Ange Postecoglou has swatted aside any suggestion Tottenham may be distracted by the idea that defeating Manchester City tonight could hand neighbours Arsenal the Premier League title.
And while many Spurs fans may be in the peculiar position of wanting their team to lose tonight, Gunners supporters do have one thing to feel hopeful about - Pep Guardiola ’s record at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Since the £1bn arena opened in April 2019, City have failed to score and lost all four league games on top of a Champions League defeat - although they did finally end the hoodoo in this season’s FA Cup. No wonder Guardiola joked after winning last season’s title that his next challenge would be "Score a goal against Spurs away."
Here is City’s record at the stadium and why Arsenal fans can retain some hope before Sunday’s dramatic conclusion.
April 2019 - Tottenham 1-0 City
The stadium had only been open a week when City came for the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final. Guardiola kept Kevin De Bruyne on the bench until the final moments and watched Hugo Lloris deny Serigo Aguero from the penalty spot before Son Heung-min scored. City would win the second leg 4-3 only to bow out on away goals (remember them?) before sealing a domestic treble.
February 2020 - Tottenham 2-0 City
Aguero won another penalty but handed over responsibility to Ilkay Gundogan only for Lloris to save again. Oleksandr Zinchenko was then shown a second yellow card on the hour mark, Spurs debutant Steven Bergwijn broke the deadlock and Son made sure of the points.
November 2020 - Tottenham 2-0 City
Same scoreline, another Son goal, although the opener came from Giovanni Lo Celso after Harry Kane led a counter-attack. That moved Spurs top of the league after nine games but City still went on to win the title, with almost the entire campaign played behind closed doors owing to the pandemic.
August 2021 - Tottenham 1-0 City
You’ll never guess who scored the goal… Son was the hero again as Spurs took another City scalp, this time with Nuno as head coach. The game’s other element, beyond City failing to score once more, was Guardiola giving Jack Grealish his debut after the £100m move from Aston Villa.
February 2023 - Tottenham 1-0 City
Harry Kane’s 15th-minute goal was the difference as City were unable to convert possession into a goal once more. Sergio Romero was sent off late on but the visitors still could not find a goal.
January 2024 - Tottenham 0-1 City
The curse was broken in their FA Cup third-round meeting, although it took 88 minutes for Nathan Ake to set City on their way to another Wembley final.