Arsenal great Lee Dixon admits he fears that Mauricio Pochettino can replicate George Graham’s title-winning feats of 1989 in the coming years.
Since Pochettino was appointed manager in the summer of 2014 Spurs have enjoyed a remarkable rise to prominence, establishing themselves as consistent contenders at the top of the Premier League.
Their rise has been mirrored by a decline at the other end of the Seven Sisters Road, with Arsenal having ended last season below Tottenham and outside the top four for the first time in Arsene Wenger’s reign.
Spurs are yet to win a trophy under Mauricio Pochettino but Dixon’s former manager Graham can attest that building a title-winning side takes time, having guided Arsenal to a dramatic triumph in the 1988-89 season.
Pochettino aspires to do similar and has notably dismissed the importance of the EFL Cup as he targets success in the Premier League and Europe with his young side.
The Argentine is yet to lose a north London derby in the Premier League and ahead of Saturday’s meeting between the two sides Dixon fears that, though catching Manchester City this season is likely beyond both clubs, it is Spurs who are showing the marks of an eventual title winner.
“If I think about that team with George and, as much as it hurts, think about the Tottenham team there are so many similarities,” Dixon told Standard Sport. “In terms of how hard he works them, they work incredibly hard and I know that for a fact.
“The attention to detail, the drive, the hunger, the way they run through everything and drain every ounce of energy out of themselves: all of that stuff is quite scary for an ex-Arsenal player, particularly because you don’t see that in Wenger’s team.”
Critics of Wenger have pointed to a lack of intensity in the Arsenal side that was unquestionably clear the last time they faced Tottenham, a 2-0 defeat in White Hart Lane’s last derby that guaranteed Spurs would finish above their greatest rivals for the first time since 1995.
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For Dixon, who won four top division titles, three FA Cups and a Cup Winners Cup over 14 years at Highbury, it is the lack of application that Arsenal show that is the most frustrating aspect of their recent decline.
“Do Arsenal work hard enough in training?” he asks. “I don’t know because I’m not in the dressing room. Have they got the hunger or drive that Tottenham look like they’ve got? No.
“That’s not me being against the present team, it’s just what I and the supporters see. You can change that on the training field, you can change your attitude.
“Arsenal have got that hunger in them, they showed it against Chelsea. There’s untold talent in the team, but are they behind Tottenham right now? Yes and by quite a long way.”
89 is in cinemas from 11th November and on DVD and Digital Download from 20th November.