There are draws, and then there are draws...

Here is a photograph of N'Golo Kante doing a very good impersonation of John Terry's slip against RvP. Or, come to that, Steven Gerrard's considerably more famous slip against Chelsea. This was one of the very few highlights of the away draw at Stamford Bridge; although the way the game finished and the effort on show makes one wonder if this was a watershed for the side? - that remains to be seen.

But I do have two matches to review in this post, having not posted following the Sheffield United game. And the two games do sum up where Arsenal are at the moment. The Sheffield game showed where the team needs to improve, and the Chelsea game shows where it has improved; because I don't see how that result could have come about under Emery.

Against Sheffield United, it was a case of Arsenal failing to turn their dominance into sufficient goals, and succumbing to a late equaliser - shades of the shattering home defeat to Chelsea. And then there was the Pepe penalty incident...

To be honest, I didn't think it was a penalty at the time (many around me did) but having watched it back, and having seen similar incidents this season awarded as penalties (including against Arsenal, I should add) you'd have to be disappointed that it was not awarded. I'm not having any of that Mike Dean nonsense. He's not biased; he's full of self-importance, but he likes to let the game flow and I'd suggest that he's merely inept (many of our referees are; look at the season Martin Atkinson is having!).

So Arsenal weren't far enough ahead, one goal is never comfortable, and they paid the price. Typical, one might say; if just half of these draws had turned into wins, we'd be far better off in the table.

And so to Chelsea. A slow start and very much on the back foot, and then...

Now, Shkodran Mustafi - bear with me here - is not a bad defender. He's strong, good in the air, not slow, and works hard. But boy, is he prone to mistakes!!! It feels like there's a major rick in him every time he goes onto the pitch.

Having watched his recent video, I do have some sympathy with him. Centre halves do get badly punished when they make mistakes. And it's clear that this preys on his mind, as of course does the abuse he gets on social media as a result. Who wouldn't be susceptible to that?  The trouble is that there are just too many mistakes, and as a result of that it seems clear to me and many others that for everybody's sake he should move on. The rarified atmosphere of the Premier League is clearly beyond his abilities; for all that he has a World Cup winner's medal.

And yesterday's mistake cost the team dearly. An awful back pass that exposed both Leno and Luiz, and the inevitable triple threat; penalty, red card, suspension. Chelsea fans had it in for David Luiz from the start of the match - I'm really not sure why - and they simply loved it when he got sent off. One for the team and all that, but a goal down, down to 10 men at Stamford Bridge after just 25 minutes should be the death knell for any side, should it not?

But what we saw from then on was really interesting. Sure, Chelsea failed to capitalise by putting their foot on the Arsenal throat, but we saw a combination of things that really got Arsenal fans' pulses racing.

Firstly, it did seem inevitable that Holding would have to come on; for Martinelli or perhaps Ozil. But Xhaka did such a fine job dropping alongside Mustafi that Arteta felt that he could hold off on that change; as he himself explained it, from a mentality point of view it would have looked defeatist, and could have knocked the side even further. In fact, Arsenal possibly looked better with 10 than they had with 11, as they started pushing Chelsea back.

And they rode their luck, as Chelsea missed several presentable chances to extend their lead. And not long after BT Sport's revelation that Arsenal hadn't had a single attempt in the first hour of the game did the equaliser come. Mustafi's powerful headed clearance from a Willian corner cleared the two Chelsea players on the edge of the Arsenal box, and Martinelli was away. He had loads to do, with Kante to deal with on the half way line, but the Frenchman obligingly fell over and left our boy with a clear run on goal. Chased hard by Emerson, Martinelli held him off comfortably and slotted easily past Kepa. Lovely stuff, and cue pandemonium in the Arsenal end.

Remember, this is still a teenager. And for him it wasn't just about the goal. Stats showed that he put up over double the amount of high intensity sprints than any other player on the pitch; helping Saka out, popping up all over the place, and generally making a bloody nuisance of himself. I did say when Auabameyang got suspended that I was looking forward to seeing him step up, and with two goals in two games he has done that; and more!

And then, following Chelsea's retaking of the lead late on (and for me, Abraham was offside and was interfering with play; the Law is an ass in this case), came Hector Bellerin's late equaliser; curled in with his left foot. Wow! Cue further pandemonium, both in the Arsenal end and in my living room!

