Arsenal Make Heavy Weather Of It in Manchester

Old Trafford was bathed in sunshine for the visit of Arsenal. 'Arsenal Weather', as my dearly-missed father used to describe it; although to be fair he described all weather as Arsenal Weather... and Arsenal were rocking up for what on paper looked like a pretty simple task. United's Monday night thrashing at the hands of Crystal Palace suggested that they were in disarray, and the continued absence of Old Weasel Face Bruno Fernandes, and of a single centre-back who was more than half-fit, all added up to what we hoped would be a relaxing afternoon.

Sure, with a win an absolute necessity, there was pressure. And that place doesn't hold too many fond memories; I recall two absolute thrashings (8-2 and 6-1), and that appallingly refereed game that stopped The Invincibles unbeaten run in its tracks. Although there were also 1998 and 2002, of course...  but that's history, and Arsenal had big fish to fry in May 2024.

Another unchanged squad from Arteta, whilst United had McTominay back, but again selected Casemiro at centre-half. To his and their cost, as we know... and for the first few minutes Arsenal were camped in United's left back corner of the pitch and looked likely to utterly dominate proceedings.

United finally got out of that corner, and as Arsenal retrieved the ball following the home side's first foray at goal Thomas Partey turned into trouble. And for me - and this was in just the 5th minute - this seemed to change the way the game played out. It was clear that, for a change, Ten Hag had actually thought about tactics. A different set up, block and press and - until Arsenal scored - a reasonable amount of discipline that stopped Arsenal from doing their best work by cutting off many of their favourite passing channels. 

Odegaard and - particularly - Rice were stifled. There was space wide out but it wasn't really exploited. Partey looked leggy in the face of pacy counter attacks. On the whole, not a brilliant performance. But there were two keys. Firstly, Arsenal got their goal; as early as the 20th minute. And secondly for all their huffing and puffing United rarely looked particularly dangerous - Hojlund had an early chance, and Garnacho very much flattered to deceive. Gary Neville, the most biased of pundits, correctly pointed out that he often doesn't know what he's trying to do, so how can his team-mates? 

Yes, it was tense. But it was only tense because the lead was a single goal, and just one slip could have been fatal. It did feel that the only way United would score would be down to an individual Arsenal error, because they created very little. The Arsenal centre-halves almost always looked comfortable.

And so to the crucial goal. And you've of course all seen what happened. Intelligent play from all the Arsenal 'pressers' forced Onana, for once, to go longer than he wanted, as passing channels were blocked off. Casemiro never recovered from having to drop very deep from the previous phase of play, and never got out in time. White's clip over the top found Havertz, who had taken up a position that under almost any other circumstances would have been well offside. He then drove into the penalty area, where Casemiro made a second mistake by not covering the near post, Wan-Bissaka failed to see Trossard's clever dart inside, and Trossard did what Trossard does. This was intelligent off-the-cuff play from Arsenal, taking advantage of a scenario that could hardly have been envisaged. And it proved crucial to where the points ended up.

At the other end, my main concern was the amount of possession that United were afforded. But looking back I personally believe that we fans were probably more concerned about that than the Arsenal players were. They let United have the ball, knowing that they really didn't have the wherewithal to do anything constructive with it. Just the odd flash of danger, mostly centred around Garnacho, but Raya was rarely tested and Saliba made one awesome tackle at one point, as you'll recall.

I must admit to pacing around my lounge as injury time started. But in truth United had very little to offer, did they? Perhaps after their previous result the almost felt relieved to escape with a 0-1 defeat, and not get the thrashing that Arsenal could have given them?

The match, of course, ended in 'heavy weather' as a massive storm hit Manchester. Ten Hag's ludicrous linen suit was surely ruined,as biblical rain hit Old Trafford. All of which would have been of great interest to Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who could see at first hand how much disrepair the ground has fallen into. I'm aware that Emirates Stadium has had its own roof issues over the past few years, but this was something else. Water pouring off the roof and forming streams in the lower tier, and by all accounts a number of leaks sprung up in the away dressing room. What with the state of the playing squad, the ground and the training facilities, there's a massive job required to start to return United to former glories. If there's any proof as to the damage the Glazer family has done to that club, those images of veritable waterfalls summed it all up.

