Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino has hailed "special" Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger ahead of the north London derby on Saturday, reports Sky Sports.

"He [Wenger] is a fantastic manager; I respect him a lot and admire him.

"Of course, if you see the history, Arsenal was above Tottenham in the last 20 years. He deserves a lot of credit for that.

"To stay at a club five years, is because you are a good manager. If you stay 10 years, you must be very good. But to stay more than 20 years, it is because you are special.

"I admire him a lot; he is a very special manager."

After 11 games this season Arsenal are four points adrift of third-placed Spurs, who under the management of Pochettino are unbeaten at the Emirates.

Pochettino said: "Arsenal is a great team. For me, there is not a favourite in this type of game.

"He [Wenger] knows better than me, the derby is not only about performance, not only about playing well or not so well.

"It means a lot for our fans and means a lot for their fans. Always, it is special to play.

"It is not important what level you arrive into the derby. The derby is special and anything can happen."