Every season, the Premier League wonders if this may be it, the North London derby when Tottenham Hotspur at last unseat Arsenal.
It feels even a slightly strange question to ask given the euphoria that has surrounded Arsenal of late, with their three straight wins and the discovery of Francis Coquelin, and yet if Tottenham win at White Hart Lane on Saturday, they will go above Arsenal in the table and move in to fourth place.
In a season in which so many of the contenders for Uefa Champions League places have underperformed – the year of mass transition – Tottenham’s emergence as potential top-four finishers has come almost unnoticed.
Certainly Arsenal’s recent surge has been far more eye-catching, yet Tottenham have won six of their past eight games, losing only to Crystal Palace away.
That was the first league game after the 5-3 win over leaders Chelsea on January 1 and was, understandably, widely seen as being typical of the club.
Tottenham complain about their stereotype as flaky underachievers and yet they keep living up to it, although, in other ways, this is a Tottenham side beginning to change their spots.
The general perception among opposing players last season was that Southampton were the fittest team they had faced.
Various Tottenham players this season have spoken of how long their Argentine coach Mauricio Pochettino, who came from Southampton in the summer, has them performing conditioning work on the training field.
The effectiveness of the work is clear: seven times this season Tottenham have won games in the final 10 minutes (eight if you include the League Cup semi-final against Sheffield United when Christian Eriksen scored a late equaliser in the second leg that was the winner in the tie).
But that is only part of it. Tottenham – rather more slowly than Southampton did – have adapted to the Pochettino method.
They press hard and high when out of possession, dropping back into a tight defensive shape if the initial press does not win possession. Wherever they end up this season, as Pochettino remodels his squad, there should be optimism for next year. At last there is a sense of continuity about the club, a sense that it has found a road map to a future that more accurately reflects their expenditure and expectation than the floundering of the past two or three seasons.
But however positive the future looks, Tottenham could suddenly be in a position to do something now.
Southampton are faltering, Liverpool are in fine form but are two points back, and Arsenal, for all that they have won their last three league games by a combined scored of 10-0, are still more than capable of inconsistency, especially if their injury list mounts again.
Just as Olivier Giroud, Mesut Ozil and Theo Walcott have returned, so Alexis Sanchez and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain have succumbed to injuries.
The liveliness and invention of Sanchez in particular will be a miss on Saturday.
Tottenham, remarkably for this stage of the season, have a full squad to choose from – further evidence of the effectiveness of Pochettino’s conditioning work.
Nabil Bentaleb is back from the African Cup of Nations and will probably take his place in midfield.
They even, slightly mystifyingly, have Emmanuel Adebayor available after a deadline day move to West Ham United was blocked.
“The past was difficult for him and always it is difficult to come back again, to recover the confidence and the best level to compete,” Pochettino said, hinting Adebayor will be on the bench for Saturday’s game against his former club.
This could be a last chance for the forward, who has been in wretched form this season after a brief flickering under Tim Sherwood last year, an act of pragmatism based on the fact that the only forwards in the Tottenham squad are Harry Kane and Roberto Soldado.
That is something that needs resolving in the summer, when it is possible Tottenham will have Champions League football as an enticement for potential signings.
sports@thenational.ae
Follow our sports coverage on Twitter @NatSportUAE
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
Electoral College Victory
Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate.
Popular Vote Tally
The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.
