Porto, The Emirates, Wenger's decade, Gallas

So in the end a comfortable win against Porto who looked good in possession but lacked any real penetration.

A first half headed goal from Henry (thanks to a brilliant cross from Eboue, who has apparently been working on them in training) and an economic finish just after the re-start from Hleb (after more good work from Gallas and Henry) was enough to kill the game as a contest and ensure a fourth win on the trot, 3 more points and top spot in group G.

We played very well in patches and are really starting to use the flanks well, having the ability to cross the ball is excellent as not only does it give you that very option, it affords more chance of space opening up inside as the defender feels more inclined to close down to stop the cross. Basically we are playing excellent football and adapting well to our new surroundings which is crucial.

We are finding our feet in the new stadium and have ensured that our first win has not become an issue as we haven't allowed it to be. It's onwards and upwards and Tuesday showed that we can really hit the heights again.

We mixed it up really well and it was an attractive game to watch and I thought we fully deserved the win.

Le Boss celebrates his 10th year anniversary today and I for one Arsene salute you! What an absolutely massive impact he has had, not only on Arsenal, but on football in this country. Developing players like Bergkamp and Henry has really help to improve the quality of football in the legue. For a period just before and during the unbeaten run we were playing, in my humble opinion, the best football this country has ever seen.

Without being dramatic he has brought so much to the game it would be unfair to try and summise it in a media friendly sound bite. A great coach and a gentleman.

The news for Saturday is that if Djourou is not fit (having a fitness test tomorrow) then Alex Song, who has improved greatly over the last few months by all accounts, or Gilberto will deputise in defence.

However all is not as bad as it would appear. Gallas' hamstring injury appears to be a strain rather than a pull and so Charlton is the only game he should miss for the Arsenal which is promising news as he given us something extra and helped instill much needed belief in the side.

Full backs integral to home success

Arsenal showed good patience and gave a strong defensive display to dispatch Sheffield United 3-0 for our first win at the Emirates.

Lets be honest, Sheffield United are going to get relegated. They came for a point and as soon as we scored first that dream was over.

Why do relegation threatened teams try and frustrate from the start of the season? They would probably be better off trying to win, as 1 time in 3 away from home it might come off, confidence might come and they might actually improve as a team. The manager setting up a team to get a 0-0 is like saying

'They are much better than you, the best we hope for is to get a lucky point if our keeper plays well and they have an off day'. Anyway..

Gallas scored first from an Henry pass and Fabregas lay off, Henry scored a headed third and crossed for a horribly sliced own goal in between.

What was noticable was our obvious attempts to use the width of the pitch. Ljungberg, Gallas and Eboue were trying to stay on the touchlines which was encouraging as at least it gives us another option, even if we will insist on come inside more often than not.

The full backs have a huge responsibility. Especially at home. Eboue and Gallas were instrumental, each having 2 or 3 efforts on goal (Eboue has had the most shots of any Arsenal player this season) and helped us keep balance in the midfield. Gallas got the opener and Eboue crossed for Henry to head the second.

Clichy, a naturally left footed player will aid that even more, although Gallas is doing an admirable job at present. We saw how effective a left side of Cole - Pires - Henry could be but that one left sided player is important as he allows the winger the freedom to go inside or stay wide by holding his position on the touchline.

Away from home it isn't such an issue as teams are liable to attack more and afford us more space in doing so meaning there is more space for our own midfield and forwards in central areas. That is why the 4-5-1 works so well for us.

The substitutions of Ljungberg, Adebayor and Rosicky for Baptista, Hleb and Van Persie show the quality we have in depth. Plus we have Senderos, Clichy, Lauren and Diaby coming back.

It'll take time to get used to a slight change in style but the signs are positive.

Porto at the Emirates tomorrow night. I wonder if Arsene will give a game to Van Persie and Hleb seeing as they were rested for Saturday? Baptista to figure?

Porto are a dangerous side and as we know the mentality in the ECL is slightly different from a league match. With an away win in the first game I wouldn't expect us to go attacking too hard too early, as a 0-0 draw would suit both teams (arguably them more than us) at this stage of the group.

