Arsenal could send their biggest rivals one step closer to their biggest nightmare

As Arsenal continue their charge at the top of the Premier League table, that club on the other side of North London find themselves in an awful situation the complete opposite of their arch-rivals.

Tottenham, who have just sacked manager Thomas Frank earlier today, are currently 16th in the league and are facing the real prospect of a shock relegation battle as they sit just five points above the drop zone.

A North London derby awaits in the final week of February and with Spurs not in action until then, the Gunners have a real chance to send their biggest rivals a step closer to what would be a hilarious dream come true for Gooners and an absolute nightmare for the Lilywhites.

Arsenal could send Tottenham a step closer to relegation

It's safe to say Frank's spell as Spurs manager was absolutely disastrous. Having taken over following the, in hindsight arguably unfair, sacking of Ange Postecoglou in June 2025, the former Brentford head coach had a very tough time in charge in N17.

His predecessor oversaw a bizarre season that saw Tottenham finish 17th in the league, lucky not to have been in a relegation battle due to how poor the teams that faced the drop were, while also win the Europa League.

That European triumph wasn't enough for Ange to save his job, but a relatively positive pre-season for Frank, during which they overcame Arsenal, meant fans had high hopes going into the 2025/26 campaign.

A good start was soon wiped out by horrendous inconsistency that saw Spurs drop down towards the depths of the bottom 10, crash out of both the FA Cup and Carabao Cup, but manage a fourth place finish in the league phase of the Champions League.

Just like Ange, good performances in Europe weren't enough to keep Frank in a job as he was dismissed after suffering an 11th defeat of the season at the hands of Newcastle on Tuesday night.

Spurs now have 11 days to find a new manager before taking on the Gunners in the season's second North London derby. Whoever takes over will have a great task on their hands as they look to avoid Tottenham suffering their first relegation since 1977.

With 18th placed West Ham hitting form and Nottingham Forest currently keeping their hopes of survival alive, the Lilywhites are in genuine danger of going down and Arsenal could have the honour of putting maybe the first nail in the coffin.

Arteta has overseen a huge turn in the Gunners' derby form as they are currently enjoying a seven-game unbeaten run against their bitter rivals, managing six wins throughout that period. Arsenal have won on their last three visits to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium while Spurs have not beaten their enemies since May 2022.

Despite how dreadfully bad they currently are, it would take a lot for Tottenham to suffer a relegation that would be a true shock for English football. However, it's looking like a real possibility for the first time in a long while and the Gunners will love to be able to play a part in that.