Watch Arsenal vs Tottenham in their Carabao Cup quarter-final live on Sky Sports Football from 7pm on Wednesday
Wednesday 19 December 2018 09:09, UK
Arsenal and Tottenham have issued statements appealing for fans to behave and avoid using any discriminatory behaviour in Wednesday night’s Carabao Cup tie.
The sides met in the Premier League on December 2 but a pulsating 4-2 win for Arsenal at the Emirates was marred by a Spurs fan throwing a banana onto the pitch as Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang celebrated scoring a goal.
A Tottenham supporter has been fined and handed a four-year football banning order after pleading guilty to throwing a missile and both sides are keen to avoid a repeat of any such unsavoury incidents for the Carabao Cup quarter-final clash.
"Local derby matches are always passionate affairs and it is important that supporters play their part on these occasions by getting behind the team in a positive way and making them memorable for the right reasons," Tottenham said on their official website.
"We have enjoyed some unforgettable north London derby encounters over the years and the vast majority of fans have generated incredible atmospheres on these occasions.
"However, there were incidents in our most recent Premier League fixture against Arsenal earlier this month where a small number of supporters of both sides behaved unacceptably.
"Ahead of Wednesday's Carabao Cup quarter-final tie we wish to remind supporters travelling to Emirates Stadium that any kind of racist, discriminatory or anti-social behaviour will not be tolerated by the club.
"As a club that has suffered from abuse in the past from opposition supporters, we wish to make clear that there is absolutely no place for this kind of behaviour in or outside of football."
Arsenal also issued a statement on their official website urging their fans to behave responsibly.
"This fixture always generates an exciting and passionate atmosphere, however, we recently saw incidents where a small minority of fans have behaved unacceptably and unlawfully," it read.
"We appeal to both sets of supporters to get behind their team in positive and respectful ways without any discriminatory behaviour."