Tottenham will travel to the Emirates Stadium on Jan. 15 for a key Premier League battle against Arsenal, having just survived a tougher than expected fA Cup matchup against Tamworth and a 1-0 victory over Liverpool in the first leg of the League Cup semifinals.
Although Tottenham won’t be pleased with their performance against lowly Tamworth, their performance against Liverpool, the best team in the world this season, will be taken as a huge positive and a momentum boost for the all-important North London Derby on Wednesday night.
Better yet, Tottenham will be getting a physical boost to their lineup, too, as Spurs beat reporter Paul O’Keefe reports that star forward Richarlison is on track to be back in the squad for the club against Arsenal.
Richarlison is probably still a bit of time away from getting reintegrated enough to start, but it is nonetheless great news to hear that the Brazilian international is healthy enough to be on track to be a part of the matchday squad and a potential option off the bench in the derby.
He has been out since early November with a hamstring injury and has missed a total of 26 games so far in the 2024/25 season with various injuries, greatly hurting Spurs overall attacking depth.
While Tottenham have been able to score goals this season, they don’t have a standout goal-scorer, and Richarlison offers a level of threat off the bench that can change games.
That could come in handy against Arsenal and in other fixtures this season, as it seems unlikely Spurs will be able to secure a transfer for Randal Kolo Muani or another experienced goal-scorer.
Currently, Tottenham are in the bottom half of the Premier League table and are in desperate need of a statement-making win in league play, which, obviously, there would be no greater statement to make than winning the North London Derby at the Emirates Stadium.
