Football London

Mikel Arteta is speaking to the media in Hong Kong following Arsenal's 1-0 pre-season friendly defeat against Tottenham at Kai Tak Stadium.

The Arsenal boss made five changes to his team to take on Spurs but there was no place for new signing Viktor Gyokeres in the starting XI.

Arsenal did go close in the opening exchanges as Martin Odegaard and William Saliba threatened in a fast start.

Tottenham had chances of their own as Pedro Porro and Wilson Odobert both hit the post before Pape Matar Sarr opened the scoring seconds before half-time with a lob from distance.

The sides traded chances after the break as Gabriel Martinelli prodded the ball over and Micky van de Ven headed wide at the back post when he really should've scored.

Gyokeres was introduced for his bow in the closing minutes but he couldn't mark it with a debut goal as Spurs held on for victory.

Tottenham beat Arsenal 1-0 in the first North London Derby to be played outside of the UK and here are our first half player ratings from the pre-season friendly victory in Hong Kong.

The first half saw the Gunners start the game brighter only for Thomas Frank's Spurs side to strike the woodwork three times. First Pedro Porro's corner curled all the way through and hit the right-hand upright. Tottenham then hit the right-hand post again as Wilson Odobert's slightly deflected low shot hit the woodwork. Somehow the subsequent corner then bounced against the left-hand post, before striking Richarlison and bouncing over.

Pape Matar Sarr then scored a wonderful goal just before the break to give Tottenham the lead after picking up the ball just over the halfway line before sending it back over David Raya and into the net.

It should have been 2-0 to Spurs after the hour mark after some great work by substitute Mathys Tel down the left only for Micky van de Ven to head the Frenchman's cross wide from a good position. At the other end, Arsenal huffed and puffed but never game Guglielmo Vicario anything to do.

Here are our Spurs player ratings from the pre-season victory at the Kai Tak Stadium

Guglielmo Vicario

The Italian had very little to do other than marshal his defence and make one low comfortable save late on from a central effort. 6

Pedro Porro

A busy half with a corner that curled all the way through and struck the right-hand post before making a good tackle on Rice as the midfielder burst on to Romero's header. Had the energy to play the full 90 minutes and looked good in Frank's system without the need to bomb on. 8

Cristian Romero

Sent a header into the path of Rice for a dangerous moment for Arsenal. Looked in good form other than, including a cheeky nutmeg on the sliding Havertz in his own box. Only that header knocked him down a mark and he continued his good work until coming off on the hour mark. Led the line well against the local rivals. 8

Micky van de Ven

Resumed his partnership with Romero as if they hadn't left each other after the Europa League final. Very little got past the flying Dutchman. He should have sent a header into the net though from Tel's cross midway through the second half but made a good save soon after. Came off with 15 minutes to go, seeming to hold his back. 8

Djed Spence

A tough task on the left up against Saka but he handled it well on the whole and continued that after the England man went off as he completed a full 90 minutes. 8

Rodrigo Bentancur

Picked up a yellow card for bringing down Saka on the run but played a strong role in the engine room for a good 85 minutes. 7

Pape Matar Sarr

An energetic first half capped by a wonderful goal over Raya from just over the halfway line. Moved into the number 10 role for a while after Bergvall went off before coming off himself with five minutes to go. This could be a big season for the Senegal international under Frank. 8

Mohammed Kudus

Always a threat to Arsenal with his runs forward and had a couple of blocked shots on the edge of the box. Came off after the hour mark following a less effective start to that period. Still another promising performance on the whole. He's going to be fun to watch for the most part. 7

Lucas Bergvall

Playing in the number 10 position, other than one sloppy pass, the young Swede was effective in most of what he did as he often made up another number in midfield. Suffered from cramp in the second half before coming off with 15 or so minutes to go. 6

Wilson Odobert

Struck the right-hand post with a slightly deflected shot. Drifted in and out of the game after that with some moments of threat but others when he ran into defenders. 6

