didn't see a ball kicked. Eventually they released me. Then Arsene Wenger found out about it. I was just stupid.
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"Young and naive. Can you imagine if something actually had happened? It would have been life-changing. I was young and I have learned my lesson. It was a stupid mistake."
Despite holding a five-year contract with Arsenal, Traore managed just 32 outings for the Gunners before his transfer to Queens Park Rangers. Throughout his time in north London, he spent periods on loan at Portsmouth and Juventus, and it was while with the Turin club that Traore witnessed the intensity of Italian football rivalries first-hand.
Reflecting on a memorable experience in Italy, he recalled: "There are some incredible rivalries in Italy. The one with Napoli was the worst. We arrived there the day before and there were about 300 Napoli fans outside the hotel.
"When we left to go to the stadium, they were following us on mopeds and crashing into parked cars. It was madness. I did not feel under threat exactly, no. But it did make you think, 'This is proper passion.'".
Traore could well be tuning in for Sunday's north London derby when Arsenal welcome Tottenham to the Emirates, with both teams missing some key men for the clash. On the back of a 14-match unbeaten run, Mikel Arteta's men will be hoping to hand their local nemeses a third loss in five outings.