We head into Sunday’s north London derby against Tottenham Hotspur, with plenty at stake.
We’re looking to defend our 14-game unbeaten run in all competitions to maintain our lead at the top of the Premier League table, as well as string a fourth-straight win against our rivals to ensure their 15-year wait for a win in N5 continues.
And if one man is able to keep all those runs going, it’s Mikel Arteta, who has his own personal record to keep intact this weekend.
That’s because throughout his Arsenal career as a player or manager, Mikel has never lost a home game against Tottenham in any competition.
The Spaniard’s love affair with home north London derbies began in February 2012 when he lined up in midfield alongside Alex Song and Thomas Rosicky, and his cross for Bacary Sagna led to us coming back from an early 2-0 deficit to beat our neighbours 5-2.
When Spurs returned the following November, he played his part in us recording the same scoreline, and after helping us to a 2-0 FA Cup third round success and a 1-1 draw in 2014, his final north London derby appearance came in November 2015 when he appeared off the Emirates Stadium bench for the final 13 minutes to help us secure a 1-1 draw.
He would find himself back in the same dugout on derby day in March 2021 but this time as our manager, and recorded a 2-1 success over Jose Mourinho’s Tottenham team as Martin Odegaard’s first Premier League goal and a penalty from Alexandre Lacazette completed a comeback.
Nuno Espirito Santo and Antonio Conte’s sides were then both beaten 3-1 in September 2021 and October 2022 respectively, and while Ange Postecoglu did earn a 2-2 draw 12 months later, our 2-1 success the last time we faced off in N5 in January stretched Mikel’s unbeaten home derby record to 10 - five with his boots on and five without.
In fact, even when you include his trips to White Hart Lane and the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Mikel’s record continues to be impressive. He lost just twice against Spurs on the nine occasions he was patrolling our midfield, while he has tasted defeat against Tottenham three times as our boss in 11 encounters.
That means he has a combined record of 12 wins, three draws and five defeats from his 20 derby days - but importantly heading into Sunday, he remains unbeaten in our corner of north London.