The morning after the night before

*Originally posted 21st April 2011

Well I think we can all agree that as a game of football last nights North London Derby was fantastic, it had pretty much everything you want to see. Unless of course you are an Arsenal fan, in which case it had everything we have come to expect.

 

When the final whistle went I couldn’t decide if I was disappointed to have seen two points slip or if I was glad we had held on to a point and to be honest I am none the wiser this morning.

 

While it is still mathematically possible I can’t say the title race is over, even if I know that it is because this team has given all that it has to give. This is a far as they can go I think.

 

I don’t say that in an attempt to criticise or to be detrimental for the sake of being so. I was asked last night if Arsenal deserve to win the league, the answer to that is a simple no. We don’t have the metal of champions, that ferocity of command and determination. We have great players & we can play some truly outstanding football but for whatever reason it may well be we are missing something, that extra little something.

 

After the game Arsene Wenger said –
“It is not all negative because, after what happened to us on Sunday, to recover and come back with such a spirit, I personally believe that this team has an outstanding personality. Not many teams would have survived what has happened to us recently. For me, the team does not get enough credit. Any team who had been hammered like we have been for two months, I’m not sure everyone would have turned up with such an attitude. I give my team a lot of credit”

 

Personally I can’t agree with him, last night the team performed as it needed to perform, as it always needs to perform. Not because we had a set back in the previous game, not because it was the North London Derby and not because the press and at times the fans have been critical, those things should be little more than an added incentive. The reason for performing with complete determination, a high intensity and a good attitude is because you play for Arsenal Football Club.

 

The reason the team and the players are not given enough credit is because they don’t produce the above on a consistent basis, they are given enough credit for what they achieve.

Want more credit? Achieve more…

 

I think the core of a great team is in place at Arsenal – Szczesny – Sagna – Djourou – Vermaelan – Song – Nasri – Fabregas – Wilshere – Walcott – Van Persie (Hmmm so just a decent left back missing then) and there are decent players who I believe can and will improve – Ramsey – Diaby – Koscielny – Gibbs – Bendtner – Fabianski and if he stays and can have the voodoo curse lifted from him then Andrey Arshavin still has it in him to be a world beater. And aside from the additions that we can all discuss until we are blue in the face, because only one man has power over that and who knows what he’ll do (Most likely not what we would), this side needs to perform at it’s highest level in every single game.

 

That will prove their spirit, that will prove their attitude, that will gain them credit and once they start to compete in that manner in every match, Arsene Wenger can talk about it all he likes but until then he really must change the record, no one else is buying it except maybe the players and that isn’t doing them any favours.

 

Again this is not criticism for the sake of it, I was proud of the performance the players gave last night they worked their socks off and Sagna & Fabregas in particular must come away with distinction.

 

The first two Spurs goals can not be blamed on anyone, the first was a piece of brilliance by Van der Vaart, the second whilst a great strike had an air of good fortune to it, it could have struck VDV square in the spuds but it crept through his legs. I do think Szczesny was at fault for the penalty but I’m not going to blame him for the result or hang him out to dry because he kept us in it with some wonderful saves and has a long career as the Arsenal Number One in front of him.

 

We can argue it may have all been very different had RVP not been wrongly ruled offside but if we start playing that game we’ll be going back to dozens of incidents over the season that were they different we could well be on our way to winning the league by now.

 

On Saturday Manchester United are at home to Everton, Chelsea are at home to West Ham and I can’t see either of the home sides getting anything less than three points. We take on a Bolton side, at the Reebok on Sunday, still smarting from their FA Cup humiliation. There is only one Arsenal side that needs to show up for that game…

 

Thanks for reading.

 

Up The Arsenal!