Still, that's hardly out problem, is it? Our main problem is mathematical. Manchester City can guarantee the title with two more victories. Away to Tottenham this evening (as I type, we're hours away from that), and then a simple home game against West Ham United.

And it's all a bit complicated; psychologically at least. City have failed to register a single goal at Spurs' new ground in 4 PL attempts (admittedly against Mourinho and Conte sides; this Tottenham side will be set up completely differently). But there must surely be something in that for Guardiola and his players to overcome? On the other hand, they are a much better side than Tottenham, so they can probably only beat themselves. Still, the longer the game goes on without a City goal, the tenser they'll become.

From Tottenham's point of view, Villa's result on Monday means that they need two wins in order to have any chance of qualifying for the Champions League, so they have to try to win the game. Villa have a very tricky final game, and the gap is 5 points. The fans may hate the thought of it, though. Spurs beating, or even getting a draw, would probably hand the title to Arsenal. I honestly don't believe that this will have much effect on the players, and the supporters should, frankly, grow up and worry about their team's progress above and beyond anything else.

As for West Ham; if it comes down to Sunday we can forget it. They are as 'on the beach' as any PL club can be. Everton, our last day opponents, will be trickier opposition - they have 5 successive clean sheets behind them. But if Arsenal need to beat them to win the title, I'm sure they will. 

Meantime, let's hope for a miracle. So it's COYG, and (one time only) COYS!

We Got Him Half Price!

Not without some hint of jeopardy - something that the final 3-0 scoreline wouldn’t necessarily suggest - Arsenal took the required three points at home to Bournemouth on Saturday lunchtime. Thankfully, there weren’t quite the theatrics of Reiss Nelson’s 97th-minute winner the previous season, but there were plenty of moments of concern along the way - and not a small amount of ‘the rub of the green’ going Arsenal’s way. Still, as I’ve said before and I’m sure we’ll all agree, the three points is all that matters.

So, to nobody’s surprise, Arteta selected an unchanged starting XI (and bench) to the one he put out in the NLD. A week between matches certainly helps - I’m not sure that the current squad could have coped with a midweek CL semi final with Real Madrid sandwiched around this game, and I’m also sure that it would have helped Arsenal’s cause had Manchester City beaten them and found themselves embroiled in a two-legged semi-final instead. Both sides exiting at the same stage - well, I suppose that keeps it a level playing field (on the field, at least)…

Arsenal absolutely dominated the first half. 16 shots to one. Most saved; or blocked. But, as the half wore on, more and more nerves became evident in the crowd. It felt like only a matter of time before Arsenal took the lead, but the longer the deadlock continued, the more the feeling of jeopardy grew. Certainly in block 17, anyway.

The second most controversial moment of the first half took place as early as the 11th minute. Ryan Christie went in hard and high, studs up and with outstretched boot, on Bukayo Saka. See below for images. Result - barely looked at by the referee or VAR, and not even a yellow card. So if Bournemouth have any complaints about later decisions, perhaps they should consider that they ought to have played 80+ minutes with 10 men... a horrendous assault.

When Arsenal finally took the lead close to half time, there was more than a hint of controversy about that too. Havertz, bursting into the penalty area to meet Odegaard’s incisive (aren't they always?) through ball, appeared to be brought down by Travers in the Bournemouth goal. Penalty? Yes, but… and for those who read this blog regularly you’ll know how I feel about ‘initiating contact’. He'd unquestionably dragged his left leg in the keeper’s path in order to initiate contact with him. 

