The North London Derby taking place at White Hart Lane this Sunday just exponentially grew in importance. To qualify, the clashes between Tottenham Hotspur FC and Arsenal FC in the Premier League of English Football are always intense but this one will be special. This one isn’t more so because this year’s Arsenal squad is poised to miss out on a top four positioning for the first time in 18 seasons, or that this is Tottenham’s best chance to finish above Arsenal in the standings since 1995 after falling 1 point behind them in a heartbreak last season. It will mark the final of these derbies to be played at White Hart Lane, which after 118 years is set to be demolished in favor of a new stadium which will be completed according to estimates for the 2018-2019 season. Where will Tottenham play in the meantime? Certainly not at the Emirates with their fierce rival.
The club had until Sunday (coincidentally the day of the Derby) to decide whether or not they would play the next campaign or two in Wembley Stadium, traditionally the neutral site for the F.A. Cup Final, the League Cup Final, and home games for the England National Team. The original Wembley Stadium stood from 1923 to 2003 and also hosted the 1966 World Cup, and the 1996 UEFA/Euro Tournament the former of the two standing as the only time England has won an international trophy. The new Wembley, where Tottenham will play, seats 90,000 spectators which dwarfs White Hart Lane’s capacity nearly threefold. It remains to be seen whether or not this news of the final derby at White Hart Lane will motivate Spurs, led by Manager Mauricio Pochettino and World Class striker Harry Kane as well as young phenom Dele Alli to overtake Chelsea and win their first top-flight title since the 1960-1961 season.
