Match Preview: The North London Derby

Arsenal Women last time out at a home NLD. Photo BR Football

On the 16th of February at 12.30 pm, Arsenal Women will host Tottenham Hotspur Women at the Emirates Stadium in the Women's Super League.

The stage is set for another North London Derby match as Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur prepare to face off.

The high-stakes encounter promises a fiery atmosphere as the two fierce rivals battle for supremacy in the WSL.

This is a long-standing football rivalry but Arsenal need all the points they can get to keep up with Chelsea in the title race.

Previous fixtures

Arsenal is always the banker going into the local derby. Their most recent meeting was on the 16th of December 2024 at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium.

But even with home-field advantage The Lily-Whites still couldn't find a way past Arsenal. The Gunners were able to put three past Becky Spencer, with Alessia Russo, Frida Manum and Stina Blackstenius making North London red after a 3-0 beating.

Arsenal has only lost the derby once, away at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium last season. They beat the Gunners for the first time on the 16th of December 2023, with the winning strike coming from Martha Thomas.

Stand out players

Bethany England - Tottenham Hotspur

Bethany England is a clinical striker in the WSL, the second of the top goalscorers in the league. She is also the first and only player to score against all past and present WSL teams.

England won 9 major trophies with Chelsea after 14 total years in the WSL, so it's safe to say she's experienced in the league. Her biggest strengths are her ball control and shooting. She isn't afraid to take on players and shoot from difficult places, getting her some amazing goals.

Hayley Raso - Tottenham Hotspur

Joining Spurs in September 2024, Hayley Raso has fit perfectly into the London team. With previous experience playing in the WSL for Manchester City, she has a history facing the other north London side.

Raso’s main strengths are her dribbling and resilience, which can sometimes clash with other players with similar qualities, one being Katie McCabe.

Katie McCabe - Arsenal

The Irish captain has made over 150 appearances in her 9 years with Arsenal, scoring crucial goals and completing important tackles, being one of Arsenal's key players.

McCabe's main attribute is her passion, she will always give 100% for her team and tell the referee she thinks they've made a mistake. This can sometimes get her into trouble with clashes with other players and yellow cards.

After her Red card at the weekend, she will miss out on their midweek FA Cup fixture against Bristol and Manchester City away in the WSL but will be back for the derby.

Alessia Russo - Arsenal

Since her move in July 2023, she has been the top goal scorer for the Gunners in both the 23/24 season and so far in the 24/25 season.

In December Russo won Barclays Player of the Month along with Barclays Goal of the Month for her late strike against Aston Villa on the 8th of December.

New additions

Spurs have signed Danish midfielder, Olivia Holdt from FC Rosengard. The young attacking-minded player has already debuted for Denmark and has won the Damallsvenskan (Swedish League) twice with her previous club. The international already has lots of experience and potential for the North London club to utilise.

Arsenal's only transfer so far has been their manager Renee Slegers. After the departure of Jonas Eidevell, Slegers stepped up to the interim manager role.

Since then, she has been a beloved figure among both fans and players, winning all 11 matches as interim manager.  To everyones delight, Slegers took over the position officially on the 17th of January.

Current Form

The Gunners have only lost one match since the takeover of Renee Slegers; that being their London derby clash against Chelsea at the weekend - only separated by a penalty.

After the penalty decision, Katie McCabe received two yellow cards for dissent and was sent off, furthering Arsenal's difficulty in getting back into the game.

Before this, they beat Brighton away in the Subway Cup 4-0 scoring all goals in 18 minutes. We saw 4 different goal-scorers: Frida Maanum, Katie McCabe, Kyra Cooney-Cross and Mariona Caldentey.

Spurs being 3rd in the table they are up there with the top teams but are still 17 points from front runners, Chelsea. Spurs are currently mid-table at 6th and are currently still in the FA Cup.

They were unfortunately knocked out of the Subway Cup by London rivals West Ham after a stunner of a free kick from Kirsty Smith before the break, and failing to get an equaliser in the second half.

Most recently they struggled to get past Crystal Palace away at the VBS Community Stadium, only getting a last-minute winner in the 94th minute from new arrival Olivia Holdt. We also saw a Bethany England brace in the first half.

Where to watch

The North London Derby will be played on Sunday the 16th of February at the Emirates Stadium at 12.30 pm GMT. If you can't make it into the stadium it will be shown on BBC 1 with build-up from 11.30.