Frida%20
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
Company%20profile
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode
Directors: Raj & DK
Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon
Rating: 4/5
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre 4-cylinder petrol
Power: 154bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Transmission: 7-speed automatic with 8-speed sports option
Price: From Dh79,600
On sale: Now
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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British Grand Prix free practice times in the third and final session at Silverstone on Saturday (top five):
1. Lewis Hamilton (GBR/Mercedes) 1:28.063 (18 laps)
2. Sebastian Vettel (GER/Ferrari) 1:28.095 (14)
3. Valtteri Bottas (FIN/Mercedes) 1:28.137 (20)
4. Kimi Raikkonen (FIN/Ferrari) 1:28.732 (15)
5. Nico Hulkenberg (GER/Renault) 1:29.480 (14)
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
Developer: Treyarch, Raven Software
Publisher: Activision
Console: PlayStation 4 & 5, Windows, Xbox One & Series X/S
Rating: 3.5/5
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STAY%2C%20DAUGHTER
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Infobox
Western Region Asia Cup Qualifier, Al Amerat, Oman
The two finalists advance to the next stage of qualifying, in Malaysia in August
Results
UAE beat Iran by 10 wickets
Kuwait beat Saudi Arabia by eight wickets
Oman beat Bahrain by nine wickets
Qatar beat Maldives by 106 runs
Monday fixtures
UAE v Kuwait, Iran v Saudi Arabia, Oman v Qatar, Maldives v Bahrain
The specs
Engine: 77.4kW all-wheel-drive dual motor
Power: 320bhp
Torque: 605Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh219,000
On sale: Now
Business Insights
- Canada and Mexico are significant energy suppliers to the US, providing the majority of oil and natural gas imports
- The introduction of tariffs could hinder the US's clean energy initiatives by raising input costs for materials like nickel
- US domestic suppliers might benefit from higher prices, but overall oil consumption is expected to decrease due to elevated costs
The biog
Favourite film: Motorcycle Dairies, Monsieur Hulot’s Holiday, Kagemusha
Favourite book: One Hundred Years of Solitude
Holiday destination: Sri Lanka
First car: VW Golf
Proudest achievement: Building Robotics Labs at Khalifa University and King’s College London, Daughters
Driverless cars or drones: Driverless Cars
The%20Beekeeper
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SERIE A FIXTURES
Saturday
AC Milan v Sampdoria (2.30pm kick-off UAE)
Atalanta v Udinese (5pm)
Benevento v Parma (5pm)
Cagliari v Hellas Verona (5pm)
Genoa v Fiorentina (5pm)
Lazio v Spezia (5pm)
Napoli v Crotone (5pm)
Sassuolo v Roma (5pm)
Torino v Juventus (8pm)
Bologna v Inter Milan (10.45pm)
Dubai Rugby Sevens, December 5 -7
World Sevens Series Pools
A – Fiji, France, Argentina, Japan
B – United States, Australia, Scotland, Ireland
C – New Zealand, Samoa, Canada, Wales
D – South Africa, England, Spain, Kenya
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
FIGHT%20CARD
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Diriyah%20project%20at%20a%20glance
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Company profile
Date started: January, 2014
Founders: Mike Dawson, Varuna Singh, and Benita Rowe
Based: Dubai
Sector: Education technology
Size: Five employees
Investment: $100,000 from the ExpoLive Innovation Grant programme in 2018 and an initial $30,000 pre-seed investment from the Turn8 Accelerator in 2014. Most of the projects are government funded.
Partners/incubators: Turn8 Accelerator; In5 Innovation Centre; Expo Live Innovation Impact Grant Programme; Dubai Future Accelerators; FHI 360; VSO and Consult and Coach for a Cause (C3)
The specs
Engine: 2-litre 4-cylinder and 3.6-litre 6-cylinder
Power: 220 and 280 horsepower
Torque: 350 and 360Nm
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Price: from Dh136,521 VAT and Dh166,464 VAT
On sale: now
Business Insights
- As per the document, there are six filing options, including choosing to report on a realisation basis and transitional rules for pre-tax period gains or losses.
- SMEs with revenue below Dh3 million per annum can opt for transitional relief until 2026, treating them as having no taxable income.
- Larger entities have specific provisions for asset and liability movements, business restructuring, and handling foreign permanent establishments.
Company%20Profile
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Disclaimer
Director: Alfonso Cuaron
Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville
Rating: 4/5
