Joe Hart 'Preparing to Start' for Tottenham in North London Derby

Joe Hart is preparing to make his Premier League debut for Tottenham against Arsenal this weekend as doubts continue over the fitness of Hugo Lloris.

The backup stopper, signed on a free in the summer, has been a regular feature of Spurs' Europa League sides and was drafted back in to face LASK during the week. He didn't exactly cover himself in glory, with two errors leading to goals in the 3-3 draw, but he retains Jose Mourinho's faith as his number two keeper.

Lloris didn't travel with the squad during the week for unconfirmed reasons, and various reports have suggested he could be in doubt for Sunday's clash with Arsenal, when Mourinho's side look to go 11 points clear of their rivals. Now, football London's Spurs correspondent Alasdair Gold reports there is a genuine possibility that Hart may come in for his league debut.

The report says Hart is preparing for the possibility of being thrown in at the deep end, as there are growing internal fears over Lloris' condition. He missed the visit of Ludogorets a week ago due to injury, but did return in time to face Chelsea, where he turned in an impressive performance to help his side to a clean sheet.

If he is unavailable, one of Hart or Paulo Gazzaniga will be charged with stepping in, though it seems almost certain to be Hart given that Gazzaniga is yet to even be named in a squad this season. He wasn't registered for the Europa League, with Alfie Whiteman and Brandon Austin - who did not require registration due to their age and home-grown status - sitting on the bench.

Hart has kept two clean sheets in his six appearances for Spurs so far, though is yet to play domestically. The occasion will hardly faze him, however, having made more than 300 appearances for Manchester City in the top flight.

Interestingly, however, he does have a poor record against Arsenal, having emerged on the winning side in just three of his 18 appearances against the Gunners over the years.