MARTIN KEOWN’s north London derby combined XI: does Harry Kane or Gabriel Jesus start up front?
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MARTIN KEOWN’s North London derby Combined XI: Hugo Lloris in goal, Arsenal dominate the defense and in form Martin Odegaard the choice of midfielders… but will Harry Kane or Gabriel Jesus start up front?
- Arsenal take on Tottenham in Saturday’s lunch kick-off at the Emirates Stadium
- The Gunners go head to head in the league after six wins in seven
- Tottenham are equally confident after the start of the season
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There was a vociferous reaction to my last North London Derby XI when these teams last met in a deciding game in May – and trust me, no one was louder than my talkSPORT colleague Simon Jordan!
That’s because I haven’t mentioned a single Tottenham player.
I explained that as an Arsenal man I didn’t want to take anything from my team.
I didn’t want to jeopardize the confidence of the players in the run-up to such a big game.
But Mikel Arteta’s players have grown in stature since that 3-0 loss last season. They are full of conviction and at the top. So here I went through it position by position to see who I would name if these two teams merged.
Mikel Arteta’s squad has grown since their 3-0 humiliation at the hands of Tottenham in May this year
Goalkeeper and back line
Hugo Lloris is France’s No. 1 and led them to World Cup glory in 2018. As much as Aaron Ramsdale improves, I chose Lloris.
Since Arteta and Antonio Conte used different formations, I had to make a decision whether to use a back four or back three. I have always preferred to play in a four and my partnership as a central defender is all Arsenal – Gabriel and William Saliba.
These two quietly turn into a formidable partnership with their physicality and security. As a left-back, I have mentioned Oleksandr Zinchenko, who has had great performances since joining Manchester City last summer. On the right is Emerson, who started six of Tottenham’s seven league games this campaign.
Hugo Lloris leads Aaron Ramsdale to the No. 1 jersey of the combined North London XI
Gabriel and William Saliba have begun to form an imperious partnership at the back for Arsenal
midfield
My midfield belongs to Tottenham – Rodrigo Bentancur and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg. These two do such an underrated job for Conte in the engine room and have learned brilliantly.
Rodrigo Bentancur and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg have secured the midfield places so far this season thanks to their impressive form
forward
On the right is Bukayo Saka, who pips Spurs’ Dejan Kulusevski. Playing up front we have the creative Martin Odegaard.
He has leveled up since becoming captain and has taken on the responsibility.
To the left is Son Heung-min, who responded to the bench by benching Conte against Leicester with a 13-minute hat-trick. There was no self-pity.
Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard have proven to be the beating heart of the Arsenal team this year
attacker
This was the hardest decision and in the end I just couldn’t separate Harry Kane and Gabriel Jesus.
Kane is the top scorer in North London derbies with 13 goals in 15 games.
But Jesus has played such a big part at Arsenal, moving from also ranks to the top of the table. So as their fantasy boss I give them 45 minutes each!
I can’t split Gabriel Jesus and Harry Kane, as their fantasy manager I chose both!
The full team
