Match Review: Swansea 1 : Arsenal 2 (Gunners Consolidate position as Big rivals Struggle)

Ok i'll do my best to hold my excitement inside after yet another professional and gutsy display by this awesome team. BUT WOW! These guys are making blogging fun like crazy for me right about now. Even as i type this, my ''football numb'' better-half who has endured my many tears of disappointment in seasons' past is rolling her eyes sarcastically and saying its only just 6 games. True, but who cares? We are Top of the league and playing some really really matured, effective stuff! Listen, i'm an experienced enough watcher of the premiership to not get carried away and start handing out plaudits too early but you gotta appreciate what this handful of fit players are currently doing regardless of our Current injury travails. I must say, many of us owe the manager, Arsene Wenger an apology. When he was taking shots from left,right and center from angry fans, the media, and basically everyone with an opinion he remained unshaken and expressed his implicit confidence in these players. Yours truly wasn't left out, i came down hard on him too. In such a position others of weaker mettle would've lost their cool, sold off players who weren't fan favorites or even resigned. But not the old fox. He knew the kind of team he had. And you know what? Its as obvious as Man united's Weak Midfield that the players are now repaying him for standing behind them through all the Tough times. Seriously if you are topping the league with as many Top players injured as we have, you have got to give credit to the manager for being able to fire up his team with the kind of motivation to play out of their skin and be as consistent as we have been lately.

The line up was Szcesney,Bac,Kos,Per,Gibbs,Flamini, Wilshere, Ramsey,Ozil,Gnabry and Giroud. Many pundits, fans and antagonists harbored fears for Arsenal over this tie citing Swansea's fine current form and recent results against us. But like i said in the preview, Swansea is the kind of inconsistent  team we really should be swatting aside in the kind of form we are in. Yes they are a good passing side, comfortable on the ball yaddi yadda but they haven't got the killer instinct to go with their expansive style of place. I know there's Michu but beyond him who else? nadda.. Having said that though, they started off the more dangerous side when the game kicked off. Dwight Tiendalli put Jonjo Shelvy through but his long range effort was wide off the mark. In the 7th minute it was the turn of Michu, he bore down on the Arsenal danger area but the man responsible for picking him up in the form of Mertasacker was quick to shepherd him away from the goal as Koscielny mopped up. It was only in the 12min that Arsenal showed the first signs of settling down. Mesut Ozil found Giroud with an exquisite pass on the edge of the Swansea penalty box but as he was trying to steady himself, the Orlando Bloom look-a-like Chico Flores managed to toe-poke the ball before Giroud could find his bearings. Man of the moment Ramsey was not to be outdone as he followed suit with his trade mark right footed grass cutter in the 15th that wasn't that far wide. The first half intrigued without ever taking your breath away in any form by its pace. Both teams where more concerned with being tactically switched on to avoid getting caught out rather than going gung-ho at each other. The half ended with us carving the best goal scoring chance. The impressive Gnabry who after a shaky start, began to grow into the game ran through the Swans defence then laid off a brilliant pass to Giroud whom despite being well placed showed the composure of a hippo on Roller skates as he went for power and flashed his left footed shot well wide. Its just the only aspect of the Frenchman's game i think he needs to work on...His Composure in one-on-one situations.  The Boss proffered a reason as to why the 1st half was flat. He felt we were 2nd best to most of the 50-50 challenges and were preoccupied with not making any defensive errors. At half time he must have implored, his men to remain patient and trust their game. Whatever he must have said it worked because we flew out the blocks at once. Gnabry reveling in his new found confidence powered his way through the swans defence yet again but got fouled as he aimed to pull the trigger with the swans defenders clearly panicked. He was not to be denied  though, as in the 58th min we carved the home team open with Ramsey ending a flowing move with an inch perfect pass to the young German who made no mistake from 11yards. It was reward for his brilliance thus far in the game, coming in for the injured Walcott and showing why the manager rates him so highly. His compatriot should have doubled our advantage immediately,Ozil found himself in space in the box after a swift counter attacking move but could not finish past Michel Vorm. Arsenal were not to wait very long though in what was a good spell, as we eventually got that 2 goal cushion . Ramsey firing into the roof from 14 yards with Swansea passed off the pitch. It would be a goal he must have enjoyed scoring in his home country against his old Club's rivals. At this point, the smart money was definitely on us getting all 3 points given how we've suddenly become the masters of closing out games. However it wouldn't be Arsenal if we didn't find a way to make things tense at the end. Mertasaker was caught flat  footed as a lobbed ball by Boni was allowed to get to Davies who bundled the ball past Szcesney. Cue the last minute charge on our penalty area as Swansea abandoned the fancy stuff and hoofed ball after ball into our Defence area looking for any slice of luck. But no dice. The guys rallied to ensure the points where ours.

