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Mikel Arteta says Arsenal need to ‘put rivalry aside’ against Tottenham

Mikel Arteta has urged his players to put their north London rivalry with Tottenham to one side as Arsenal look to stay top of the Premier League with victory at their neighbours. The Gunners will make the short trip to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday knowing they will remain at the summit if they leave with the three points. It would take Arsenal a step closer to a first league crown in two decades, when Arsene Wenger’s Invincibles secured the title at White Hart Lane. Spurs have since moved into a new home and will have a partisan crowd cheering them on against Arsenal as the hosts aim to keep their own top-four ambitions on track. Arteta wants to remove the emotion of derby day and focus on the job at hand. “We played there a few times already and it’s a great place to play football,” he said. “We have to put the rivalry aside and we have to live the game with passion and the intensity that it demands rather than anything special because the game has everything you need to enjoy it.” Remarkably, Arsenal have played four matches since Tottenham last kicked a ball – losing to Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarter-final but beating Wolves and Chelsea to stay top, even if Manchester City have a game in hand.