And so to other notable performances: Xhaka at centre half, Torreira as per usual, Saka and the returning Bellerin all outstanding, and Leno once more made some crucial saves. And props to the coach, too, who believed in his 10 men and stuck with them, and then once more nailed his post-match interview. We've struck gold with Mikel Arteta.

However, as I alluded to in the very first paragraph, there weren't that many Arsenal highlights throughout the 90 minutes. Yes, they worked hard - bloody hard! - but were on the back foot for long periods, and there were heroes amongst them, but... just two attempts on goal in an entire match?

However, whilst results like the draws against Palace and Sheffield United were ultimately disappointing, I sense that this team is capable of building on this result. Let's hope I'm right. 13 points to 4th would have been insurmountable, but after that 10 looks a hell of a lot closer.

FA Cup next. Come On You Gunners!

When it ain't going for you...

Another Premier League draw for Arsenal, and another game they should probably have won. It's probably my imagination, but do Arsenal get punished more for individual mistakes than most other teams?

Arsenal started the game very strongly. Frankly, they were allowed to as Palace sat too far off of them. And Aubameyang scored a typical lovely goal with a crisp take-on from Lacazette's pass and a trademark finish. And it was only then that Palace woke up, got up the pitch and started pressing - thus making it a much more even game. Once more, it was a pity for Arsenal that they didn't make their early dominance tell enough to score just one more goal.

For me, the game hinged on three key moments; firstly the injury to Torreira that meant that he failed to appear for the second half (he'd been bossing the midfield and stopping Palace from creating anything at all, really), then the tentative attempt at a clearance from David Luiz, who then compounded it by turning his back on a shot that therefore looped crazily off of his outstretched thigh and over the stranded Leno for the equaliser.

And finally the sending off of Aubameyang for a challenge that was merely mistimed and therefore looked far worse than it really was. Yes, a red, but similar challenges (and indeed worse and more premeditated ones; Cresswell's on Pepe springs immediately to mind) have gone less punished throughout this season, despite the availability of VAR.

And so Auba will miss three games - two in the Premier League and the FA Cup tie at Bournemouth. Lacazette will now need to step up, but I'll be excited to see Martinelli starting on the left for at least a while.

And so a much more even game, with both sides having chances to nick the win. Possibly the best of which was Pepe's shot that Guaita fingertipped onto the post (and then was able to smother Lacazette's follow-up). And, as I say, two points dropped.

I know that all football supporters do say that their team doesn't get the rub of the green with refereeing decisions (although if I were a Liverpool fan reading this I'd keep very shtum!), but a piece of work came out on social media over the weekend that suggested that Arsenal have been the biggest  Premier League sufferers so far this season, with up to 9 points the cost of 'dodgy' VAR decisions that might have seen them up into 5th place instead of trailing in 10th. Still, there are plenty of points to play for and with better fitness levels (which aid mental as well as physical conditioning), better game management in general and hopefully the addition of one or two new players this month there are decent targets at which still to aim.

Just going back to the FA Cup game against Leeds on Monday now: I think that most Arsenal fans would agree that the team were fortunate to still be in the game at half-time, as Leeds did everything but score and there were times during the first 45 minutes that a visitor would have not been able to identify Arsenal as the team from a higher division. Fortunately, no chances were taken and following a half-time b*ll*cking from Arteta Arsenal emerged with renewed purpose and entirely bossed the second period. Will they ever learn? I do hope so.

And now a word on Mesut Ozil, whose influence seems to be somewhat waning over the past few games. I believe that we are entitled to expect more from him on a regular basis, and I would hope and suspect that Arteta will be telling him the same thing.

And so we await transfer developments, at the same time hoping that Arteta's message permeates more with the players. Saturday at home to Sheffield United is a Must Win, however; especially as it will be followed by Chelsea away.

And now I must express disappointment that Liverpool's opposition on Saturday evening failed to take the two late and very presentable chances they had to turn the leaders over. Even if it was Tottenham. Liverpool aren't unbeatable, for sure, but the sooner somebody does the business, the happier I'm sure we will all feel.

Veering away from the matter in hand, I should mention that on the NFL front I am a Titans fan, and I'm getting somewhat excited about the possibilities of the team reaching and even winning Superbowl this season. The AFC Championship Game in Kansas City against the explosive Chiefs won't be easy - but then nobody gave them a prayer in Baltimore either. Go King Henry, and Go Titans!

Back next week. Have a good one.

