Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur have been facing off against one another for well over a century now, with their first meeting coming all the way back in 1896 in a now-defunct competition called the United League. However, the two sides' first meeting in the First Division came in 1909 – a game the Gunners won 1-0.
Football FanCast has everything you need to know as the two rivals prepare to meet once again in the Premier League.
Most teams in the league have now played five games – or more, including other competitions – so we can now start to consider the teams' form when looking forward to upcoming games.
The home side will be going into the game full of confidence after they finally broke their terrible away record at Everton on Sunday. The game wasn't a goal fest for Mikel Arteta's side, but they never looked like they were in any real danger from the Toffees. That win means they go into Sunday with four wins and one draw in the league so far this year.
For their part, Spurs should also be brimming with confidence ahead of this clash. Their last-minute win against Sheffield United last weekend typified everything new boss Ange Postecoglou has managed to achieve at the club so far in his tenure. The dire atmosphere that followed the club everywhere seems to be gone, and in its place, a new, positive expectation that they can and should be winning more than they were.
Arsenal vs Tottenham Hotspur: What's their head-to-head record?
Since their first official meeting in the English league in 1909, Arsenal and Tottenham have met a staggering 193 times in all competitions. The Gunners have only played Aston Villa (201), Manchester City (209), Chelsea (211), Everton (222), Liverpool (239), and Manchester United (240) more times than their north London rivals.
Spurs, on the other hand, have played just United more times than Arsenal, with 201 games being played between the two.
While this rivalry has generally been one that's seen tightly fought games and periods where both sides have been dominant, the Gunners generally emerge as victors when they meet. In all, the red side of North London have 80 wins under their belt – a win rate of 41% – whereas Spurs have 62 wins to their name – a win rate of just 32%.
Arsenal Wins
80
Draws
51
Tottenham Wins
62
Arsenal vs Tottenham Hotspur: What's their record at Highbury/Emirates Stadium?
Well, given Arsenal tend to win more games than they lose in this rivalry, it probably shouldn't come as a surprise to read that it's the Gunners who have a far better record when it comes to games at their place.
In all, the men in red have won 49 of the 93 games they have played as host, which is more than double the 20 Spurs have managed when traveling to play Arsenal.
Worse still for the Lilywhites is that they have drawn more games away to their biggest rivals than they have won, with their last victory coming back in December 2018 in the League Cup.
Arsenal Wins
49
Draws
24
Tottenham Wins
20
Arsenal vs Tottenham Hotspur: What's their record at Tottenham?
The two sides have played three games more at Tottenham than Arsenal, and just like with the reverse fixture, the hosts generally come away from these encounters with all three points.
In all, the Lilywhites have 41 wins to their name when playing at home, whereas Arsenal have 29 – just slightly more than the number of draws, 26.
Arsenal Wins
29
Draws
26
Tottenham Wins
41
Arsenal vs Tottenham Hotspur: What's their League record?
Of the 193 times the two North London clubs have played one another over the years, 172 encounters have come in either the old First Division or the Premier League.
Unsurprisingly, the record of their league encounters almost perfectly mirrors the overall narrative, with the Gunners picking up 70 wins – a 40% win rate – and Spurs picking up 55 – a 31% win rate.
Arsenal Wins
70
Draws
47
Tottenham Wins
55
Arsenal vs Tottenham Hotspur: Which team has the most goals?
In total, there have been 555 goals in this fixture, which means there have been an average of 2.8 goals per game, an absurd and brilliant indicator of how exciting these encounters often are.
For their part, Arsenal scored 296 of those goals, giving them a ratio of 1.5 per game. On the other hand, Spurs scored 259, giving them a slightly worse but still impressive ratio of 1.3 goals per game.
Arsenal Goals
296
Tottenham Goals
259
Arsenal vs Tottenham Hotspur: What happened in last season's fixtures?
This won't make for pretty reading for the Spurs inclined among you, but last season saw two north London derbies and two derbies in which the Gunners walked away as comfortable winners.
The first encounter came early in the season and was played at the Emirates. Both teams were in reasonably good form going into the clash, and when it was 1-1 at the break, it looked like we would be in for a tight affair. Arsenal had other ideas, though.
Gabriel Jesus doubled the host's score on 49 minutes before Granit Xhaka added another 18 minutes later, and the game fizzled out from there.
The return fixture was just as one-sided, with the Gunners going in two goals to the good at half time, and it could've been more. Antonio Conte's men came out better in the second half but ultimately got nowhere close to their bitter rivals.
Arsenal vs Tottenham Hotspur: What is Arsenal's biggest win?
Arsenal's biggest win came all the way back in March 1935 when they traveled to White Hart Lane for a game in the old First Division and came away 6-0 winners.
The scoring was opened by Cliff Bastin, who scored from the spot before Peter Dougall would double the score, and both Ted Drake and Alf Kirchen would come away from the tie with a brace each.
The Gunners would go on to win the league that season, making it their third on the bounce and their fourth out of the five they would win in the 1930s.
Arsenal vs Tottenham Hotspur: What is Tottenham's biggest win?
While Spurs have never put six past their local rivals, they have come out 5-0 winners on two separate occasions.
The first came back in December 1911, when the Gunners were still called Woolwich Arsenal. The goalscorers that day were Herbet Middlemiss, Jabez Darnell, and John McTavish, all with one and William Minter with a brace.
The more recent occurrence of this scoreline transpired in April 1983, where again at White Hart Lane, Spurs would blitz their rivals 5-0 thanks to braces from Chris Hughton and Mark Falco and one goal from Alan Brazil – yes, that Alan Brazil.
Arsenal vs Tottenham Hotspur: What are the recent results?
Despite the overall nature of this fixture being fairly balanced, with Arsenal just edging it, the last five games have been anything but.
The last five encounters have resulted in four wins for Arteta's men and just a single win for the Lilywhites, with an aggregate score of 10-6 in favour of the men in red.
That said, while the two games last year were relatively easy wins for Arsenal, their game away to Tottenham in May 2022 was a demolition job from the hosts as they came away 3-0 winners.
Will it be a continuation of the trend come Sunday? Or can Postecoglou finally break it?
Arsenal vs Tottenham Hotspur: When is it?
Arsenal host Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, 24 September at 2pm British Summer Time. The North London Derby is already one of the most hotly anticipated fixtures in the English footballing calendar, one only made more exciting with how both sides have started their seasons.
That said, the two sides will be going into this one with different objectives and points to prove.
For the hosts, they have to maintain pace with league leaders Manchester City and keep churning out wins on a weekly basis. They'll be looking to use this match as a signifier to the rest of the league that they can halt Tottenham's momentum with relative ease and that they're once again City's primary challenger for the title.
On the other hand, Tottenham will first and foremost be looking to avoid yet another defeat away to Arsenal, given their last league win at the Emirates came back in November 2010. That said, Postecoglou has already shown himself to be a footballing purist and won't look to sit back against the Gunners, and so if they can come away from the game with a point or three whilst maintaining their attacking style – that'll be a big statement to the rest of the league.
There are also players that will want to prove themselves. Kai Havertz will be desperate to show what he can do in an Arsenal shirt, and there really is no better game to do that than a North London Derby, and the same can be said for Richarlison. Oh, and there's the small factor of no Harry Kane this time, a man who has been a perpetual thorn in the Gunners' side in these games.
Overall, this should be a thrilling game – even more than usual – and you will not want to miss it.