Arsenal defender Hector Bellerin has revealed that he was taught to ‘just hate’ Tottenham Hotpsur.
The Gunners and their fierce North London rivals renew hostilities at Spurs’ stadium on Sunday evening.
Bellerin joined Arsenal as a teenager after being part of Barcelona’s academy originally.
And the Spain international has revealed that he was told by team-mates at London Colney early on that he has an obligation to detest Tottenham, due to the animosity that exists between both clubs.
The Emirates Stadium club are 14th in the Premier League table – quite a contrast really given that Jose Mourinho’s side are sitting at the summit ahead of gameweek 11.
But Bellerin also believes that a big win, on the big stage, could help Arsenal turn a corner with regards to their Premier League form under Mikel Arteta.
He told BBC Sport: “It’s one of the first things that people told me at the training ground that I had to do – just hate Tottenham. It doesn’t matter who you like. You just have to hate Tottenham. It’s something that’s transmitted through all the players, when you come from another country.
“You know how important the rivalry has always been. We all know we haven’t been in the best of runs, but I always feel these kind of games are the best way to turn that around.”
Bellerin might hate Tottenham, but it’s vital that everybody in the Arsenal dressing room respects them.
If you don’t respect the Lilywhites, you naturally underestimate them and you can’t possibly underestimate a team with the likes of Harry Kane, Son Heung-min and Gareth Bale in it – all three of whom could potentially start.
This has the potential to be very ugly for Arsenal when you consider the contrasting form books and what the Gunners can’t allow is for hatred to cloud them on the day.
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