North London struggles: Arsenal's on, Tottenham's off the pitch

As part of the fourth round of the Champions League, Arsenal and Tottenham — the two biggest rivals from North London — play what could be described as relatively easy matches tonight. Still, things are far from perfect in the camps of both the Gunners and the Spurs — quite the opposite, in fact.

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has voiced his worries over Viktor Gyokeres’ fitness after the striker was left out of the squad for the Champions League clash against Slavia Prague.

The Swedish forward picked up an injury during the first half of Arsenal’s 2–0 win over Burnley and didn’t travel with the team to the Czech Republic. “He’s definitely not available,” Arteta confirmed. “He hasn’t trained today, and we’ll need to run a few more tests and scans over the next few days to find out exactly how bad it is. For this match, he’s not available.”

When pressed on whether the issue might be short-term, Arteta admitted his unease. “I am concerned. He’s not had many muscular problems before, but he had to come off and was clearly feeling something.”

Gyokeres’ setback only deepens Arsenal’s growing injury crisis, particularly in attack. The Gunners are already without Kai Havertz, who won’t return until after the November international break, while Gabriel Jesus remains sidelined long term. As a result, Arteta faces the prospect of having no natural No. 9 available for the time being.

Mikel Merino and Leandro Trossard could be used as makeshift strikers, though the only recognised forward currently fit is 17-year-old Andre Harriman-Annous, who made his senior debut in the Carabao Cup win over Brighton.

On the other side, Tottenham manager Thomas Frank has revealed that Micky van de Ven and Djed Spence personally apologised to him after appearing to snub him at the end of the defeat to Chelsea.

Following Saturday’s 1–0 loss at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Frank asked his players to complete a lap of appreciation to thank the home supporters. However, as boos echoed around the ground, cameras captured Van de Ven and Spence heading straight down the tunnel without acknowledging their manager.

“Micky and Djed came into my office yesterday to apologise for what happened,” Frank explained during Monday’s press conference. “They didn’t want it to come across the wrong way or create any kind of misunderstanding in today’s fast-moving media world.”

The pair’s actions sparked mixed reactions online — some fans and pundits criticised their behaviour, while others argued that the situation had been exaggerated.

Frank said he appreciated the players’ maturity in addressing the matter directly, ensuring it didn’t turn into a larger issue.

“If they hadn’t come to see me, I would have had to speak to them myself,” he admitted. “It’s important to understand the reasons behind their behaviour — how they’re feeling, what led to it — because everyone interprets moments like that differently.”

UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE - MATCHDAY 4

Tuesday

20.45: (1.65) Napoli (4.35) Eintr.Frankfurt (5.10)

20.45: (13.0) Slavia Praha (5.70) Arsenal (1.25)

23.00: (1.30) Atl.Madrid (6.50) St.Gilloise (10.0)

23.00: (2.35) Bodo (3.70) Monaco (3.05)

23.00: (1.95) Juventus (3.85) Sporting (3.90)

23.00: (2.45) Liverpool (3.90) Real Madrid (2.75)

23.00: (2.65) Olympiakos (3.60) PSV (2.70)

23.00: (2.60) PSG (3.80) Bayern (2.65)

23.00: (1.48) Tottenham (4.60) Copenhagen (7.25)

Wednesday

20.45: (7.00) Paphos (4.40) Villareal (1.47)

20.45: (8.00) Qarabag (5.30) Chelsea (1.35)

23.00: (3.20) Ajax (4.00) Galatasaray (2.15)

23.00: (2.05) Benfica (3.70) Leverkusen (3.70)

23.00: (5.50) Club Brugge (5.15) Barcelona (1.53)

23.00: (1.05) Inter (14.0) Kairat Almaty (45.0)

23.00: (1.45) Man.City (5.25) Dortmund (6.75)

23.00: (1.50) Newcastle (4.20) Ath.Bilbao (6.75)

23.00: (2.10) Olympique Marseille (3.75) Atalanta (3.50)

***odds are subject to change***