This is what I wrote subsequently on one of the WhatsApp groups I’m in (a group over-populated with Spurs fans, by the way):

“I’ve now watched it back and seen all the angles. Yes, he left his leg there purely to initiate contact. But the way the Law is written he’s allowed to do that. Kulu and Trossard last week was a different scenario - an accidental coming together. Contact was made; but by neither player’s design. 

The problem is the Law. The Law is an ass. That’s why I NEVER give penalties when I’m refereeing and a forward initiates contact - even though I probably should according to the letter of the Law. Because I HATE that Law! It ought to be changed. But as the Law is written it’s a penalty.”

So yes; it was a correctly awarded penalty. Because that’s what the Law says. But it’s not at all fair on the goalkeeper. And the Law needs to change; as much as the handball Law still needs to, by the way (remember the penalty conceded by Saliba at Stamford Bridge? Ludicrous).

Anyway, at this stage of the season, we were obviously going to take it. And, whilst it wasn’t his best penalty ever, Saka buried the kick; much to everyone’s relief.

Bournemouth came out with renewed intent in the second half, preventing Arsenal from exercising the control that the score line required . And whilst they hardly created a chance they certainly kept Arsenal on their toes, with the game resembling a basketball game at times. More jeopardy; and they’re a decent side in good form. 

It wasn’t until Arsenal’s second goal that the crowd could start to relax. Yet another opportunity expertly taken by Trossard; but really the product of the anticipation, strength, vision and athleticism of Declan Rice. The guy’s an absolute powerhouse - more of which later when I discuss the third Arsenal goal.

There was, of course, a further moment of controversy when Bournemouth had a goal chalked off. A bit of pinball in the Arsenal box, including one shot that rattled the crossbar, saw two concurrent fouls take place. One saw Saliba drag Billing down; at exactly the same time as Solanke eased Raya off the ball. What an American Football referee would describe as ‘offsetting fouls’, I guess. But in ‘soccer’ the goalkeeper is a protected species - a perceived foul on the keeper is more harshly judged than one on an outfield player. Rightly or wrongly, anyway… and so Coote blew his whistle, the goal was disallowed, and there was no way that the VAR was going to over-rule that. Another stroke of luck for The Arsenal, I should say, as there wasn't much in the challenge. Although he did prevent Raya from getting a punch on the ball, with his hand on his back (and perhaps even under his armpit); and that's why it's a foul.

From then on the match was as good as over with (although I did get into trouble from some around me when I proclaimed that it was 'done and dusted' in the 81st minute). We nonetheless still had time for a couple of treats. Firstly, Gabriel's sweetly hit cross-shot volley found the back of the net, only for it to be ruled out for a marginal offside on Kai Havertz. A great pity, as it was a thing of beauty. 

And very late into stoppage time came the final full stop on the game as Rice made it three. But that doesn't tell the story, by any means. Arsenal retrieved a loose ball deep in their own half; and at that point Rice was around 25 yards from his own goal. As the play progressed down the right - the ball making its way up to Jesus in the right 8 position - Rice speeded up from a gentle trot to a sprint, flashed into the penalty area, signalled to Jesus where he wanted the ball played, rounded his defender, and then hammered a cross shot underneath the goalkeeper. In the 97th minute, and with the result already long settled! Remarkable.

Which sums the man up. He's on the go from start to finish, playing with the same intensity from minute 1 to minute 100. He reads the play, tackling and intercepting. He carries the ball forward in 10 to 20 yard bursts. He has a vast array of passing skills. He is one of the rocks upon which this incredible Arsenal team is built. If anything can be called a bargain at £105million, it's him. As the crowd sang lustily: 'Declan Rice - we got him half price!'

Of course, Rice can only have the freedom to be as attacking a midfielder as he can be in this role depending on what's behind him - even though I'd probably say that the number 6 role is his best position, and he's still learning how to play as an 8. He gets the cover he needs from Jorginho, but he gets it in Spades from Partey (who I discussed in my last piece).