Development and new signings mean Arsenal have strength in depth

It has become evident that getting rid of Cole and Reyes has had a very positive impact on the current squad.

Reyes and Cole were clearly not good for team moral. Now we have Gallas and Baptista, 2 experienced players that add steel to the team and are keen to prove a point.

We have looked focused and determined in the last 2 games, which have yielded 2 away wins, 2 confident performances and 6 much needed points.

The nature of the victories ensures confidence will be improved and the belief in the squad is back. Arsene will be telling the players 'Chelsea are not as strong as last season, they will drop more points, they won't take 6 points off of us for a start, we have already beaten Utd, Liverpool are still short of goals and so if we stay focused we can win this.'

We have an excellent young squad and with the signings of Baptista, Gallas, Rosicky and Denilson we have added quality to the squad. The more games they play the better they will become. Rosicky is already looking an important player.

Losing Dennis Bergkamp if you include last season as he didn't play many games, had a far bigger impact than losing Vieira. Bergkamp made Arsenal tick, he embodied how Arsene wanted us to play.

Arsene has tried to replace Bergkamp but not directly, he has done it with Rosicky and Fabregas. Both are able to dictate the tempo just as Bergkamp did in his prime.

It will take at least 2 months for Arsenal to start firing. By that time Lauren, Clichy, Diaby and Senderos will be nearing full fitness and Walcott will be that much fitter. Thats 4 experienced, potential first team players and a raw talent, an unknown quantity, to integrate back into the squad.

Baptista is another good signing. I think he will eventually replace Gilberto, we will line up with Fabregas and Baptista in the middle, Baptistas' sheer physical power, directness and dynamism balanced with Fabregas' quality on the ball, passing ability and unique football brain.

Add into this the development of the younger players in the squad such as Djourou who has impressed me for a 19 year old centre half, Diaby, Clichy, Adebayor, Eboue, Flamini who all have the necessary quality to improve and we suddenly have strength in depth and 2 quality players for each position.

If you think about the unbeaten season the team can develop to function as well, not to go unbeaten itself as a large amount of sustained fortune is required, but to constantly challenge for the Championship.

The nucleus is there, development is key.

Rosicky and Fabregas outfox Utd

What a performance, what a victory. A football lesson by Arsenal.

A 5 man midfield with Gilberto holding and Rosicky in the middle. I was confident. Don't get me wrong, I would have taken a draw before the game, but for some reason I had a feeling about this one.

Then sky proceeded to say Arsenal were playing a 4-4-2 with Ljungberg up front playing behind Adebayor. Bayern Munich, away in the Champions league 2 seasons ago, Ljungberg was awful, he is not a support striker.

Suddenly the optimism I had before the game slowly ebbed away when the game started after what seemed an age.

However we started well and stamped our authority on the match early on. Ljungberg settled in on the left of a 5 man midfield and Rosicky playing centrally. Fabregas and Roskicy took John O' Shea and Scholes apart with their movement and intelligent use of the ball.

Gilberto missed a penalty, although I had a strange feeling that it didn't matter and it we would come back, like when Chelsea scored against us after 28 seconds in the unbeaten season. No panic, we'll get more chances, we're absolutely bossing this, I thought.

Adebayor had a good effort saved onto the post and Gallas almost turned the rebound in but Scholes cleared. Rosicky hit a fierce low rising half volley from an Adebayor knock down and Arsenal were mixing it up and looked sharp.

Ronaldo was looking dangerous but Djourou and Toure were keeping Rooney and Saha pretty quiet. Lehmann made a couple of good saves and it was 0-0 at the break which suited them better than us. I thought they would come out and maybe change it because we were dominated so much.

No substitutions. Game on.

We continued to create opportunities, Adebayor hit an effort straight at the keeper, Saha headed just wide, Ronaldo shot when he should have passed. Toure blasted a free kick wide, Baptista came on for Hleb and had a powerful run and shot which just went wide.

Arsenal will surely score, it would be a travesty if we don't.

