Arsenal should be labelled as favourites in the north London derby, but Harry Redknapp says Harry Kane will always give his old team Tottenham a fighting chance.
Premier League leaders Arsenal make the short trip across the capital to face their rivals on Sunday.
A 3-0 defeat to Antonio Conte's team in the corresponding fixture last season was the start of Arsenal's capitulation in the run-in, which saw them miss out on the Champions League.
Yet Mikel Arteta's side are flying high this term and, having beat Spurs 3-1 in October, Arsenal are looking to complete their first league double over their rivals since 2013-14, which was also their last league victory away at Tottenham.
Former Spurs manager Redknapp believes Arsenal have the edge, but is confident Kane – the highest-scoring player in north London derby history with 14 goals – will take an opportunity if it comes his way.
"At the moment, you'd have to fancy Arsenal, to be honest, they look so good," Redknapp told Stats Perform.
"They're so full of confidence. I love the way they're playing. I think they've got some real quality players, but when you've got Harry Kane in your team, you've always got a chance, you've got a puncher's chance.
"They might get outplayed for long periods of a game but Kane can land a knockout blow anytime. So I wouldn't write Tottenham off by any means. I think it'll be a tight game."
Kane has scored in all but one of his eight league home games against Arsenal, only failing to find the net in a July 2020 clash, when the competition restarted behind closed doors during the coronavirus pandemic.
The 29-year-old has scored 198 Premier League goals and is just one strike away from matching Jimmy Greaves' record of 266 goals for Tottenham.
Only Erling Haaland (21) has scored more Premier League goals than Kane (15) this season, with the Spurs talisman having far over performed his expected goals of 10.5.
Wayne Rooney (208) and Alan Shearer (260) are the only players to have scored more Premier League goals than Kane, who Redknapp believes is the cream of the crop.
"Oh without a doubt, yeah," Redknapp said when asked if Kane will break the competition's goalscoring record.
"I think he'll smash it to pieces. Harry's just an amazing player, he's the best centre forward in the world in my opinion.
"He's right up there isn't he? Shearer you know how far do you go back you know, but you know, he's up there with the very, very best isn't he?
"The great Jimmy Greaves was a different type of player, Jimmy was a fantastic footballer. Genius. But Harry is just amazing. For me, he's the best all-round centre forward, he can do everything. The complete player.
"There's nothing he doesn't do. Team player. Great guy, not a problem. Perfect professional."
Fans celebrate Luton’s fairytale promotion to Premier League at civic parade
Thousands of Luton fans have celebrated the Hatters’ fairytale rise into the Premier League at a civic parade in the town.
Luton won promotion to the top flight of English football on Saturday by beating Coventry in the Sky Bet Championship play-off final, just nine years after playing in the National League.
Rob Edwards’ side – who won 6-5 on penalties at Wembley after the game had been drawn 1-1 – will next season welcome champions Manchester City, Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester United to their modest 10,356-capacity Kenilworth Road home.
“It means everything,” said head coach Rob Edwards before launching into a rendition of Bon Jovi’s ‘Always’ and holding aloft the play-off trophy on the Luton Town Hall balcony.
“It’s for you (the fans), the Luton Town people, for the town, these players who deserve it, for the backroom staff who work so hard, the board. We’ve got to enjoy this moment.”
Some Luton fans had waited nearly four hours to see players and staff make their way on to a specially-constructed stage in the town’s St George’s Square.
Highlights of the season and the play-off final were shown on a big screen before two open top buses arrived following a short ride from Kenilworth Road.
Hatters chief executive Gary Sweet told fans: “The impact of being in the Premier League will be massive for this town.
“This could be a life-changing opportunity for us, but from a character point of view, don’t change.
“Let’s still be us, still grounded. Let’s keep humble.”
David De Gea says Manchester United are ready for one more ‘special’ battle
Manchester United have fought for success all year and David De Gea says they are ready for one more “special” battle against Manchester City in the FA Cup final.
Erik ten Hag’s first season in charge has been one of progress and, for the most part, positivity, with the side finishing third in the Premier League and sealing a Champions League return.
The Dutchman is only the second manager in United’s history to win a major trophy in his first season and has the chance to add to February’s Carabao Cup triumph this weekend.
Ten Hag’s Red Devils head to Wembley for the first all-Manchester FA Cup final, when they will attempt to add to their cabinet and stop rivals City’s attempts to win the treble.
