Arsenal 2-1 Leicester: heroic Gunners get the win

Let me get this out of the way first: Arsenal deserved to win the game. Those who say we were lucky to win it are partly right, but saying that without context would not be doing justice to the Gunners. The reality is such: we played Ranieri’s men off the park. We had 78% of the ball, took 24 shots to Leicester’s 7 and had 11 corners to their 1.

To those who will point out much of this activity happened after the sending off I’ll reply: Fuchs and Simpson were booked 3 times between them in the first 10 minutes of the 2nd half, resulting in the latter being sent off. Leicester couldn’t cope with our pace and energy, they were starting to lose the plot and resorted to fouling. In fact, their nasty attitude didn’t subside even after going down to 10 men and it is my firm belief they should have finished the game with 8 players on the pitch. Yes, you read that right - I think both Kante and Drinkwater were lucky to see the game out. So I’ll start with Leicester’s behavior.

Leicester’s attitude

Simply put, it was an attitude very far from what you could call “fair play”. They dived, the went in for nasty challenges, they wasted time after going 1-0 up. The fact that, even with 10 men, the Foxes didn’t create anything of note in 2nd half is also highly indicative of their attitude on the day.

I was repelled by such an approach. I don’t think there’s one Leicester player on the pitch (barring, maybe, Albrighton and Morgan) who played fairly. Schmeichel wasted time again and again, Fuchs and Simpson repeatedly (and deliberately, for the most part) “roughed up” Bellerin and Alexis, both Vardy and Mahrez weren’t ashamed of diving, while Drinkwater and Kante were revolting in their approach. Both should have been sent off. Drinkwater’s challenge on Ramsey was worthy of a red in itself, while Kante committed at least three bookable offenses (deliberate handball in the box, climbing over Ozil, hacking the German down later in the game), but was only booked once.

Overall, it was disgusting to witness and my joy at beating Leicester was multiplied because of the fact they didn’t deserve anything from the game. Even Ranieri didn’t look like a charming old man in the presser. He just came across as a bad loser, choosing to ignore his team’s nasty antics and instead blaming the ref for all the misfortunes, saying the sending off was uncalled for.

Incidentally, that brings me to my 2nd point.

Martin Twatkinson

He had a shocker of a performance. Here are just a few things he didn’t notice/chose to let slide:

1. Kante’s handball in the box
2. Vardy’s dive
3. Drinkwater’s challenge on Ramsey
4. Huth’s handball in the box
5. Kante climbing all over Ozil in the build-up for the penalty

I’m sure they were more things Atkinson ignored, however, the list of his mistakes isn’t exclusively limited to the aforementioned. How about booking Ramsey and Coquelin for their respective first fouls? Or booking Koscielny for hell knows what, because Kos didn’t even commit a single foul?

At least he got the cards to Leicester players right, though, as I’ve said, he could (and should) have given more of these. Abysmal performance from a referee in a game of such importance. Only positive is that it didn’t cost us.

The penalty incident

At first I thought Atkinson got the call right. It looked pretty straightforward: Vardy got into the box, rounded off Monreal, the Spaniard stuck out his leg in a desperate attempt to stop Vardy going through on goal, caught the Englishman in the leg and Vardy fell.

Replays told another story entirely. In short, they told the story of a dive. If you want the long version, Monreal stuck out his foot, but didn’t touch Vardy, the Englishman poked the ball to his right and wasn’t impeded to follow it. Instead, he chose to run straight into Monreal, trip over him and fall to the ground in seeming agony.

The only mistake Monreal made was presenting Vardy with a chance to fall in the box. Pretty much the same mistake Mertesacker made vs Costa. Nacho should have been more careful, but it doesn’t make Vardy’s dive any less of a dive.

And now the good moments.

Olivier Giroud

The Frenchman was simply massive. It was an exemplary centre-forward performance. The only thing missing from it was a goal, but it wasn’t for the lack of trying: Ollie took 7 shots, all from inside the box and only 2 were off target. His best effort was saved spectacularly by Schmeichel.

But it doesn’t diminish his contribution in the slightest. Olivier created 4 chances for his teammates (only Ozil created more - 6), all from open play and one of these was an assist, he won 13 (!) aerial duels and the way he caused all sorts of problems for Huth and Morgan was admirable. Think we can safely say he won the physical battle against Leicester’s centre-backs.

Per Mertesacker

As soon as Gabriel’s injury was confirmed, Arsenal fans started having jitters about how we were going to contain Vardy. Can’t say I related to them: I saw with my own eyes how shaky Gabriel looked against Bournemouth and actually thought Mertesacker could be a better option: his distribution skills, his understanding with Koscielny and his organisational prowess were the qualities Arsenal sorely missed against the Cherries.