Richarlison

Had a header blocked in front of goal after Porro's corner hit the post and was unfortunate that the rebound after Kudus' corner hit the other post bounced against him and over the crossbar. Worked hard for an hour and got another pre-season game under his belt. 6

Subs

Kevin Danso

Replaced Romero for the final half an hour and helped keep the clean sheet. 7

Mathys Tel

Some great work after coming on to find space and put in a cross that Van de Ven should have headed on target. Ran for everything in the central attacking role. 6

Brennan Johnson

Didn't see much of the ball down the right in the final half hour. 5

Ben Davies

Replaced Van de Ven in the centre of defence and helped keep Arsenal out in the final 15 minutes. 6

Son Heung-min

Came on for the final 15 minutes, presumable with a start to come in his homeland on Sunday. Made one strong run down the left and almost got the ball to Tel for a late chance. 6

Yves Bissouma

Came on to give the midfield some energy. 6

James Maddison

His first minutes of pre-season late on after returning from that knee injury. N/A

Archie Gray

Made an important late clearance on the run into his own box. N/A

Tottenham took on Arsenal in the first North London Derby outside of the UK and here are our first half player ratings from the pre-season friendly in Hong Kong.

Thomas Frank named a strong team only missing Dominic Solanke, who had a minor ankle injury, and Son Heung-min, who was on the bench perhaps with Sunday's match against Newcastle in his homeland South Korea in mind. Rodrigo Bentancur, who was ill at the weekend, was back in the team.

The first half saw Arsenal start brighter only for Tottenham to hit the woodwork three times. First Pedro Porro's corner curled all the way through and hit the right-hand upright. Spurs then hit the right-hand post again as Wilson Odobert's ever so slightly deflected low shot struck the woodwork. Somehow the subsequent corner then bounced against the left-hand post, before striking Richarlison and bouncing over.

Pape Matar Sarr then scored a wonderful goal just before the break to give Tottenham the lead after picking up the ball just over the halfway line before sending it back over David Raya and into the net.

Here are our Spurs player ratings from the first half in the Kai Tak Stadium

Guglielmo Vicario

The Italian had very little to do other than marshal his defence. 6

Pedro Porro

A busy half with a corner that curled all the way through and struck the right-hand post before making a good tackle on Rice as the midfielder burst on to Romero's header. 8

Cristian Romero

Sent a header into the path of Rice for a dangerous moment for Arsenal. Looked in good form other than, including a cheeky nutmeg on the sliding Havertz in his own box. Only that header knocked him down a mark 7

Micky van de Ven

Resumed his partnership with Romero as if they hadn't left each other after the Europa League final. Very little got past the flying Dutchman. 8

Djed Spence

A tough task on the left up against Saka but he handled it well on the whole. 7

Rodrigo Bentancur

Picked up a yellow card for bringing down Saka on the run but played a strong role in the engine room. 7

Pape Matar Sarr

An energetic first half capped by a wonderful goal over Raya from just over the halfway line. 8

Mohammed Kudus

Always a threat to Arsenal with his runs forward and had a couple of blocked shots on the edge of the box. 7

Lucas Bergvall

Playing in the number 10 position, other than one sloppy pass, the young Swede was effective in most of what he did as he often made up another number in midfield. 7

Wilson Odobert

Struck the right-hand post with a slightly deflected shot but was quiet at most other times. 6

Richarlison

Had a header blocked in front of goal after Porro's corner hit the post and was unfortunate that the rebound after Kudus' corner hit the other post bounced against him and over the crossbar. 6

Arsenal trail Tottenham 1-0 at half-time in their pre-season friendly in Hong Kong. The game at Kai Tak Stadium is a first for both clubs as it is the first ever North London Derby to be held outside of the UK.

