Must-know facts about the most popular rivalries in football
The world of football has rivalries that generally mean and demand more than most other fixtures, with teams sharing resentment against each others for reasons, both political and cultural. The stakes of these matches have always been high, both on and off the field for the players, the clubs and the fans included.Here, in this slideshow, we talk about 6 such rivalries in football that not only creates a sense of liveliness among the fans but also is the major reason behind their passion for the beautiful game.Note: Statistics used in this article are courtesy of Soccerway.
#1 North-London Derby
Teams involved: Arsenal vs Tottenham Hotspur
The North-London derby, considered to be one of the fiercest derbies in English football is played between two of North London’s teams – Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur. The rivalry gets more aggravated because of the fans from both the clubs who, since a long time, have considered each other to be the biggest rival in football.
The teams first met on the 19th of November, 1887 in a friendly at the Manor Ground, Plumstead. But, it wasn’t until 1899, when the first competitive match between the two was played with the Gunners beating Spurs 2-1 in Plumstead.
The first league meeting between the two was witnessed on the 4th of December 1909 in a First Division fixture that Arsenal won by a solitary goal. However, the proper path of rivalry was laid when Arsenal moved to Highbury, a stadium that stood just a couple of miles away from the White Hart Lane.
In the 162 matches till date, Arsenal have won 67 while Spurs managed to win 51.
Head-to-head comparison between Arsenal and Spurs
| Tables | Arsenal | Spurs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | Home | Away | Total | Home | Away | |
| Matches Played | 162 | 81 | 81 | 162 | 81 | 81 |
| Wins | 67 | 42 | 25 | 51 | 33 | 18 |
| Draws | 44 | 21 | 23 | 44 | 23 | 21 |
| Losses | 51 | 18 | 33 | 67 | 25 | 42 |
| Goals For | 257 | 136 | 121 | 223 | 133 | 90 |
| Goals Against | 223 | 90 | 133 | 257 | 121 | 136 |
| Points | 245 | 147 | 98 | 197 | 122 | 75 |
Arsenal's David O'Leary has made the most number of north-London derby outings with 35 appearances while both Gary Mabbutt & Steve Perryman of Spurs each have 31 appearances to their names.
Despite the rivalry, there have been 15 players who went on to play for both Arsenal and Spurs with Jimmy Brain being the first player to make a switch between the clubs. However, only Emanuel Adebayor and Sol Campbell remain to be the only two players to have scored for both the teams in the derby.