Arsenal fans are celebrating St Totteringham’s Day earlier than ever this season after Fulham beat struggling Spurs 2-1 at Craven Cottage today.
For those unfamiliar with St Totteringham’s Day, it is the name given to the date on which it becomes mathematically impossible for Spurs to finish above Arsenal in the Premier League table at the end of the season.
Sunday, March 1 is now the earliest date in Premier League history that St Totteringham’s Day has been celebrated, with hapless Spurs sitting a huge 32 points behind league leaders Arsenal ahead of their clash with Chelsea at the Emirates.
The Gunners went into Sunday knowing that a win against Chelsea would mark St Totteringham’s Day regardless of the result at Craven Cottage.
The name is believed to have been coined by Arsenal fans’ website Arseweb in the early 2000s, with the phrase a play on the words ‘Tottenham’ and ‘tottering’. It gained greater prominence during the 2010s.
Prior to today, the earliest Arsenal fans had celebrated St Totteringham’s Day was on March 9, 2008.
It’s officially St Totteringham’s Day! Arsenal are mathematically guaranteed to finish above north London rivals Tottenham at the earliest point ever in a Premier League season
Spurs, who sit in 16th place in the league, lost 2-1 to Fulham at Craven Cottage on Sunday
Tottenham, who sacked Thomas Frank and handed the reins to new interim head coach Igor Tudor until the end of the campaign, perilously sit just four points above the relegation zone, while their north London rivals are favourites to win a first Premier League title since 2004.
Fulham took the lead through Harry Wilson in the seventh minute before ex-Arsenal star Alex Iwobi bagged a second for the Cottagers just past the hour mark.
Substitute Richarlison halved the deficit in the 66th minute to set up a tense finale, but Tudor’s side were unable to find the all-important equaliser, slumping to a third successive league defeat.
Despite the huge chasm between them in the Premier League, there is little to separate the north London clubs in Europe, with both having qualified automatically for the Champions League knockout stage, albeit with Arsenal finishing first.
One small positive for Spurs is that relegation rivals Nottingham Forest, who sit two points below them in the table, also suffered defeat against Brighton today, while 18th-placed West Ham also lost 5-2 to Liverpool on Saturday.
Tottenham host Crystal Palace in a huge clash at home on Thursday before facing Liverpool next in the Premier League, sandwiched between two legs against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League’s round of 16.