A massive 3 points given the fact that United, Chelsea, City, and Spurs stuttered in their games. Arsene said it was added pressure for us knowing the results of those games and yet still deliver but, Kudos that we did.
So its on to Napoli now and a chance to take leadership of that group going into the Winter. Confidence is sky high now and asMesut Ozil tweeted, ''there is happiness in the camp''. Fabulous win i'm so proud of the guys...Back later

Match Preview: Swansea City vs Arsenal (Important we Consolidate our position)

Pos	Teams		P	W	D	L	F	A	W	D	L	F	A	GD	Pts	Form
1	Arsenal		5	2	0	1	5	4	2	0	0	6	2	5	12
2	Tottenham		5	2	0	0	3	0	2	0	1	2	1	4	12
3	Man City		5	3	0	0	10	1	0	1	1	2	3	8	10
4	Chelsea		5	3	0	0	6	1	0	1	1	0	1	4	10
5	Liverpool		5	2	0	1	2	1	1	1	0	3	2	2	10
6	Everton		5	1	1	0	1	0	1	2	0	5	4	2	9

It feels good to be back on the beat. Where ever you are reading from i hope all is well with you? Its back to the rigours of the EPL after that nail biter of a game against West Brom at the Hawthorns. It was a game which before Wednesday night, many would have said that we didn't necessarily ''Have'' to win, but if we did it wouldn't do any harm at all. You might say if we lost, it wouldn't have seen us back to the Doom and Gloom era, but as it turns out since we won,the fantastic feel-good factor currently pervading the club is preserved. It was great to see us achieve the result whilst giving a lot of the first team squad a deserved rest. They've given a lot since the Galatasaray Double header as well as the crucial away wins over Fulham and Sunderland. Bearing in mind how thin the squad has been no thanks to injuries, we have had to overplay the likes of Giroud, Wilshere, Ramsey and Koscielny at times. So i'm pleased they and others had a chance to recharge their batteries by sitting out the midweek game. Taking a look at the youngsters that filed out on Wednesday, iv always rated Thomas Eisfeld ever since i saw him play against Reading in Last seasons' Capital 1 cup quarterfinal. He isn't the most physically imposing of players but he has something about him i like. He has game intelligence and his finishing is definitely on the money. Arsene obviously likes the lad too as he gushed over him post-match .

Gnabry is also one to look out for but he still has a lot of developing to do as evident on Wednesday night. Overall, the youngsters did very well given the opposition and with that result they have deservedly earned themselves further playing time against big guns Chelsea in the 5th round at the Emirates. Definitely one to look forward to.

So on to tomorrow and our Clash with Swansea. Its a chance to strengthen our position at the summit of the EPL with another win. I like to call them prototype Arsenal as its obvious our playing styles are similar and their manager has been rumored to be one of those tipped to succeed Arsene Wenger if ever he steps down. Swansea however, are a rather inconsistent team if you ask me. Quite hit and miss, they can be good today average tomorrow. But recent history has shown that they reserve their best form for those games against us. The stats show we are ahead on the head-to-head clashes, but the games are always close.  It will be recalled the game against them at the Emirates last season represented our lowest point in that campaign. Those two Michu goals were terrible and i can't have been the only one who thought the worst, as we watched him do his trademark celebration on his knees on our turf. Thankfully we are a different team now, Carzola, Podolski and Giroud newbies to english football at the time are now more accustomed to their surroundings and team mates. We seem to have fashioned a balanced approach to our  playing style, it consists of playing expansively when we are in possession/attacking and then quickly reverting to a more compact style when we lose the ball or are under attack. The presence of Flamini has done wonders for our shape and combativeness in midfield and make no mistake, we are not the same unbalanced, timid side that got out-passed embarrassingly at the Emirates. Both sides know what to expect from each other and i think it will be an interesting encounter. Laudrup has already read the riot act to his players about us. He insists chances will be at a premium in the game, hence they would need to be at their clinical best to put us under pressure.