Fresh from securing two wins from two on their tour of Asia so far, Mikel Arteta made five changes to his Arsenal team to face Spurs. Jakub Kiwior, Martin Odegaard, Christian Norgaard, Declan Rice and Gabriel Martinelli were the players to come in, with Viktor Gyokeres named on the bench after completing his move from Sporting CP last weekend.

Arsenal made a fast start to the contest and went close early on through Odegaard and William Saliba. The Frenchman was then needed to clear a Richarlison header off the line in Spurs' first attack of the contest.

Tottenham were to hit the post again on 28 minutes as Wilson Odobert's low effort took the slightest deflections off Ben White and went wide for a corner. Spurs were to take the lead on the stroke of half-time as Pape Matar-Sarr chipped David Raya from distance, although Arsenal wanted a foul on Myles Lewis-Skelly.

Here is how we rated the players in the first half at Kai Tak Stadium:

David Raya

Looked unsure a couple of times from dangerous Tottenham corners that hit both posts. Tottenham never really forced him into action before he was caught off his line for Sarr's excellent strike from distance. 4

Ben White

Had a test on his hands against the speedy Odobert and the tiniest of deflections from him stopped the Frenchman netting as hit attempt kissed the post. Bit of a mixed bag against the winger. 6

William Saliba

Made a vital intervention on ten minutes as he stopped Richarlison's header from going in. Also went close with a header early on. 7

Jakub Kiwior

Named at centre-back with Riccardo Calafiori joining Gabriel Magalhaes on the sidelines and had a test with Richarlison troubling him on a few occasions. Produced a key block midway through the first half as Mohammed Kudus found himself in space in the area. 6

Myles Lewis-Skelly

Made sure his opponent knew he was in for a match as he put himself about in the North London Derby. Took a knock in a challenge in the first half but managed to play on. Wanted a foul for Sarr's goal as the Tottenham midfielder took full advantage when he was on the ground. 5

Martin Odegaard

Involved right from the off as he saw a shot deflected wide for a corner and then another attempt fell Saliba's way for a header. Bright showing from the captain. 7

Christian Norgaard

Handed his second start of the pre-season tour and put in a decent shift in the middle of the park. 6

Declan Rice

Really got stuck in and saw a shot deflected wide by Pedro Porro after taking advantage of a poor Cristian Romero header. 7

Bukayo Saka

Had a couple of decent runs with one seeing Rodrigo Bentancur booked for fouling the England international. 6

Kai Havertz

A lack of chances on goal and didn't get enough on one effort to trouble Guglielmo Vicario, although the flag did go up for offside on that occasion. 6

Gabriel Martinelli

Viktor Gyokeres started on the bench for Arsenal's final pre-season match of their Asian tour. Taking on Tottenham Hotspur, Kai Havertz began the match as the team's No.9 for the third game in a row.

Gyokeres has participated in a couple of training sessions since his arrival from Sporting CP was confirmed at the weekend. He was watched by thousands of Arsenal fans in Hong Kong and delighted those watching with a couple of goals during the drills.

Speaking after Sunday's win over Newcastle, Mikel Arteta was coy about whether he would be involved in the game. He cited that if the striker passed the right checks, he could be involved.

"Well I think he hasn't had a single training session with the team since the last game with Sporting when they became champions," he said. "So we will assess him tomorrow; he's done all the medicals, everything is looking good but to get him up to speed with the right levels of fitness I think is very important.

"So we're not going to stop him, we want him with us as quick as possible but we'll have to assess and the medical team will do that."

Viktor Gyokeres has been named on the Arsenal bench for today's pre-season friendly against Tottenham in Hong Kong. Last Saturday finally saw the Sweden international complete his move to the Gunners from Sporting CP after so much talk regarding a switch to the capital.

Arsenal's showdown against Spurs is the first ever North London Derby to take place outside of the UK. The game at Kai Tak Stadium in Hong Kong is sold out and both teams have held open training sessions in front of bumper crowds leading up to the fixture.