View this post on Instagram“We have to recover well and start to prepare for the game,” De Gea said. “Of course, we know it’s a big final, a special game.“We’ve been the whole year fighting to be in that position to win titles and we will try absolutely everything to try to win.”
De Gea and his team-mates were all in at Carrington on Monday morning, with Sunday’s starters focused on recovery from the 2-1 comeback win against Fulham at a bouncing Old Trafford.
Kenny Tete had put the visitors ahead in the Premier League season finale and Marco Silva’s men would have extended their lead had Golden Glove winner De Gea not stopped Aleksandar Mitrovic’s spot-kick.
United kicked on after that, with Jadon Sancho and Bruno Fernandes completing a victory that saw them beat Newcastle to third spot.
“We concede the first goal from a corner and then I think five minutes after we concede a penalty,” De Gea, whose contract has yet to be extended beyond the summer, said.
“I was very positive. I was feeling like ‘come on, you have to save this penalty, we have to finish properly the season at home, we have to win’.
“Then I make the save, everyone was happy, enjoying and I helped the team to win the three points today.
View this post on Instagram“The manager wants us to be focused every game, winning every game. Before the game he was shouting before ‘come on guys, we have to finish properly, winning mentality’.“So, yeah, we showed it again. 1-0 down, suffering a bit, but then we create chances and could have scored even more than two.
“But, like I say, a big way to finish the season with a victory and (it) gives a bit of enjoyment to the fans.”
The result saw United equal the club’s record of 27 home wins in all competitions in a single campaign, while also meaning they finished 17 points better off than last season.
“100 per cent, for sure, the improvement is there,” De Gea told MUTV. “Of course we still have a gap to improve but, yeah, a massive improvement from last season.
“Winning a cup, finish third – it’s never easy to finish in the Champions League places in England.
“And then we have another final, a big final, so I think at the moment it is a great year.”
As for Fulham, the defeat at Old Trafford was frustrating but this was a season to cherish having finished 10th on their return to the top-flight.
View this post on InstagramGoalscoring right-back Tete said: “Unbelievable season, every single player.
“If you saw how we fought all season for every single point. Not even one game was easy for us.
“I am just proud of the boys. We said it as well to each other and this is something we have to build on.
“We know now what our standard is, we know now what we can bring. I can’t wait for next season.”
We’ve done a great job – Ryan Mason
Ryan Mason said he and his coaching staff have “done a great job” during his second spell as Tottenham’s interim manager.
Tottenham closed their Premier League season with a resounding 4-1 win at relegated Leeds on Sunday, but have failed to qualify for European football next season for the first time since 2008-09.
Mason said: “When I go on my summer holidays I would hope and expect that everyone inside of our training ground knows who I am, who my team is and what we stand for.
“The hope and expectation is that you guys and everyone else sees that too. I know we’ve done a great job. I really do.”
Tottenham fought back from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 with Manchester United at home in Mason’s first game back in charge and have since won two and lost three of their last five matches.
The 31-year-old former Spurs midfielder, whose previous stint in temporary charge came after Jose Mourinho was sacked in 2021, replaced previous interim boss Christian Stellini with six games remaining.
Tottenham had sacked Antonio Conte at the end of March and while they were then fourth in the table, they had exited all the cup competitions and weary fans had grown disillusioned over their team’s playing style.
“The circumstances were very difficult,” said Mason, who urged the club to get get their next managerial appointment right.
“I think anyone in the world coming into this situation for six games coming off the back of what had happened and the position we were in was going to find it tough.
“Also if you add into that being on an interim basis, where there’s uncertainty it makes it even tougher.
“But we’ve stuck to what we believe in, we’ve transitioned a little bit I believe in a short space of time and the players have responded, they’ve given us everything and ultimately that’s all I can ask.”
Throughout his six games in charge, Mason has called for the club to rediscover their identity and feels that is the biggest factor as they continue their search for a new manager.
“The most important thing for any club in world football is to have an identity, know who you are and who you want to be and stick to that,” he said.
Mason also paid tribute to Harry Kane, who scored twice at Elland Road – in what could be his last game for Tottenham – to take his league tally to 30 for the season.
“I think he probably doesn’t get the appreciation he should,” Mason added.
“The goals yes, outstanding, a 30-goal season in the Premier League is incredible but also his overall performances are just outstanding.
“I also think as well to go through what happened in the World Cup, from a mental point of view, to come back and do what he’s done for the past four or five months, I think it speaks volumes for the player and the person.”
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