On team news, reports have it that Arteta, Rosicky and Vermaelen are now slowly getting back to full fitness. Rosicky according to Arsene will not be available to play tomorrow but is close to boosting options at our disposal come Tuesday. Carzola the man i can't wait to see back in the squad is said to be out until October. His combination with Ozil is a prospect that the longer i have to wait to witness it,the more impatient i become. Flamini and Ramsey are said to be minor doubts but the manager feels they'll be fine. As far as i'm concerned those 2 guys are too crucial to miss that game. Ramsey's all action tireless runs and Flamini's leadership and grit are pillars to our team and will no doubt be important to us. Fingers crossed they come through the final tests. Three points will definitely keep momentum and confidence high. Our away form has drawn plaudits rightfully, so all eyes will be on us to keep that record going. All the best to the lads as we again look to keep Swansea as our proteges....back later

Match Preview: Arsenal vs Stoke ( *in Chris Brown voice*: Don't wake me up!)

Not many of us would have foreseen our recent upturn in fortune following that Aston Villa debacle on the opening day. Make no mistake,that horrible result made it seem like doom awaited us in the 2013/2014 season. At that time the transfer window was on its last legs, we had only made the grand total of 1 signing in  the form of YaYa Sanogo and the entire goonerverse was threatening to crumble before our very eyes. The indignation on the part of the fans was justified in the sense that it seemed inconceivable that Arsene would allow this summer peter out without strengthening the obviously deficient areas of our team. But fast forward 4 weeks and what do we have? a 360 turn around in affairs. A team in form, fans happy and a manager who isn't afraid to admit his surprise at the exploits of some of his players.

So how did it come to this..id be the first to attribute this to the impressive harmony and team spirit in this Arsenal team.They look like a bunch who have absolute mutual respect and value for each other. And why not? They have been through hell together and have stood behind each other and their manager when the results have not been positive. Now i don't want to tempt fate, but right now these guys seem to have somehow devised a steely interior of grit and resolve to grind out results no matter what or whom they encounter. The fans have observed this and have rallied behind them 100% to form this seemingly unstoppable Red and White force we have before us. Very little is being murmured about the paucity of options in the squad amongst fans right now. Few still moan but in their hearts they know now isn't the time for that. Its instead time to get behind the guys and push them on from strength to strength. Its the best moment in the club we have had for some time. Fans and Team in one united front. Long may it continue.

We face Stoke city on Sunday lunch time. And if you ask me, they are another scalp we need to add to our collection. I have a particular dislike for stoke city. Why? i really cant say. Maybe it was the personality of their erstwhile manager, or their style of play, or their players even or hell maybe all of the above. But i just don't like them and if there's any team i take immense joy defeating in this league its those chaps from Stoke.
They have a new man at the helm of affairs now in Mark Hughes (a man who lets be honest hates us too so, no chance of that hate cycle ending anytime soon),and he's begun his tenure quite well. They've only lost to Liverpool and have only recently earned a fine point against Mancity. I saw that game and was surprised at the industry and guile in their play. it was very Unstoke-like shall we say. Mancity were very lucky to escape the Brittania with something and if the finishing was better Stoke should have won comfortably with the kind of chances they got. Its always a clash of opposing styles when these two sides meet but in their last six meetings we have the upper hand having won 3times drawn twice and ended on the losing side just once. It wont be easy, Hughes has a good record against us but if we keep doing what we've been doing recently they will stand no chance. The better side technically we may be but they have their strengths also. They'll look to get us into conceding set pieces in dangerous areas so that they can hoof it high up in our box for their giant players to make hay. Here's where we have to exhibit a high degree of concentration and communication. We must win the 1st balls or at worst contest for them whilst absolutely making sure rebounds and 2nd balls are promptly cleared. Szcesney isn't new to Stoke and their tactics, therefore a lot will depend on his command of the penalty box and his defenders. Arteta has been reported to be back in training but it remains to be seen if he'll be selected. Having said that its great news for the team he is available as he is as Wenger described one of the ''Leaders'' of the bunch. Mesut Ozil will be making his home debut and will experience the joys/pressures of playing in front of the gunner faithfuls. Arsene says he still needs time to adapt, but as far as the Sunderland game went he seemed quite fine. Here's hoping he has a great home debut spiced with assists and dare i say a goal to get us the three points?

So it'll probably be the same line up vs Marseille and we will all be looking for the same result as that Night. three points will be great for squad confidence, and will keep us in this dreamland none of us wants to wake up from. So best of luck to the lads! and of course Mike Dean better behave...laterfolks

Match Review: Sunderland 1 : Arsenal 3 (3 points & Top of the League..need i say more?)

