Tottenham Hotspur have a title decider. The only problem for Spurs is that it isn't their title on the line, but that of Arsenal — their most bitter rivals and a team none of their supporters would ever want to help in any way whatsoever.
Arsenal forward Kai Havertz joked on Sunday, after the Gunners reclaimed top spot in the Premier League with a 1-0 win at Manchester United, that he would be the «biggest Tottenham fan ever» when they host Manchester City on Tuesday. If Havertz were bold enough to turn up at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, he might find himself to be the only person inside the ground wanting to see a home win.
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Ange Postecoglou's team need only draw against City for the pendulum to swing firmly in Arsenal's favour going into the final day of the season on Sunday, and that's why there's now so much focus on how Spurs approach the game.
Arsenal need Spurs to help them out by halting City's seven-game winning streak. If City draw, Arsenal will be top and at home to Everton with, to a large extent, their destiny in their own hands. Arsenal would be the leaders by plus-3 goals, so Man City (who are at home to West Ham) could still outscore them in their final game to take the title. If City lose on Tuesday, it's completely in the Gunners' control.
Social media is an unreliable gauge of true fan opinion, but it offers some insight and it would not be an exaggeration to suggest that many Spurs supporters want their team to lose against City; the last thing they want to do is help Arsenal end their 20-year title drought and herald in an open-top bus tour around north London.
That's the inexplicable reality of sporting rivalry. As unpalatable as it might seem,
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