And at this point it's perhaps worth diving into the decisions that are going to have to be made regarding Arsenal's midfield next season. Because for all that Partey adds something Jorginho does not have - that willingness and ability to drop a shoulder, turn out of trouble and beat the press, and then find Havertz or Odegaard - there is a similar element of 'risk and reward' as there is when Zinchenko plays. With Partey, we saw that very early on in the NLD, when he was robbed from behind after just a few minutes, but  that time Arsenal escaped with no damage done. 

Does Arteta want to go down the 'control' route, or go for something more daring; more maverick? Plus, of course, the big question is whether he can rely on Partey's fitness - on all known evidence, he cannot. Big decisions there. But, back to Rice; he can be as good a player as Patrick Vieira or Steven Gerrard going forward, and we should be delighted that Arsenal pushed the boat out to £105million. One only has to reflect on David Moyes' words about the reason why West Ham have taken a few hammerings (unintended pun) this season. No Declan Rice leaves a big, big hole.  Rice can be a focal point of this young side for many years to come.

And so, with City also winning - against a Wolves side who looked like they were already on holiday - the percentages are less and less in Arsenal's favour. They've got Fulham away, Spurs away, and finally West Ham at home. The latter two sides lost 4-2 and 5-0 at the weekend. They're also the only two teams that Fulham have beaten in the past two months. We're counting on a miracle now, to be realistic. Nonetheless, if Arsenal manage 49 points out of 54 in 2024 and still fall short, you just have to hold up your hands. I said two months ago that there was no margin for error; and I've unfortunately been proved right. So far... and goal difference is highly unlikely to go against Arsenal at this stage.

I'd expect Arsenal to do the business themselves in their final two games. For all that Spurs have some sort of 'Indian sign' over City - no goals scored by the latter at The New Toilet Bowl in 4 PL visits - form tells us something else. Spurs have now lost 4 successive matches, and seem powerless to stop the rot. Arsenal, on the other hand, might under normal circumstances treat an impending visit to OT with trepidation. But United are in complete disarray. They've got a load of injuries, and a single half-fit centre-half available (Casemiro is a disaster in that role). They look badly coached, and bereft of any structure or confidence. Without the injured Bruno Fernandes, they have literally nothing to offer going forward; as well as being unable to defend. They're an abolute Sh*tsho*w..Arsenal are assuredly going to tear them apart, and put another nail in the Ten Haag coffin, on Sunday afternoon.

But we'll stick to the 'one step at a time' scenario. Come On You Gunners, and Come on Fulham; you owe us a favour. Where there's life, there's hope...

Riding The Derby Roller Coaster

Well. Well. Well. That was quite an experience, was it not? Mixed emotions during the game, and still plenty of the same the next day. But all that matters at the end of the day is the result. And the three points, of course. 

Tottenham Hotspur 2, Arsenal 3. North London is Red. Happy St Totteringham’s Day to you!

Lots to unpack. Let’s get right into it: Arsenal were unchanged from Tuesday’s romp over Chelsea. Tottenham, by contrast, had had a full two weeks of rest - Arsenal had played no less than 4 times in that period - but, Big Ange, you picked what for me looked like the wrong team, mate. 

Davies was never likely to be able to keep up with Saka for 90 minutes. For all his flaws, I was expecting Emerson Royal at left back. He has pace, at least. Plus what you need against Arsenal is legs in midfield, because Arsenal’s midfielders don’t stop running. So the choice of Hojbjerg baffled me. Bissouma or Sarr, surely? And finally. I’d have started Richarlison; for all that he wasn’t likely to last the game. Surely Ange would have seen the need to try to upset the equilibrium of Arsenal's formidable centre half partnership? Oh well…

The concern for me was that Spurs were fresh, whilst Arsenal were likely to be jaded; both physically and mentally. Relatively, at least. The way the first half went - apart from the scoreline - seemed to illustrate that to me. Spurred on by the rabid masses of orcs in the stands, Spurs came out of the traps pretty hard, and were unlucky not to be ahead by the time Arsenal took the lead from Hojbjerg’s inadvertent flick from Saka’s near post corner. 

