Arsenal still eye St Totteringham moment

Arsenal have mocked their great north London rivals for years by celebrating St Totteringham's Day, the moment when Spurs can no longer overtake them in the league.

The name reflects the broken English spoken by Spurs' former Argentine midfielder Ossie Ardiles and the day has been a regular highlight of the last 20 seasons, in each of which Arsenal have finished top dogs in north London.

Spurs lost 2-1 at home to Southampton on Sunday, however, and Arsenal drew 2-2 at Manchester City to move within two points of their rivals with one game to play.

"It was a big point," Wenger said on Sunday. "Now we have to finish the job and win at home.

"I am not disappointed because twice we were losing and twice we came back. It was a game that was very, very intense.

"I was surprised by the intensity of City's start. We expected an intense game but they really came out with strong pressure.

St Totteringham's Day has often been celebrated as early as March and the Gunners have not lost out since 1995, when Spurs finished seventh to Arsenal's 12th.

Arsenal look to have the easier final fixture, at home to relegated Aston Villa, while Spurs travel to Newcastle United, who will still be able to stay up if Sunderland do not beat Everton on Wednesday.

"The good thing is that we absorbed it and we've shown good character today," Wenger said.

Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino was keen to play down the significance of finishing above Arsenal, but he knows that much of the gloss on a successful campaign will be stripped off if they fail to do so.

"We need to look at ourselves, not at our neighbour," he said.

"We need to think like a big club, not worrying about what's happening in another house. We need to change that mentality, to be strong, to be a big club."

Beating Arsenal into second place, which would be Tottenham's best finish since 1963, would go a long way to proving their credentials.

(Editing by Ed Osmond)