Mauricio Pochettino has labelled Unai Emery an “unbelievable manager” ahead of Sunday’s north London derby.
Emery lost his first two matches in charge of Arsenal but has now gone 18 games without defeat in all competitions.
After leaving Valencia in 2012, the Spaniard recommended Pochettino to his former club and the two coaches have been friends ever since.
They will put that friendship aside for this weekend’s derby, which could see Spurs open up a six point gap on their bitter rivals.
But Pochettino was still keen to praise his opponent ahead of what is certain to be a tight contest at the Emirates.
“Of course, he is for me an unbelievable manager, he showed [his quality] at different clubs in Europe,” Pochettino said in his press conference on Friday (via football.london).
“It will be tough to play against him, against teams managed by him and Arsenal have very good players and of course it is a derby, an exciting game which means a lot for the fans.
“It’s an emotional component, which makes it more difficult to play these type of games.”
Arsenal will go above Tottenham on goal difference with a win, but Pochettino’s men will be hopeful of leaving with at least a point after their impressive victory over Chelsea last weekend.
As for the team news, Erik Lamela is a doubt and Kieran Trippier has been ruled out. Check out our full predicted XI here, and let us know your score predictions in the comments.
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