Press conference

Arteta - My favourite north London derby memory

Mikel Arteta
Mikel Arteta

Mikel Arteta will never forget the emotions that come with representing Arsenal in a north London derby.

Our head coach faced Tottenham Hotspur seven times and was only on the losing side twice, so what's his favourite memory of the fixture?

 

"The 5-2 [in February 2012] when we came back with that result, the way we did it," Arteta said. "At the start it was a crazy game but how we reacted, we never gave up, we kept believing and we did it because the people were right behind us.

"The support that we got that day and the energy level to lift and come from behind to go and win the game, the way we did it, it was superb. It generated a really good connection between the fans and players.

 

"You can always sense the days before the game that the energy was rising and the expectations and how much it means for the people to defend the badge and the shirt that we are representing. I always believed the atmosphere was a rivalry but a very respectful rivalry. That created a very special atmosphere at the grounds.

 

"There was not big collisions or hate I would say. But the respect and the will to win which is a beautiful thing in sports. I was involved in some really good ones. There was a lot of goals, a lot of excitement and a lot of change of hands in terms of results during the game.

 

"The players need to understand how much it means to people, those kind of derbies and if we are winning or go on to win then we will make a lot of people happy."

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