Where his immediate predecessors spent much of their energy tilting at windmills, he seems determined to refocus from phantom opponents to real ones. This is another milestone in Postecoglou’s self-professed quest to get Spurs fans dreaming. Even as the pendulum swung wildly back and forth the derby was finely balanced but, after a season of Arsenal dominance, the two sides now collide with similar momentum. When Spurs were ascendant under Mauricio Pochettino, Arsenal were sliding into late-Wengerism as Arsenal slowly flourished under Mikel Arteta, Spurs had trophy managers without the trophies. While Arsenal have reaffirmed their intentions to challenge for the title, starting the season unbeaten albeit without the fluency they showed early on last term, Spurs look re-energised by the do-or-die nature of Angeball and, after wading through so much ordure under José Mourinho and Antonio Conte, fans seem taken with their manager’s flamin’ no-bull policy.
It’s some time since both clubs faced each other on such a high, however.
