Arsenal legend names seven Tottenham players in his North London XI

Arsenal legend Martin Keown has named his best combined XI ahead of the enciticing north London derby between his former club and Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League.

Compared to his lineup in May when the 56-year-old named an all-Arsenal XI, Keown has altered his lineup massively this time around, and it's equally controversial.

That's because he's included seven players from the Spurs team in his XI, with only four from the Gunners squad making the cut, despite the side currently currently topping the EPL table.

It's North London Derby day! 🔴

🆚 Tottenham Hotspur
⏰ 12.30pm BST
🏟 Emirates Stadium
🏆 @premierleague

#AFC #Arsenal #ARSTOT #NLD https://t.co/z81SPzd1Zg

As goalkeeper, Keown chose Hugo Lloris over Aaron Ramsdale, even though the latter has kept more clean sheets so far in the league this season (3 to 2).

In defense, he's gone with an all-Arsenal centre-back pairing of Gabriel and William Saliba, while picking Tottenham's Emerson at right-back and former Manchester City star Oleksandr Zinchenko on left.

Keown picked Tottenham pair Rodrigo Bentancur and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg in the engine room, given their excellent form this season.

Up front, he chose Bukayo Saka, who's contributed five goals, on the right, with Son Heung-min, who struck an incredible hat-trick against Leicester City, on the left. Martin Odegaard plays between them and right off the striker.

😵 Gabriel Jesus and Harry Kane have both played a direct hand in seven Premier League goals this season but only one makes our #ARSTOT combined XI

👀 Click the image to find out who gets in and the team in full 👇

Here comes the most interesting part of the lineup. Unable to pick between Harry Kane and Gabriel Jesus to lead the line, Keown opted to give both players 45 minutes each.

Since swapping Manchester City for Arsenal, Jesus has been on a rampage, netting four times and assisting thrice in seven top-flight matches. Kane has also accounted for seven goals, including six strikes.

Both players will be crucial for their respective sides in the derby today.

Arsenal and Spurs to lock horns in enticing derby

The north London derby rarely disappoints, but this one has all the makings of a Premier League classic, given how well both teams have played so far in the 2022-23 season.

Arsenal are currently leading the table with 18 points from seven games, while Tottenham are just a point behind on third and still unbeaten, a distinction shared only with Manchester City.

Both sides made a series of excellent signings over the summer and have laid down early markers in the competition with a fast start.

In their last encounter, Spurs made light work of Arsenal in a clinical 3-0 victory which also ended the latter's Champions League chances.

However, the Gunners have come a long way since then, although Antonio Conte's team are looking sharp at the moment too.