Kevin Kilbane believes that Tottenham fans don’t like him – and he’s not likely to go up in their estimations when he says that Dele Alli is the main offender when it comes to diving in the Premier League.
Ahead of Saturday afternoon’s North London derby between Spurs and Arsenal, Kevin spoke to Adrian and Eoin on OTB:AM about Arsene Wenger’s comments that English players are now “masters” of the dark art.
“[Alli] needs to be careful – he’s been scrutinised for many things off and on the pitch in recent weeks. In general, Alli is a major culprit for it. But it’s not just Alli, you see many British players in the last few years that if they get any contact, they’re going over.”
Kevin believes that the derby is a massive indicator of how both teams will likely finish a season that has been characterised by patchy form for Spurs and the Gunners.
“That four point gap, if Arsenal were to win, suddenly it puts Tottenham under massive, massive pressure. I think, in general, we are looking at this game potentially being one of the biggest games this season.”
While Kevin has concerns over the professionalism and attitude of Arsenal, he suspects that they might just edge this weekend, in part due to Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s scoring record against Tottenham.
“Having spoken to a lot of strikers that would have certain records against certain teams... they just feel good in that particular game and they end up excelling and scoring – I think it does make a difference. I think Aubameyang will fancy it this weekend.”