Arsenal go into the match on the back of two wins from two on their Far East tour. Mikel Arteta's men defeated AC Milan 1-0 in their first game courtesy of Bukayo Saka's winner, before then getting the better of Newcastle United last Sunday with a 3-2 victory.

For their third and final match of the tour, Arteta has switched things about and brought the likes of Jakub Kiwior, Christian Norgaard, Martin Odegaard and Gabriel Martinelli into his XI. That means David Raya starts in goal as ever, with Ben White, William Saliba, Kiwior and Myles Lewis-Skelly making up the back four.

Norgaard, Odegaard and Declan Rice are Arsenal's midfield three, with Saka, Kai Havertz and Martinelli the front three Arteta has selected. Gyokeres is joined on the bench by fellow new signing Cristhian Mosquera, while Gabriel Magalhaes, Jurrien Timber and Riccardo Calafiori remain out.

Here is the Arsenal team to take on Tottenham:

Confirmed Arsenal XI: Raya; White, Saliba, Kiwior, Lewis-Skelly; Odegaard, Norgaard, Rice; Saka, Havertz, Martinelli.

Thomas Frank has named his first north London derby starting XI as Tottenham take on Arsenal in Hong Kong.

The Spurs boss is taking charge in what is the first north London derby to be held out of the UK and he has picked a strong team but also one with Sunday's match in mind as in just three days Tottenham take on Newcastle in South Korea.

Dominic Solanke, who had a minor ankle injury which meant he missed out on the weekend's action at Luton, was not involved in Tuesday's open session in Hong Kong and is not involved. Kevin Danso only did some individual work during the session, having come off alone on the hour mark at Kenilworth Road, but is on the bench while Rodrigo Bentancur, who was ill at the weekend, is back in the team.

Destiny Udogie, Kota Takai and Manor Solomon have not travelled for the tour to Asia as they remain at Hotspur Way for treatment on injuries, alongside long-term absentees Radu Dragusin, Dejan Kulusevski and Bryan Gil. Academy products Mikey Moore, Alfie Devine and Dane Scarlett were all left at home in order to explore potential opportunities for loan moves.

Son Heung-min starts on the bench perhaps with Sunday's match in his homeland in mind, while James Maddison could make his first appearance of pre-season. Young striker Will Lankshear misses out on the matchday squad along with fellow academy players Jun'ai Byfield and Luca Gunter.

Here is the Tottenham team that Frank has chosen:

Vicario; Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Spence; Bentancur, Sarr; Kudus, Bergvall, Odobert; Richarlison. Subs: Kinsky, Austin, Danso, Son, Bissouma, Maddison, Tel, Gray, Johnson, Yang, Davies, Donley, Abbott, Vuskovic.

Hong Kong will play host to the first North London Derby to be played outside of the UK.

Fierce rivals Arsenal and Tottenham lock horns at the Kai Tak Stadium as part of the two teams' pre-season preparations for the 2025/26 Premier League season.

Arsenal are coming to the end of their pre-season tour of Asia, having already played AC Milan and Newcastle United in Singapore.

This will be Spurs' first pre-season tour match, before they travel to South Korea to take on Newcastle on Sunday.

Tottenham have already played three pre-season matches - against Reading, Wycombe Wanderers and Luton Town in England before they travelled out to Asia.

Thomas Frank's side will be wearing their new white home shirt for the encounter in Hong Kong, but there will be a twist on the shirt the players wear for the North London Derby clash.

The Lilywhite shirts will feature bespoke shirt numbers on the back that have been designed by local artists.

A statement on the Spurs website said: "'ParentsParents', a collective of artists from diverse backgrounds in graffiti, illustration and geometry style character, designed the numbers that will be worn on the back of our shirts, using themes, colours and symbols meaningful to Hong Kong.

"The design is inspired by the club's own typography and aims to capture the unique urban charm of Hong Kong. The colours used in the numbers act as a tribute to Hong Kong's vibrant culture, blending the nightscape and rhythm to showcase a fusion of Eastern and Western aesthetics."