Another 3 points in the bag, another away-win, another battling performance,and yup....another great end to the weekend for us gooners. This team is surely punching above its collective squad size and depth but my goodness they are a determined bunch of fighting beauties aren't they. I honestly cant wait for them to be at full strength with Arteta, Carzola, Rosicky, Diaby (*cough* ok lets not get carried away) all back and 100% fit. They'll be phenomenal. But even before that happens, one new development i'v observed in recent times is the way this team approaches closing down of opponents. Its done almost like its 2nd nature now when we lose the ball. Depending on the area of the pitch, it begins with 3 players quickly forming a ring around the opponent whilst the center-backs narrow to prevent any striker being fed through between our lines, just incase those 3 players fail to win back the ball. This little tactical bit of play prevents us being exposed and its damn effective. Hats-off to the coaching staff and the lads for finding a way to incorporate this into our game, it certainly was not very evident last season. I know it takes tremendous energy and commitment to play this way for 90mins and lets face it, they can't do that. However, Barcelona in 2010/11 played exactly this same way and steam rolled everyone in their path, if we can emulate half of their achievements trophy-wise in that glorious period not many will mind at all.

So on to the game i said in my preview that Sunderland are a team currently struggling. They've now played both the big boys and the lesser teams and haven't fared comparatively better in both levels. Going into this game in that sort of form, it was a no-brainer who the favorites were but still..its the Epl and the experts will tell you that the entitlement mentality is a dangerous thing in this league. We began the 1st half quite well, the passing was fluid and the new boy Ozil though greeted with some tasty tackles and overzealous harrying from Sunderland players began to do his thing. It was nice to see a bit of the old Jack Wilshere with that trademark spin and swashbuckling runs and it was him that created the first bit of danger in the 6th minute, running straight at the heart of the Sunderland defence before being crowded out and dispossessed. I was a bit at a loss as to where he'd fit in the midfield with Ozil's inclusion but watching the game it was then apparent he was placed on the left-side of attack. Our domination was complete in the 11th minute when Mesut Ozil brought down  a Gibbs long ball from defence in immaculate style and in one swift move laid the ball across to the unrushing Giroud to bang in the opener and his 4th league goal of the season already. The pass was from Ozil was beautiful but the finish also was synonymous with a man in red hot form. Now we were already a good team without Ozil but with him believe me, we have moved up like 5 notches in quality. And when Carzola returns on the left to pair with this guy....*dammn*. More brilliance followed from the German as he set up Walcott twice into good positions but sadly the Winger misfired. I tweeted during the game that with Ozil in this team now, its imperative Arsene surrounds him with more striking quality. I said this because a player like Ozil wouldn't like to see his hard work wasted with misses of the kind Walcott produced today. I know on most days Theo is more clinical than that, but you get the feeling against stronger teams than Sunderland such misses will be far more costly.

The game really ought to have been wrapped up at the end of the first half, and as the second began you just knew Sunderland would be eager to tilt the balance of play. I read a tweet that said ''No team in the EPL plays shit for 90mins..Not even Shit teams'' Funny as that might sound but its a bang-on accurate statement. And Sunderland corroborated it at the start of the 2nd half. A mix up in our area in the 46th minute, saw the ball floated to Adam Johnson in our box. The forward not in any way a good goal scoring position was rashly brought down by Koscielny. Ref Matt Atkinson blew for the pen and Gardner made no mistake from the spot. At that point the game changed as Arsenal panicked a bit and allowed the ''crowd influenced'' Sunderland grow in confidence. This sparked a rash of close shaves as the offside flag came to our rescue on more than one occasion where conceding would have been disastrous. Steven Fletcher saw his effort chalked off while Gardener swung a free-kick dangerously close. We desperately needed to find some calm and perhaps a goal and in the 67th min Ramsey stood up to be counted. In a rare foray up-field, Jenkinson swung a knee high cross that was just the right height and pace for Ramsey (ever wondered why he's called Rambo?) to Volley past the Sunderland keeper. It was a blow for the Home team especially as they had been the more dominant side until then. Suddenly there came a moment of controversy that left many scratching their heads. In the 70th minute, Bacary Sagna who had been excellent all game long in central defense got into a kind of tango with powerful American international Jozy Altidore for the ball just outside our box. Altidore won the Tussle coasted into the box and fired past Szcesney into the net but the referee overuled the goal and blew for the freekick outside the box! Di canio and the Sunderland Fans were going Mad but the decision stood. Now quite frankly at first i thought that was slightly dubious, but on second thoughts i felt if the referee had blown his whistle in the course of that foul to STOP the play, then the play should have been stopped. I get the argument of others that the advantage should've been allowed but by the whistle already sounding, no play should have continued at all.. Its a tricky one i have to admit and i'll just end that topic by saying we can count ourselves very lucky to have not lost Sagna or found ourselves back to 2-2. Intrestingly enough, in the 76th minute Ramsey popped up brilliantly in the box to slot in a third for us and add salt upon the injury of the hapless home team. The game was up and Sunderland had no fight left in them to comeback.

