‘Big-spending Spurs still have a point to prove on the pitch’

Arsenal youngster Hoyte warns derby rivals ahead of White Hart Lane clash

YOUNG gun Justin Hoyte has added extra spice to Saturday’s north London derby by warning Spurs that talk is cheap when it comes to the battle of being a top four team in the Premier League.
Having spent big in the summer, Spurs are being tipped finally to overtake their neighbouring rivals in the league and secure a place in the elusive Champions League.
But Hoyte, a boyhood Arsenal fan who has risen through the ranks at the club to break into the first-team squad, isn’t fazed by Tottenham’s new recruits and is confident that Arsenal’s young charges are the ones who are ready to show their title credentials.
He told the club’s official website, Arsenal.com: “The Tottenham fans say ‘we’ve bought this player, that player, we’re going to challenge you’. We just take it with a pinch of salt. You can say all that but at the end of the day it’s what is done on the pitch.
“Everyone can do all the talking but what happens on the pitch, happens on the pitch, so we’ll just wait and see what happens on Saturday.
“It is very important. Ever since my youth days that was the one game we looked forward to. It is important for the fans and you just want to win it.”
He added: “If we win I get to brag to my friends.
“But if they win it’s the opposite way around. I don’t tend to answer my phone if they win, so hopefully I’ll be answering my phone all the time.”
Despite his growing confidence, the 22-year-old right-back isn’t underestimating the growing threat that is emerging from White Hart Lane.
He said: “Tottenham have got a very good side, a few good players that they’ve signed and they had a good team from last season. They haven’t had the best of starts but they can be a very tricky side. They’ve always got a good team so it will be very difficult.”
Hoyte also revealed that he is ready to fight for his place in manager Arsene Wenger’s starting 11. The talented youngster finds himself one of several players vying for a place on the teamsheet after the summer signings of Lassana Diarra and Bacary Sagna,
He said: “That’s how football is. It just makes me more determined to work hard and get my place in the side. I want to be at Arsenal all my life.”