Arsenal Out To Make Amends.. We Need A Gerrard.. Essien Disgrace

Arsenal are expected to field a young side for the visit of Group B runners up Ajax, at Highbury tonight.

I expect the electric Quincy, steady Larsson and 'fox in the box' Lupoli to play some part..

The main value of the game may lie in the experience of Champions League football for the younger guys, however it is an opportunity for the players to prove to the fans that Saturday was a one off, that do they have pride and passion required to win things and it means something special to them to wear the Arsenal shirt..

Henry plays, which is a signal of intent from Wenger, that he is serious about winning the game.

As ANR says, expect an energetic and hard working performance culminating in a win and a goal or two from Henry... Cue the resurgence of cautious optimism.

Wenger has finally admitted that we are lacking a bit of physical power after the departure of Vieira. "I'll never say you don't miss a player like Vieira but what's important is to move on and play with the players we have.

"But the natural structure of the team lacks a little bit of physical power.

"We have opted for a very technical side and maybe paid for it a little at Bolton."

It would seem that Wenger knew this in the summer, and had banked on Baptista to give him that power.

Baptista then joined Madrid and although Arsene knew we going to suffer at some point, he is not one to panic buy.. I would hope/assume he has identified a potential target for January, possibly Bodmer, Zokora or Diarra..

Nigel De Jong, Maxwell and Steven Pienaar have all ruled out signing new contracts at Ajax.. Yaya Toure scored twice at the weekend.. There are plenty of potential targets..

Arsenal need a midfield talisman, a Steven Gerrard, who was awesome for Liverpool last night, he epitomises passion and beams with pride.. Gerrard's don't exactly come around that often and it is an easy solution to suggest.. It is obvious we aren't as dynamic in the middle as we have been.. Nevertheless if we want to compete in the major competitions, it needs to be addressed..

A talisman with physical power.. Yes.. A calculated, career threatening habitual fouler.. NO.. Essien should be hauled up in front of UEFA. It was a sickening challenge and that is twice now, both times there can be no defence.. He didn't attempt to play the ball.. Just imagine the furore if that was Vieira..

It is clear we are lacking something, not a major ingredient however and we aren't too far from where we want to be.. I'm sure with a little more motivation and desire we will compensate for it tonight..

Wenger will assess the statistics, and any weakness will be evaluated, and action based upon that.. Statistics do not lie, I agree.. However, what statistic measures pride, passion and desire?