Ronaldo loses the ball, terrible decision to try and dribble under pressure, Fabregas bites in and win the ball, gets a bit of luck, a little dummy and opens up a path for the slide rule pass. Perfect weight on it, Adebayor pokes it under the keeper, it going in you know, it nestles in the back of the net.

What a feeling, what a performance, we deserved that I thought. I can't think of a match which has given me such satisfaction in the last couple of seasons. Written off, backs to the wall, like the old Arsenal. Perfect.

The team was quality throughout, Djourou and Toure were excellent along, well supported by Eboue and Gallas. Lehmann made a truly world class save from Solskjaer late on and was commanding all afternoon. Gilberto organised well and protected the defence expertly.

The midfield combined beautifully, constant movement, sharp accurate passing creating space and importantly discipline off tha ball from Rosicky, Fabregas, Ljungberg and Hleb.

Adebayor worked hard up front, looked dangerous and took his goal well.

A memorable performance all round. We were that good.

That's the first time this season I have actually wanted to watch MOTD!

Tony Adams said in 1997/98. 'I don't see it as a transitional year, I see it as a winning something year. I always find that a bit of an excuse really'. That just about sums it up. Quality.

Some musings on the Hamburg and Man Utd games

So we played a 4-4-2 and deservedly took all 3 points on Wednesday night. Another win in Europe means its only 2 defeats in Europe in our last 20 odd games. That was us in the Premiership not so long ago and we couldn't buy a win in the Champions League. Funny how things change.

Rosicky is a very good player and a big addition to a midfield that was running short of quality on the wing.

On Wednesday he looked tenacious, quick and creative and scored a magnificent goal that not many members of the current team would have attempted. The Rosicky - Fabregas partnership is an interesting one, both pretty mobile and small but excellent on the ball with intelligent use of the ball. I can't remember Fabregas really losing the ball on Wednesday. Mix that class up with the physical presence we now have in the side thanks to Gallas, Toure, Djourou, Gilberto, Adebayor, Baptista and I think there is a good balance emerging.

Hleb looked short on confidence and always plays better when Henry plays. If Henry doesn't play on Sunday (which I think he will) then I'd be tempted to play Ljungberg, who was rested on Wednesday.

Van Persie was lively, won us a decisive penalty but unfortunately picked up an injury which means he is doubtful for Sunday. I thought he and Adebayor worked hard and were pretty effective.

Overall it was a good team performance, I thought Gilberto, el capitan on the night, was excellent, and it will hopefully give us some much needed confidence.

Ahead of the game on Sunday I am in bullish mood and think we can go to Utd and win. We need to be more direct and hopefully Rosicky has shown the way.

They haven't played as well as their 12 points would suggest.

They conceded 2 against Celtic on Wednesday night and although they were good going forward they looked very shaky at the back. I think we will score first, it's then down to holding that lead and staying solid.

Toure has been declared fit and the defence looks strong. Rooney is only half fit and Giggs, who has been Utd's best player this season along with Saha, is injured. Scholes is coming back to form and is the man we must shackle. That is why a 5 man midfield will work.

Lehmann, Gallas, Eboue, Toure and Djourou in defence, Gilberto holding, Cesc, Rosikcy, Ljungberg and Hleb making up a 5 man midfield and Henry up front can win at Old Trafford 1-0.

Blind optimism from a lifelong Gooner? Perhaps, let's wait until Monday.

Midfield Balance & Confidence the Key for Tough Period

Hamburg tonight and Man Utd away on Sunday. We can ill afford to lose both games otherwise our confidence will be shot and the optimism which still fills the N5 air will quickly disappear. A couple of wins and we will be right back in business. It's a fine balance!

4-4-2 or 4-5-1? That is the question.

Gilberto and Fabregas just hasn't been effective away from home. Might Gilberto, Fabregas and Rosicky in a midfield trio be more effective with Ljungberg and Hleb supporting Henry (or Walcott tonight). We could even play Baptista in the centre and Rosicky wide if we needed more of a physical presence.

There is no doubt that Clichy coming back into the side will improve the midfield balance and defensive stability, as some natural width will be restored. This shouldn't be understated.

