Mauricio Pochettino: 'We have to embrace the occasion'

Tottenham Hotspur boss Mauricio Pochettino is adamant that his players have to embrace the occasion in their North London derby clash against Arsenal.

The two teams played out a draw earlier this season as Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain cancelled out Nacer Chadli's strike, and Pochettino has urged his team to use the home crowd and the atmosphere at White Hart Lane to take the game to the Gunners.

He told reporters: "It's impossible to take out the passion and the emotion of football. When you play with your friends, you play because you feel the passion. Football is passion. Football is the best sport in the world because it shows emotion and you feel the passion.

"Our supporters, when they go to the stadium, it's because they go because they feel passion.How can we put the passion out in our players? We need to feel the same passion because in football you need to be clever, you need to train, you need to play with your brain but also with your heart.

"You need to run, you need to be aggressive, this is about balance which is important for this type of game."

Spurs are sixth in the Premier League, two points behind Arsenal, going into the match later today.