Post match analysis as expected have centered more on that Ghost goal, but no one can say we weren't deserving of our victory. We were by far the better team and that cannot be argued. The only sad point in the game for me was seeing Giroud on the turf clutching at his knee. We CANNOT afford to lose him now at all. And it is time for the medical staff to earn their wages and ensure our Big french stud is not sidelined. We've already lost Podolski and Sanogo to lose Olivier will be as bad as it can get. So fingers crossed. There's talk of a striker being on his way to us, but it all sounds like tabloid fodder at this point. But we'll see.
 So its the dizzying heights of the top of the league we stand at least until Monday. Hands up if that's where you'd love to see us come May? A little day dream never killed anyone eh? It was a nice bit of work by the Guys and they have now won 7 straight league away matches. You won't need me to tell you that is a fabulous record. I leave it to you to judge where we draw this strength from away from home but as long as it continues you wont hear me complain. Champions league is back in the week and you can be sure i'll be back too.. later  (Follow @tonyskill on Twitter)

Match preview: Sunderland vs Arsenal: There's a Buzz about the place right now

Morning guys. It feels great to be back on the beat after what seems a lifetime since i posted. The international break began on the back of that delicious win over Spurs and since then you'll agree with me things have been quite rosy in camp Arsenal. In that space of two weeks we've climbed back from 17th to a more dignified 4th place,the small matter of Mesut Ozil has happened,and the fans are once again finding a bit of pride talking about the affairs of their darling team. The summer transfer doom and gloom has been put aside at least for the next 4months and instead the collective resolve to give this team the kind of support it needs to succeed has assumed the front burner.

However there will be no Honeymoon for Ozil in this marraige, as he faces the real possibility of being thrown amongst enemy lines at Sunderland this weekend. Ideally the smarter move would be to ease him in via a gradual process (i.e) Sub appearances in this game, then another and then maybe a full start later. But the unfortunate, yet not unexpected knock to Rosicky means that plan is impossible. Wenger would have liked Mesut to watch the game unfold from the bench and use his own game intelligence to do critical analysis of how he can come in and do damage. In any case, quality players will always show their class no matter what and it is my feeling Mesut will be no different. Kanu did it, Pires also, ditto for Overmars, Bergkamp and Henry. All brought from foreign leagues but as soon as they came into english football, they showed their remarkable abilities.

So on to our opponents, Sunderland have had a topsy turvy 2013 by many ramifications. They survived a real relegation scare by the skin of their teeth when fiery manager Di canio replaced Martin o'neal and triggered off an inspiring rennaisance. However this season has begun on a rather less inspiring  note. Two defeats and a draw at  home to Southampton,which was a game they should've won has left the Black cats at the bottom of the table. Di canio has added Borini on-loan from Liverpool and american striker Jozy Altidore to beef up his attack but also surprisingly sold dangerous forward Sessegnon in what was one the shocks of the summer. Confidence definitely isn't high at the stadium of light and few of the fans believe its worth turning up at all as evident from the news that tickets for the game are still available. I am one of those that believe Di canio saved the club from sure relegation which Martin O' neal was certainly leading them to last season. Its not news that he knows how to light fire in the belly of No-hopers to overachieve but even that has its boundaries as seen from their league position this term. However its the EPL, and in this league you can very easily get your pants pulled down if you aren't careful. It will behove on us to go there with the right measure of confidence, respect and attitude to ensure we maintain this good run we are currently in.