It had made for mostly quite uncomfortable viewing up to then, with Arsenal sitting in a deep and narrow block as they had at The Etihad, and continued to do so until Saka’s breakaway goal - selling Davies a massive dummy on the way - from Kai Havertz’s raking crossfield delivery. 

Spurs could perhaps have had a penalty a mere 10 seconds prior, and even before then had had an equalising goal chalked off (rightly, but it was incredibly tight) for offside.

3-0 at half time, as King Kai headed home unchallenged - this time from a corner from the other side; delivered with pinpoint accuracy by Declan Rice. Marking? Non-existent. Arsenal were in dreamland; strutting their stuff - I certainly was from the comfort of my sofa at home - and made all the more enjoyable because it felt so unjust on Spurs. 

And certainly to these three Neanderthals, whose abuse of Rice as he went to take the corner got its just desserts. The guy in the Spurs shirt was seen leaving the ground seconds later.

Look, I’ve got no desire to offer them any sympathy. At that point, they’d failed to take any of three decent chances, and none of their penalty appeals felt quite right.  But whilst they are undoubtedly a decent side going forward, their defending leaves a hell of a lot to be desired. Sheer naivety at set pieces exposed them twice - they appear to have paid no attention whatsoever to Arsenal’s brilliant corner routines - and to leave a keeper already known to be flaky on crosses alone to deal with Ben White was frankly negligent. I especially enjoyed watching White un-velcro one of the keeper’s gloves prior to one corner; he's the absolute King of Sh*thousery. And for all that they can probably get away with asking the unbelievably swift Van Der Ven to sweep up their messes, they simply need to be smarter all round.

At 3-0, I was supremely confident that Arsenal would see the game out professionally and with little difficulty. How wrong could I have been?!? And perhaps it remained too easy as the second half wore on, as what was surely a loss of concentration from David Raya led to Romero - who had a terrific game, by the way; channelling his aggression properly for a change - firing the ball past him to reduce the deficit on 64 minutes. I can really offer no explanation for Raya’s lapse but, however you dress it up, trying to chip the ball over two onrushing attackers into the very centre of midfield with one’s weaker foot was not a bright idea. There was simply no need for it.

And that, of course, gave them hope where there had been none. The momentum shifted. All of a sudden Arsenal’s 4 games in a fortnight looked to be starting to catch up with them, as they dropped back into ultra-defensive mode and relying on breakaways - all snuffed out by VDV of course. Mentally and physically, those fixtures looked to be taking a toll; for all that they stayed resilient. 

The introduction of the lunatic Richarlison had by this time added momentum to the Spurs attack, as he launched himself around the pitch like an enraged bleach-blond bull. Fortunate, indeed, not to see red for one totally reckless and unnecessary challenge on his compatriot Gabriel. But he really stirred things up, and Spurs drove on relentlessly. But, of course, it was all so unnecessary, Senor Raya!

And Spurs got further reward when Rice’s somewhat unintentional kick through Davies on the edge of the box - he didn’t know that he was there; but that’s a foul all day - gave Spurs an 87th minute penalty. Quite how Michael Oliver, standing two yards away, failed to give it in real time is hard to fathom, but it took just one look at the VAR screen for him to award it. Son’s finish was clinical. Kane-like.

Which left three minutes, plus whatever injury time was left (a further 6 minutes, during which my heart rate went over 120bpm!), for Arsenal to hang on in the face of a barrage. Thanks mainly to Raya’s command of his area, they managed to do so. And to give him his due he showed real personality not to shrink into his shell following his error - he really stood up to be counted, and showed great strength of character where others may have melted. He's not the tallest of goalkeepers by any means, but he dealt with cross after cross after cross with aplomb.

And so it was that what had looked like a stroll in the park - a procession, in fact- had turned into something else entirely. And it was more with relief that any other emotion that the players were able to go and salute the fans. I’ve said it before, and I reckon I’ll say it again; results are the only thing that really matter at this stage of the season. And if Tottenham and their fans feel hard done by, that’s merely the delicious icing on the chocolate cake of success. The table does not lie.

