3 crucial players for Arsenal in the upcoming North London Derby

1. Gabriel Jesus

Arsenal’s attack has gotten plenty of praise this season, with much of it falling on Gabriel Jesus. The Brazilian has added intensity to the team’s press, dynamism when interchanging with other forward players and a harder-to-see but equally important impact through his leadership. After Saliba scored against Brentford, Jesus was seen encouraging his teammates and coaching them in the celebratory huddle alongside Granit Xhaka.

The centre-forward has seven goal contributions in as many Premier League games this season, showing his effectiveness in the attacking third. While some of his finishes have been easier than others, some exhibit exactly how clinical he is. Tottenham will sit deep and allow Arsenal to try and break them down. When the chances do arise, they cannot afford to be squandered. Jesus is central to this.

Arsenal’s new number nine does not have to change a great deal about how he plays. His dropping deep, combination play and dribbling will all be needed to get a win. Regardless of whether he scores or not, his willingness to harass and harry defenders for the full 90 minutes will certainly give the Spurs defenders headaches. With his yellow card accumulation, however, he must be wary of not crossing the line.

The key to Jesus’s success will be a clinical edge and controlled chaos. Hopefully, the Brazilian will dance again on Saturday.

Arsenal’s form this season has been remarkable. They have shown that they can dominate games, score easily and break down sides content to drop deep and defend. They will certainly have to break down Tottenham while not getting exposed going the other way. While all of the Arsenal players have shone this season, sometimes at different points, the three players mentioned above will have to perform in a nerve-wracking but nonetheless exciting fixture.