Arsene Wenger has conceded that Tottenham Hotspur start as favourites against Arsenal on Sunday but has denied the suggestion that there has been a power shift in north London.
Tottenham came close to finishing above Arsenal last season too but a collapse towards the end of the campaign meant the Gunners leapfrogged Spurs to finish second in the table.
However, Tottenham are currently second in the league table, just four behind league leaders Chelsea, and crucially they are 14 points better off than Arsenal, having played a game more.
Arsenal have never finished below Tottenham in the league under Wenger but many believe this run will come to an end this season as only a handful of games are left in the campaign.
And Wenger admits that Spurs are starting as favorites going in Sunday’s north London derby at White Hart Lane because of their incredible run of form in the league.
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He insisted that the priority for Arsenal is to finish in the top four and not think about ending the season above Spurs, who are currently challenging for the league title.
The Frenchman said in a press conference: “It’s one of the few times where Spurs are favourites, it looks a bit like that but it doesn’t matter much to me.
“The priority for us is to finish in the top four and after that the pride and continuity of our achievements we want to fight to be in front of Spurs.
“We have to focus on what is important to us and that’s to finish in the top four.”
However, Wenger denied that there has been a power shift towards Tottenham in north London as he feels one good season doesn’t negate Arsenal’s continued dominance over Spurs for years.
“Let’s be honest I answered that question of shift [of Spurs being bigger than Arsenal] for 18 consecutive years so nothing changes in that.
“I think so [they have to do more] you cannot say the weight of one year has the weight of 20.”