A word for a few individuals now: firstly, Kai Havertz who had as good a game in a red shirt as we’ve seen. He led the line superbly, occupying the central defenders, dropping deep to link up with the midfield and making telling run after telling run. Plus yet another goal (Waka Waka) and the assist for Saka. 

This was a player, remember, who we were struggling to understand at the beginning of the season. But his stats are suddenly looking very decent; that’s now 12/6 PL goals/assists this season, of which 8/5 have come since February 17th. A remarkable streak, and he has been transformative.

Secondly, Bukayo Saka. Starboy has frankly been looking a little jaded over the past few weeks - Arteta rarely gives him a break - but there have been signs of life over the past couple of games and here he was back to his best. He tormented Davies all afternoon, worked hard out of possession, and got a goal and assist to boot. 

And finally, Gabriel. Another really strong and influential performance from the big Brazilian. Where Saliba’s performances have perhaps plateaued recently, Big Gabi has really stepped it up. I remember worrying early on in his Arsenal career that he was a little clumsy, and often had a mistake or a crucial piece of poor distribution in him. No longer; indeed not for a long time now. He’s an absolute colossus, and had another superb game.

Another three points, then, but with City also winning it’s ‘as you were’ at the top. Three games left for the Gunners, and we need not only to win them all but for City to somehow not win all of theirs. Quite what it will mean for this group to end up with 89 points and it still not be enough, I’m not sure. It’ll hurt us fans; so goodness knows what it will mean for the players to come even closer than last season, but to again fall just short. 

But let’s remain optimistic. We need to rely on others - wouldn’t it be hysterically funny if Tottenham, needing to beat them to qualify for the Champions League, do a job on them (they are unquantifiably City’s bogey side) in their penultimate game. We’re all Spurs that night, for sure!

So we move on. Bournemouth at home on Saturday lunchtime. Remember the scenes last season?

I’d hope for something more comfortable this year. But one step at a time. In the interim, let's bask in St Tott's Day.

COYG!

Thomas Comes To The Partey

Merciless Arsenal blew Chelsea away last night in a dominant performance that put their opponents firmly in their place; and put Liverpool and Manchester City on notice that Arsenal are not going away quietly. 

5-0 frankly understated the difference in class between a rampant Arsenal side, who have rediscovered their mojo following a difficult week, and a Chelsea side who, despite having spent obscene amounts of money over the past year or so, look many years away from being able to challenge for honours once more. But compare and contrast their FA Cup semi-final performance against Manchester City over the weekend - when they can probably count themselves as unlucky not to have gone through - to the manner in which Arsenal blew them away. And that surely cannot all be done to the fortuitous loss of Cole Palmer - by far away their best player - for this game due to illness.

Martin Odegaard will take most of the headlines. He produced a standout performance, leading by example; not merely showcasing his sublime skills and effortlessly linking the play, but once more leading the press, and constantly probing and pressing for weak spots in the Chelsea back line. Declan Rice, playing in the left 8 role, put in a typical ‘mere’ 8 out of 10 performance, but I’d like to specifically highlight the return of Thomas Partey to the starting XI and the fillip it gave to his team-mates.

The Ghanaian had looked a little off the pace in the few cameo performances that he’d been allowed by Mikel Arteta since his belated return from injury, but it was worth the wait. The perfect time for Arteta to drop him back in. He was everywhere - reading the play, putting in decisive tackles, making telling interceptions and producing his trademark vertical passes to the front 5. I’ve got nothing whatsoever against Jorginho, who can always been relied upon, but for me a fit and firing Partey adds an extra dimension to Arsenal’s play, and his return could not be more timely. 

