Emery will silence his noisy neighbour

COLLY

HAVING won two and drawn one of their last four derbies against Arsenal, there’s been plenty of talk that Tottenham are the new kings of north London.

A power-shift was in progress, it was said, and the pendulum wasn’t about to swing back Arsenal’s way anytime soon as the Gunners looked towards a period of post-arsene Wenger restructuring under incoming boss Unai Emery.

But, as they head to the Emirates today, I’ve got bad news for Tottenham fans who might have been caught up in the excitement of finally dethroning their arch-rivals.

For, in my book, Arsenal have clawed back a lot of the ground they lost in the past couple of seasons and, as a result, there’s no powershift in north London yet.

The gap we thought might become a chasm, with Spurs heading in the right direction under Mauricio

Pochettino and Arsenal’s future less certain, simply hasn’t materialised.

That’s down to the quick impact of aggressive and ambitious Spanish boss Emery and the way he’s rejuvenated Arsenal in just one transfer window.

Of course, Arsenal are still a work in progress and there’s no point talking title challenges for at least a couple of years because, while they are improving, Manchester City and Liverpool will be strong and Manchester United might actually get their act together.

But what

Arsenal can do is look at Spurs and say, “Are you better than us? Do you have a better squad and better individual players?”

I’d say no. Man for man, I think Arsenal are equipped to more than match Tottenham and Chelsea and, with a bit of luck, I wouldn’t rule out Arsenal finishing fourth this season.

They’ve got a big few days, with Tottenham today and a trip to Manchester United on Wednesday, and those results will tell us a lot about

the progress they are making. There’s still plenty for Emery to fix.

I’m not convinced that PierreEmerick Aubameyang can lead the line on his own and, although I rate Alex Iwobi highly, he needs to master his trade and define his game.

Alexandre Lacazette is a quality striker and, when they are firing, Arsenal are a potent attacking unit who can play aggressive, front-foot football.

Emery has rapidly got the players looking fitter and sharper and the new arrivals have hit the ground running.

Everyone is talking about the dynamic Uruguayan Lucas Torreira, and rightly so, because he’s made an impressive impact, but I have another favourite in midfield – Matteo Guendouzi.

I think the teenager is an absolute star in the making and a cracking find for Arsenal. Every time I see him I’m so impressed with his passion, attitude and desire to be positive.

Arsenal still have a way to go before they can be contenders, but I think it’s Tottenham who have more questions around them than their north London rivals.

The acid test will be how they perform in their new stadium. I’m sure Pochettino is staying for now because he wants to see how the future unfolds at a stadium that looks to be one of the best in the world.

If Spurs go in there, make it a fortress and start to win trophies, then you can talk about them spending the really big bucks to go to the next level.

But, if they continue to be just a top-four team, the conversation will start up around players such as Harry Kane, Dele Alli, Christian Eriksen and Pochettino once again and the balance will tilt back to Arsenal.

All that chatter about it becoming an era of Tottenham dominance in north London isn’t so loud any more. And, thanks to Emery’s arrival, I think it will be fairly even for

some time to come.