Our lack of width in a 4-4-2 is worrying. Ljungberg has lost that injection of pace and Hleb's inability to play with any width is a concern. Rosicky playing wide allays my fears considerably however his best position is surely central. Perhaps if Reyes goes Ribery will come in which would be a welcome addition and Walcott will get a few game son the wing which would add some much needed balance to the midfield.

The important thing is not to lose these matches, we seem to be more effective on the counter attack using a 4-5-1 because of the defensive stability it gives us. If we decide that 0-0 is not a terrible result then anything else is a bonus. Teams might over commit and to some extent we can frustrate results out of the bigger teams.

Real Madrid, Juventus and Villareal away. 0 goals conceded = 0 defeats, 2 pretty good performances and increased confidence. Confidence is key.

It's time to consider the options very carefully and ensure we do not lose both of these matches and allow the squad to have some confidence and a chance to improve.

I have a equally optimistic / concerned opinion that we are still playing good football and could conceivably had got 9 points in the league after dominating the games. However I am concerned AW doesn't know his best XI and doesn't have an answer to the lack of midfield balance and width.

Can AW make a 4-4-2 work without any natural width? We will have to wait and see.

European success the real possibility

Once again Arsenal face the same problems as last season. The Premiership title is unlikely as the midfield doesn't have the perfect balance and Arsene doesn't know his strongest XI.

The Gilberto - Fabregas balance in midfield is not quite right for a 4-4-2 as Fabregas is not good enough at the moment when we don't have the ball. He will improve in time and will one day get a better partner than Gilberto, can Julio Baptista be that player? The Gilberto, Fabregas, Rosicky and Hleb partnership is no where near as balanced as the Vieira, Petit, Parlour and Overmars of 1998. Vieira and Petit were both strong and could defend, they were a left foot / right foot combination, Parlour was an excellent pro and could tuck in and Overmars was naturally left sided, had extreme pace and could make a chance out of nothing.

Because of this inbalance, away from home in the league against the better teams we have struggled. We lost tamely to Chelsea, Man Utd and Liverpool last season.

Another problem is that Henry is not efficient with a partner unless he is playing with a deeper lying second striker aka Dennis Bergkamp.
Rosicky could play this role but Ljungberg would need to start scoring again or Walcott would have to step up a level. Van Persie is obviously a very gifted player but as a very individual style player the question is; can he form a fruitful partnership with Henry?

With the personnel Arsene has at the moment, our best formation is a 4-5-1.

However Arsene will never play a 4-5-1 in the Premiership with another option as it goes against his principles of attacking football. 0-0 away from home in the Premiership is not a good result for Arsenal.

In the Champions League first leg it is a crucial result.

It means teams have to attack us at home and so we can play the 4-5-1 and turn it into a 4-3-3 on the counter attack.

Away from home in Europe a central midfield trio of Fabregas, Gilberto and Ljungberg or more likely Rosicky would be highly effective. This latter trio would allow Ljungberg and Hleb to play wide and Baptista and Walcott to come one and add an injection of pace and power. Henry would play up on his own and feed off through balls from Rosicky and Fabregas.

Gilberto is a much better player in Europe because he can concentrate on one task, being a midfield anchor. In the Premiership the lack of natural wide players means he has to do more and make forward runs to support the attack. In Europe he has 3 other midfielders to do that and can concentrate on helping the defence out.

It was no coincidence that when he was asked to play this more defensive role his performances improved considerably and as a result we kept 10 consecutive clean sheets. The addition of Gallas will also add strength to the defensive unit and so once again it will be a European campaign based on not conceding away from home.

It also means Fabregas gets a little bit more freedom and less responsibility defensively which he relishes. In Europe football is played thr ight way as the ball is played on the floor which suits Fabregas perfectly, whereas certain Premiership teams have a different philosophy known as aggression, a direct style, as simply they aren't good enough to play the ball on the floor. This is where Fabregas' defensive shortcomings are apparent, he is not physical enough and cannot impose his game in this situation.

Until Arsene can achieve an effective 4-4-2 which he cannot do without another natural wide player, preferably with pace (possibly Walcott) and an improvement in Fabregas defensively, success in Europe is a more fruitful option again this season.