I’d mentioned in this blog a number of times earlier this season how much I had been looking forward to seeing a midfield trio of Partey, Rice and Odegaard in unison. For me, the security that Partey’s presence gives will enable both Rice and Odegaard to express themselves fully. The trio made the Chelsea midfield of Enzo, Caicedo and Gallagher - the first two named having cost Chelsea almost a quarter of a billion pounds in total! - look second rate. I had felt that Partey could give Arsenal an extra dimension, and the proof that I was correct was right there in front of our eyes.

Elsewhere, I’ll pick out a few other top performances. Leandro Trossard kept his starting spot over both Jesus and Martinelli, and did Trossard things; namely scoring yet again! That’s 10 in the league now. An early goal is always good for the nerves, of course. 

  

Ben White had a superb game, not only doing well in defence, but continually supporting Odegaard and Saka and reaping his rewards with not just one, but two goals! The first a clever finish having made space for himself following a corner and the second… well, he’ll probably admit that he didn’t mean to find the far corner of the net with a lobbed effort; but who gives a monkey’s?

And Kai Havertz showed Chelsea what a happy and trusted Kai Havertz is capable of; leading the line well, linking with all around him and scoring two lovely goals. The first courtesy of a sublime through ball from Martin Odegaard (although he still had plenty to do) and the second following a clever wrong-footing of his marker before doing the same to the goalkeeper.

 

I love, by the way, that the official Chelsea Twitter feed couldn’t bring themselves to type the word ‘Havertz’. Salty…

I am, however, also going to have to point out a few things that didn’t go perfectly. It wasn’t all plain sailing. Firstly, after their fast start - when they ought to have already been out of sight at 2-0 or even 3-0 - Arsenal did let Chelsea back into the game for a while. Decent chances - better than half chances in fact - fell to Disasi and Jackson (twice). However, as any follower of the Premier League knows, Jackson couldn’t hit a cow’s arse with a banjo (so to speak). A winger who Poch has tried to convert to a centre forward; and it certainty hasn’t shown much sign of working so far. That Jackson was still on the field following a nasty challenge on Tomiyasu is something to ask the VAR, though.

Secondly, the afore-mentioned Jackson did at one point completely outpace William Saliba. Which was/is a concern. This is something we’re not used to seeing, and I for one don’t want to ever see it again. Fortunately, Gabriel dealt with the danger… just about. 

And as far as any other concerns we may have had… well, there weren’t any. A fast start to the second half soon put Arsenal - 1-0 ahead at the break - out of sight. Chelsea had no answer whatsoever, frankly looked to have given up any sort of hope at 2-0, and at the end 5-0 almost flattered them. I think that we were all aware that they’re not very good, but there’s always that nagging doubt prior to any game. Thankfully, we could soon relax and stop worrying.

The matches are coming thick and fast now. Liverpool and City still to play in this round of matches as I type, but now 3 and 4 points behind respectively. So the pressure is sure to be on them. It’s always better to play first. 

But Arsenal’s biggest remaining test comes at 2pm on Sunday. Yes, it’s the NLD. Tons at stake - even apart from the usual. Both sides are desperate for the points, and that lot are still holding out hopes of finishing fourth. And they’re desperate, of course. to stop Arsenal in their tracks.

At least two Spurs fans of my acquaintance are expecting us to ‘murder’ them. I hope they’re right, but I don’t share their confidence. Nonetheless, having gone into the Wolves game unhappy and having to dig out a result, then having followed that up with this emphatic victory, morale in the camp is surely as high as it can possibly be. For all that, it really is ‘squeaky bum time’, and not only is there still no room for error but we still need to see City slip up. 

All Arsenal can do is win, win, and win again. Starting at the home of The Enemy. Can they do it? Of course they can! But it’s going to be a nerve-wracking few days before we find out. 

Udogie’s absence will help - especially as that’s down our strong right hand side. But they’ll be well-rested; something that cannot be said for Arsenal, who have played three times since they last did. 

Let’s hope that Arsenal can end their season once and for all, and that the fans can celebrate St Totteringham’s Day at their place.

COYG!