Micky van de Ven misses out for Spurs in defence, while there is a glaring Gunners omission: Stats boffins reveal Arsenal vs Tottenham combined XI

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The standout fixture after the international break sees Premier League leaders Arsenal take on arch-rivals Tottenham at the Emirates Stadium.

It's been 10 months since we last had a north London derby, which saw Arsenal claim the spoils with a 2-1 win.

That win continued the Gunners' dominance in this fixture's recent history - having won five of the last six and drawing the other.

Arsenal are going to be sweating over some injury concerns with Gabriel, Martin Odegaard, Victor Gyokeres all touch-and-go for the derby.

Spurs have their own lengthy list of doubts too with their number in the double digits.

But who makes Daily Mail Sport's combined XI this season in a 4-3-3 formation? Using data from Sofascore we take a look...

Premier League leaders Arsenal resume their campaign at home to bitter rivals Tottenham

Tottenham will be looking to upset their north London rivals when they travel to the Emirates

Guglielmo Vicario (Goalkeeper)

The Italian turned 29 last month and has been with the club since 2023. He played a vital role in Tottenham lifting the Europa League trophy making five crucial saves in the final and securing the 1-0 victory.

Tottenham's No 1 has had his share of battles with injury, fracturing his ankle in November 2024 in a 4-0 win against Manchester City. The setback saw him ruled out until mid-February.

This season has seen him play a key role in Tottenham's fifth position, prior to this weekend's matches, with four clean sheets and a save percentage of 77 per cent.

Jurrien Timber (Right back)

Timber is a product of the Ajax academy which he joined in 2014. His senior debut came in 2020 for Ajax, while he developed there in 2023 Arsenal came along and purchased Timber for a fee of £38.5million including add-ons.

Timber has now cemented the right-back position at Arsenal, having made 43 Premier League appearances. He has played 3,376 minutes in the league and has won 200 duals.

Two of his three goals come from this season, showing the 24-year-old is expressing himself in his third season at Arsenal.

William Saliba (Centre back)

Joining the club in July 2019 for a fee of £27m, the defender went on three loan spells before making his Arsenal debut in 2022 and has been an integral part since.

The Frenchman has now signed a long-term deal which means he will stay in the English capital till 2030. The extension shows the commitment manager Mikel Arteta is displaying in retaining Arsenal's core group.

In recent times Saliba is regarded as one of the most profound centre backs in the Premier League and Europe. His paring with Gabriel has been instrumental for the north London side's growth and critics say this duo will be the underpinning factor if Arsenal win the league.

Gabriel Magalhaes (Centre back)

Gabriel dos Santos Magalhaes joined the Gunners in 2020. The Brazilian had a debut to remember, with a goal on debut to start with. The defender has had a knack of scoring goals in big moments, often through set pieces.

Similar to Saliba as a reward for five sensational seasons at the club, Gabriel signed a new contract in June - securing his long-term future at the club until 2029.

The centre back has had an unbelievable run of late in the Premier League with a 90 per cent passing accuracy. With 171 appearances he has found the net 18 times complimented with three assists. However, it may be a while before he adds to those numbers after suffering a thigh injury on Brazil duty.

Riccardo Calafiori (Left back)

The 6ft 2in Italian defender prior to the Gunners was at Basel and Bologna. Having moved to Arsenal for an initial fee of £33.6m from Bologna he has been a driving force at the back this season.

Having played and started in all fixtures so far, he has been Arteta's go-to man down the left side.

Having missed Italy's World Cup qualifiers this month with a hip injury he is a concern for Arteta ahead of the north London derby.

Joao Palhinha (Centre midfield)

On loan from Bayern Munich, Palhinha is set to become a permanent member of Tottenham but with his £25m initial fee set to be reduced.

Palhinha is regarded as one of Bayern's more disappointing investments in recent years. However, his loan move to Tottenham has been a good one with a turn in form under Thomas Frank.

The Portuguese midfielder has made 18 appearances and scored four goals, including a crucial strike against Manchester City. His influence has been integral to Tottenham's push for a top-four finish, and the move has placed his career back on track.

Martin Zubimendi (Centre midfield)

Zubimendi and his accomplices Odegaard and Declan Rice are on track to bringing back the league to the Emirates after a drought since 2004. Playing in the midfield position he's shown a great accurate passing record of 88 per cent this season thus far.

Prior to joining Arsenal, Zubimendi was linked to Real Madrid under their new managerial lead of Xabi Alonso. But he chose to move to the capital for a fee of £60m.

On the international circuit, he performed well against England  in the Euro 2024 final when subbed on for Rodri. He completed 92 per cent of his passes which resulted in Spain winning the game 2-1 in Berlin.

Declan Rice (Centre midfield)

Product of the West Ham academy after being released from Chelsea early on due to lack of physicality. His hard work through the ranks made him a pivotal figure for his professional stint at West Ham from 2017-2023.

At West Ham, he scored 10 goals and provided nine assists in 245 appearances across all competitions. The midfielder moved to north London for a club record fee of £105m.

At Arsenal, his link-up with Odegaard and Zubimendi has been working well for Arteta thus far, but the question which many are asking is that will this trio deliver the title back to north London?  

Bukayo Saka (Right wing)

The poster boy at Arsenal must be Saka, a homegrown talent who is the definition of loyalty to a club. The winger is now locked in at the Emirates until 2027 with many believing he may never move from the Gunners.

His professional debut came in a 4–1 win against Fulham after coming on for Alex Iwobi in the 83rd minute. He became the first player born in 2001 to play in a Premier League match.

Between 2020-2022 he achieved back-to-back Arsenal Player of the Season awards. Fans at the Emirates see Saka as the underpinning factor of the Arteta era and are hoping for Saka to win the league. The last time they had done so, Saka was only three-years-old.

Richarlison (Striker)

Richarlison joined Spurs from Everton in 2022 and is now locked in with Tottenham until 2027. The Brazilian forward is now 28-years-old and has played in England since 2017, starting at Watford.

Utilised as either a wide attacker or central striker, Richarlison finished as Everton's joint-top scorer across all competitions in his opening two seasons before his move to Tottenham.

He has won the Copa America in both 2019 and 2021 as well as the Europa League with Tottenham in May.

Eberechi Eze (Left wing)

Eze has had a run to remember, the former Arsenal age-group player was dropped but has returned after excelling at Crystal Palace most recently. In recent interviews he revealed that it was always a goal to play for the Gunners from a young age.

The forward was signed by Arteta this summer after being linked with Spurs for a short time. Eze was purchased for £68m and was revealed to Arsenal fans during a Leeds game.

His Arsenal career has been fairly decent so far contributing to one goal and two assists. Fans are hoping the good money signing is one for longevity and with a league title or two.

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