Transfers: Problem Solvers & Upgrades / Time the key for Arsenal

After the transfer window closed 'cautious optimism' are the words to sum up the feelings of most Gooners I have spoken to.

OUT: 2 players who were unhappy have gone another fringe player has left too.

IN: 2 experienced internationals and a highly exciting prospect who has incidentally gone straight into the first team squad with Fabregas' old number.

I thought an article in one of the Sunday papers summed it up for Arsenal. There are 2 types of transfers. 'Upgrades' and 'Problem solvers'.

Cole to Chelsea = Upgrade. Gallas to Arsenal = Problem solver. Mourinho knows that and this is the reason behind his malcontentment.

Arsenal have a left back waiting in the wings and everybody who has ever seen Clichy play knows he is a mini me of Ashley Cole in the way he looks and plays. Arsenal won't really lose any strength and as a whole the defence will be stronger. Left back is not a position that wins you titles. Centre half is.

Baptista in for Reyes. Sounds like a good deal to me. Baptista has a strong physical presence and can score goals from midfield. Arsenal desperatley need someone like that. Reyes was unhappy and never going to realise his potential. It's not necessarily anyones fault, look at how well Fabregas has done, it's just one of those things. It also might mean Walcott has a chance to develop.

Cygan out and Denilson in. Again another exciting young prospect to add to the likes of Djourou, Clichy, Bendtner, Lupoli, Merida, Gilbert, Muamba, Van Den Berg etc etc. We have the basis of a very good squad without many new additions needed. The invaluable loan experience of Lupoli, Bendtner, Muamba and Gilbert will mean they come back stronger and more experienced which can only benefit the squad.

Arsenal have a starting XI which is as good as anybody and once the younger players start to mature, get an injection of power and strength which comes with age and some first team experince Arsenal will have 2 high class players for each position and a squad up there with the best in Europe.

It just might take time.

Gallas, The Beast, Denilson, Ito and £7m

All in all I think a relatively good transfer window for Arsenal.

Gallas is a world class centre back and a decent stand in left back until Clichy returns. With the loss of Cole I honestly don't think our defence is in a worse off position as Clichy is probably better than Cole for his age and is up there with the best attacking left backs in the league. Plus he will improve.

I honestly think that with Gallas and Toure we now have the leagues best central defensive partnership. Both very quick and strong and experienced at the top level. Plus we have Lauren to come back and so our defence makes very good reading.

RB: Lauren & Eboue LB: Clichy & Hoyte CB: Gallas (left back cover in front of Hoyte as well), Toure, Senderos and Djourou

Just a quick mention for Pacal Cygan who despite never quite making it as a regular, always gave 100% and was a strangely likeable character. Good luck to you Pascal.

Baptista is a powerful central midfield / striker who has a lot to prove but seems more sensible than Reyes even at this stage, he and his family have been learning English and he already has a basic grasp of the language unlike Jose.

Ito and Denilson are a couple of 18 year olds, one of whom is a Japanese striker and the other interestingly is a defensive midfielder and captain of the Brazil U19's. We have paid up to £4m for him. In time, a replacement for Gilberto?

I think the squad is in pretty good shape. Maybe we could still do with a partner for Henry (I can see Rosicky playing a half striker role) but The Beast might well be employed as a striker yet we don't know. 50 goals in 2 seasons is a good enough return to suggest so.

We need our wide players such as Ljungberg, Hleb, Rosicky and possibly even Van Persie and Walcott to start scoring a few goals and gaining some confidence then we can start turning some positive performances into points. We dominated Manchester City and Villa and have only 1 point to show.

Maybe Baptista making some surging runs into the box and winning some headers will give us the opportunity to use the width of the new pitch more effectively? It will give us an option to go wide and cross and increase our efficiency when we do go through the middle as defenders will have to cover for 2 scenarios not just one.

All in all a cause for optimism I would say. 2 unhappy players out and 4 new faces with a point to prove and some experince in. You would be foolish to suggest the squad is not in better shape now.