Oh Mikel Arteta!

It has been another interesting week for Arsenal Football Club and its supporters. And for the first time in many months I can report on it optimistically. Not that I'm going to get too carried away by two decent performances and one good result; but this does feel different.

What started solidly but unspectacularly at Bournemouth was followed up by a highly promising - if ultimately disappointing - performance at home to Chelsea, and the new coach and his players built on it with an emphatic win over Manchester United.

We have learned a lot about the Emery era over the past few days, and particularly in this revealing post-match interview with Luiz and Sokratis after the United match https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lk9Bxm5tRdI. And the signs are there that - with proper coaching and a drive towards the sort of progressive football about which Emery talked initially but never achieved - this group of players, plus one or two additions, can start to put Arsenal back where they belong. Certainly, fifth place now looks distinctly possible given current rate of progress, but the ultimate target for this season must be fourth and whilst that's a tall order it's not totally out of the question.

A quick run-through of the three matches follows here:

Bournemouth - signs of things to come, but ultimately not a brilliant start against a rather poor side. Arteta forgiven as he'd had just three training sessions with the players at this point. Goal conceded from trying to play out from the back - this must be improved upon. Aubameyang took his chance clinically.

Chelsea - Arteta's first home game in charge and the portents for what may follow were there to see. The team played with passion, flair and a great deal of determination before tiring badly as the second half went on (this will be addressed, I am sure). An electrifying start during which Chelsea were overrun unfortunately only led to a single goal, and Lampard was forced into an early formation and personnel change to prevent the onslaught continuing.

As it turns out the player he introduced, Jorginho, had a huge influence on the flow of the game, but also controversially as he should have received a second yellow for a challenge identical to one that had seen Torreira booked earlier, and then won the free kick from which he scored with a piece of simulation and a dive of which Tom Daley would have been proud.

And for Chelsea's late winner I counted no less than five Arsenal errors in the 15 seconds between them losing the ball on the edge of the Chelsea area and Abraham's shot hitting the back of the net. Grrrr... but old habits do, unfortunately, die hard. It was the backing off (for over 50 yards!) that was the biggest issue here (take a bow, Shkodran Mustafi).

Manchester United - well, even allowing for the fact that the opposition were one-dimensional and generally poor all over the pitch, Arsenal totally dominated; and this by showing an attitude and commitment that we haven't seen for years. I cannot think of a single player who didn't have at least an 8 out of 10 game and after just three games under Arteta I feel that we can be pretty optimistic for the future.

What was great to see was the transformation - in just three games - of the likes of Ozil, Xhaka and Pepe. Here were players who have been underperforming for months completely transformed by a new message. Long may it continue.

I think that if I wanted to sum up what Arteta has achieved (in just two weeks) it is to reverse pretty much everything that had been going on before; all the stuff that was leading to poor performances and results, and leading to toxicity amongst the squad and between Club and supporters. To sum these up:

1.  Considerably better organisation all over the pitch. Pressing as a unit (very much in the style of Liverpool and Manchester City) and no gaping holes in central midfield

2.  An entirely different attitude being displayed. Players working as a cohesive unit, to a plan. Body language transformed. Discipline there for all to see

3.  Key individuals playing in their best positions (hardly rocket science, one would have thought) and what I've been saying for months; if you're going to play Ozil, make him central to what you're trying to do

4.  Rotating central midfielders and full backs in order to create space and give more time on the ball. Has made a big difference to Xhaka for one

5.  A personal touch with the players. Examining what makes each one tick and starting to get stuff out of them that the previous encumbent could not. I like what I'm seeing, especially the transformation in Mesut Ozil

And the fans have bought in. Immediately. The atmosphere in the ground has been transformed, and players who were talking about wanting to leave to further their careers are changing their minds. This is down to the message Arteta is giving out; and as I say, this feels entirely different.

It doesn't feel like a simple New Manager Bounce; it feels like something much more. But we need to see this built on, with perhaps a couple of new players introduced this month.

Next up is an FA Cup encounter with Leeds United. Perhaps Thierry Henry could pop back for this one? After that, we'll be able to judge progress in matches with Chelsea later this month, and Manchester City on March 1st.

I was obviously very upset to see Harry Kane get injured over the weekend, by the way (although it's difficult to convey irony in writing...). But in the meantime, I'm starting to get quite agitated. Will somebody PLEASE beat Liverpool?!?!?