One young Spurs striker really wants to score against Arsenal

Will Lankshear spoke to football.london in a really honest interview about his time at Spurs but also his Arsenal rejection and what he needs to work on in his game as well as his time with Thomas Frank so far. You can find that all by heading right here.

Watch Gyokeres' wonder goal

Viktor Gyokeres displayed his talent in front of goal at Kai Tak Stadium on Wednesday evening as the Arsenal squad took part in an open training session.

The Swede impressed fans in attendance with a stunning effort that curled into the top corner of the goal, which football.london managed to capture on video.

You can watch the goal by clicking here.

Predicted Arsenal team

So will Viktor Gyokeres make his Arsenal debut against Tottenham later today?

The new signing has had a couple of training sessions with his new teammates and there is a chance he takes to the field in an Arsenal shirt for the very first time.

Here is our predicted Arsenal team to take on Spurs.

Read here.

TV channel and live stream info

Arsenal vs Tottenham has not been selected for live television coverage in the UK on Thursday afternoon.

However, Arsenal's in-house streaming services will be broadcasting the match live via their website and mobile app. This will be available to match pass holders at a cost of £4.99 with the early bird offer or £6.99 if a purchase is made after 9am on Thursday morning.

The match will also be streamed on SPURSPLAY. An annual subscription costs £45 and includes access to watch every 2025/26 pre-season friendly; full match replays and extended highlights; exclusive footage and interviews; access to hours of SPURSPLAY originals and documentaries; and the ability to stream selected women's and academy matches.

Alternatively, keep with us right here in our live match blog for football.london's live updates from the derby clash.

Welcome!

Hello and welcome to football.london's live coverage of the North London Derby clash between Arsenal and Tottenham.

It is a historic evening here at Kai Tak Stadium in Hong Kong with the first ever North London Derby between the sides taking place outside of the UK.

Keep with us over the next few hours as we bring you all the latest ahead of the 7:30pm kick-off (12.30pm UK).

Stay tuned!

Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur will go head-to-head as part of their respective pre-season preparations on Thursday.

The Gunners and Spurs will face each other in Hong Kong as both clubs continue their preparations for the new Premier League campaign.

Spurs have new manager Thomas Frank at the helm and go into the game against Arsenal on the back of a goalless draw with Luton Town last week.

Arsenal claimed a 3-2 win over Newcastle in their last pre-season match and have won both of their friendly fixtures during their tour of the Far East.

Here, football.london takes a look at the TV info needed for the pre-season friendly between Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur.

What time does Arsenal vs Tottenham kick off?

Arsenal vs Tottenham is scheduled to kick off at 12.30pm on Thursday afternoon, UK time. Local time, the match will take place at 7.30pm at the Kai Tak Sports Park in Hong Kong.

Is Arsenal vs Tottenham on TV?

Unfortunately, Arsenal vs Tottenham has not been selected for live television coverage in the UK on Thursday afternoon.

Alternatively, football.london will be on hand to provide live updates from Hong Kong as well as all of the pre-match build-up and post-match analysis for the Gunners and Spurs.

In the United States, the match will be available to watch live on Paramount+ to paid subscribers.

How to live stream Arsenal vs Tottenham

Even though Arsenal vs Tottenham is not being televised live in the UK, fans will still be able to watch the action from the comfort of their own homes.

Arsenal's in-house streaming services will be broadcasting the match live via their website and mobile app. This will be available to match pass holders at a cost of £4.99 with the early bird offer or £6.99 if a purchase is made after 9am on Thursday morning.

The match will also be streamed on SPURSPLAY. An annual subscription costs £45 and includes access to watch every 2025/26 pre-season friendly; full match replays and extended highlights; exclusive footage and interviews; access to hours of SPURSPLAY originals and documentaries; and the ability to stream selected women's and academy matches.