Team news shows the cheering revelation that no star player other than Rosicky will be absent, as every one else seems to have come out of their relative national team outings ok. Vermaelen is back in the fold and others are just light knocks away. So we go in to the game in decent shape to bag yet more three points. Here's hoping we can compound Di-canios predicament and cause his hairline to recede evermore lightly. Three points it is and you can be sure this new buzz  around the place will continue. Later

Ambition is priceless

Hey guys, Sorry for the lack of posts the past few days. I know i should've had a match review up for the derby and a post-deadline day round up but i felt a bit under the weather. I still don't feel a 100%  fine but i just had to share my thoughts on what  has transpired at our club since last weekend. So first, how about that win on sunday eh? Brilliant stuff ! I recall writing in my preview before the game how in spite of all our transfer gloom, we still had our aces up our sleeve against them. Yes it was clear they had the better form and arguably the better squad going into the match but we definitely were the more closely knit side without a doubt. This Arsenal team has cultivated a very formidable spirit among itself that not many observers have recognized yet. I believe this spirit is borne out of all those crushing defeats and terrible disappointments of last season.Those experiences toughened these guys up like hell. They've seen it all and now, its almost like they feel they can cope with anything. The Spurs team i saw was exactly like i had expected, individually strong and confident but desperately lacking any sort of established pattern or team cohesion. Chadli, Townsend, Paulinho, and one time Arsenal target Capoue stood out for me as impressive,and may yet be big hits in this league but on Sunday they were always 2nd best. Our team had a resolve. And that resolve was to bring their swashbuckling early season swagger to a halt. My man of the match for Arsenal was Giroud, whom if i'm honest, i'll say i never believed was capable of  scoring a goal of such technical quality. It was almost Van Persie-like (Sorry i had to go there). Such was my amazement that i suddenly felt i owed the Frenchman an apology, for being such a harsh critic of his ever since he joined us. Truly, if that's the kind of goal we can now come to expect from Giroud, then happy days lie ahead for us seriously. It was expertly taken, nothing more to add. Also, whisper it if you must but how about that for a defensive performance?! Its hard to attribute it all to the back four, seeing that it appears the whole team is now alive to a collective defensive responsibility. In addition, this Arsenal team is definitely a smarter unit too. Look at the way we attacked when the score was 0-0 and compare it to the way we switched things up when we were ahead. We resorted to the pattern that worked for us in those final games of last season, which involved soaking pressure resolutely and Counter-punching intelligently. Maybe its down to the fact that this team has more experienced old heads than the days of before, as we now seem to be able to close out games quite efficiently. So we notched up our 2nd win and stand 4th in the league table above United (boom!) in 7th place as we moved into the final 24hrs of the transfer window.

And what a cliffhanger it was. We had all endured a torrid summer that promised much and delivered little. We had just won a hard game against our bitter rivals and were basking in joy, yet everyone needed the club to crown that with a glossy finish to the night with proper signings. Now in my earlier posts when i began this blog 2 months ago in July i broke down positions i felt we needed to strengthen to compete for trophies. i highlighted a goalie,striker,central defender,creative midfielder and Defensive midfielder. In the end the club acquired only 3 out of that list. I won't say i expected we would get all, but at least i felt the Striker,Defensive midfielder and Creative Midfielder were a must. Santi Carzola last season was under too much pressure to create things for us and opponents discovered that if they isolated him, we would struggle.Which is why the purchase of Ozil is not only a fabulous acquisition, its an ambitious one that lets our rivals know we mean business. I don't need to tell you how fantastic he is you probably know that, but he is also the kind of player that can get us back there in the upper echelon of European football with the kind of players he can attract. Real madrid would've wanted to keep him, but their need to freshen things up in their team for the new season was far greater. A classic case of their loss being our gain. Flamini and Emiliano the new keeper were necessary but given the choice, i'd have opted for getting a Top striker over the keeper. We have only one recognized striker in Giroud and though Podolski and Walcott are finishers both cannot lead the lines by themselves like a true center forward can. If heaven forbids Giroud is sidelined, what then? Sanogo? Bendtner??? it brings to the fore the error of not getting Higuain or even David Villa when we had the chance...but having said that, one of our weapons as a team is that everyone is capable of scoring. So here's hoping we get by until January, where i suspect a striker and Ashley Williams will join us ( a little dreaming never killed anyone).

Arsene answered his critics emphatically in terms of the question of our ambition. We smashed our transfer record to pieces to get Mesut Ozil and that shows we are definitely not placing a price on it. Someone said to me that this is the beginning of a new era for Arsenal. whatever that era holds, we cannot allow it to be barren in terms of trophies and undo the massive good this quality addition to our side promises.