Spurs host Arsenal in WSL north London derby above them for first time
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The gist
Tottenham host Arsenal in the Women's Super League north London derby on Saturday, with Spurs above Arsenal in the table for the first time.
Arsenal are winless in five WSL games and sit eighth, four points behind Spurs.
Background
The match is a Barclays Women's Super League (the top tier of English women's football) north London derby between Tottenham Hotspur Women, managed by Martin Ho, and Arsenal Women, managed by Renée Slegers. For the first time in league history, Spurs will begin a north London derby above Arsenal in the table. Arsenal are without a win in five WSL matches for the first time and sit 8th, while Spurs started the season with 10 points from four games before heavy defeats to London City Lionesses and Chelsea.
How it unfolded
- Oct 17, 2026Arsenal's Under-18s beat Tottenham 2-1 at London Colney in the U18 Premier League South, Mylo Bernard scoring twice including a 97th-minute winner.
- Oct 22, 2026An Opta supercomputer makes Arsenal slight favourites for Saturday's derby, winning 56.6% of its 10,000 simulations.
- Oct 22, 2026Tottenham confirm Arsenal's Michelle Agyemang and Katie Reid are long-term ACL absentees and Selia Cerci and Mariona Caldentey are ruled out; Pheobe Cross is named referee.
- Oct 23, 2026Previews are published for Tottenham Hotspur vs Arsenal in the WSL, kick-off 12:45pm local at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, shown on BBC One in the UK and Paramount+ in the USA.
- Oct 24, 2026Tottenham Hotspur vs Arsenal, Barclays Women's Super League, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, North London.
Who’s saying what
- Analysts
- Opta Analyst notes Arsenal have attempted the third-most shots in the WSL this season (121) but have the worst conversion rate (4.1%), while Spurs have lost only two of their last five WSL home games against Arsenal.
- Caution
- Arseblog News' Tim Stillman says Arsenal's start has made the WSL title impossible and Champions League qualification now feels like a tall order.
- Party
- Yahoo Sports notes Spurs have only beaten Arsenal once in their history, with Arsenal 8th and four points behind Spurs.