And our Big German didn’t disappoint: his passing today was at 97% (57/59 passed completed) and the calmness he exuded spread itself to the rest of our defense. Once again our vice captain proved his doubters wrong by performing admirably in a big game. Kudos to him for that.

On a side note, when his partner-in-crime, Laurent Koscielny, was subbed off at half-time owing to a dead leg, and Calum Chambers came on, Per looked just as comfortable and unperturbed. Same can be said about Calum Chambers, who looked very calm and disciplined the entire half.

Roquelin

It was our first look at the pair in action since early August and, while Francis gave way to Theo on the hour in a (successful) attempt to win the game, I liked how he dovetailed with Ramsey.

Maybe that’s because Ramsey played a more disciplined role (tied with Monreal for most tackles and interceptions and led the team in ball recoveries), but I get the feeling that Coquelin, much like Mertesacker, has an ability to exert his calming influence on his teammates. No doubt we’ll see this combination again. The first signs look promising.

The aftermath

The win takes us within two points of Leicester and the goal difference is such that, as soon as Leicester drop points and we pounce, we’ll go top of the league.

Things have been rather complicated by Spurs beating City later in the evening, meaning we remain in 3rd place, however it also means there is now a 4-point gap between us and Pellegrini’s men. Also, we still have to play Spurs, United and City away and will most likely require 9 points to keep our title hopes alive.

But the win today was still absolutely massive and everyone involved deserves huge credit for it. We can worry about everything else when we get there.

For now just enjoy the occasion.

Until later

Leicester preview: early title decider

Howdy.

Matchday №26 is looming large (in fact it’s already upon us at the time of me writing this), however, I think I won’t make a grave mistake by assuming most eyes will be fixed on Sunday’s fixtures and not so much on Saturday’s.

It is understandable: the top 4 teams are playing one another on February 14th, with Arsenal hosting Leicester and Spurs visiting City. Journalists this week have been mostly focused on the former game, marvelling at Leicester’s meteoric rise and wondering if their current run of form is sustainable.

The good of it is that it takes some of the heat off Arsenal. No disrespect to Ranieri’s men, but I couldn’t understand the logic of those writers piping up the Foxes as favourites for this top-of-the-table clash. Leicester have been great, they have only suffered one loss since going down to us in September (a fluke 1-0 away at Liverpool too), however it still beats me how Arsenal can be viewed as the underdogs on home soil to ANY team in the league. We have lost at home this season, yes, (twice in the league), but both losses were, if I’m to borrow Arsene’s phrase “under very special circumstances” and on both occasions we were the favourites prior to kick-off.

Team news update

What is more, our ranks have been growing increasingly, erm, swelly (is that a word?), what with Coquelin and Alexis finally making their way back to full fitness. Welbeck should also return soon, though I doubt it will be against Leicester:

“I think he is very close. Fitness-wise he is there, it is just competition he misses. It is a bit early for him maybe but he is now back to full power in training. It is a big possibility [he could be involved against Hull next week]. We gave him one or two days recovery after the under-21 game, but now he is back in full training. He has worked very hard and he is fit”.

With Cazorla and Wilshere “it’s a question of weeks”, though these weeks look like they’ll eventually stack up to a month:

“They are back running, they are on a fitness programme now so it means it is not a question of months anymore, it is a question of weeks for them to be back. I can’t count on them in the next three or four weeks”.

And of course poor Tomas Rosicky remains on the sidelines with no return date as of yet, which means he’s not close to one. Alas.

However the recent inclusion of Alex Iwobi in the senior squad means we now have 22 players to count on, the imminent return of Welbz will make it 23 and that’s great to hear. It means Arsene will have to omit 5 players from matchday squads on a regular basis and only Iwobi looks the fall guy for now.

Squad

I think a maximum of two changes is in order: Coquelin for Flamini (should have done it, like, three weeks ago) and Walcott for Giroud. Oh, and maybe Campbell for Oxlade, but that’s not even a hunch, more of a personal preference based on the opposition we are facing. The other selection dilemma is the Gabriel/Mertesacker decision, but I get the feeling we’ll see Gabriel start once more:

“Sometimes I use a different formula. Per Mertesacker is a great leader, a very respected one in our dressing room, but I have three centre backs and I adapt a little bit to their level of form, to the number of games they’ve played and to the opponents we play against. What are their strengths and where can they hurt us?”

Coquelin for Flamini seems an obvious one. Neither are going to solve our midfield control problems, so the choice boils down to who is better at what they do best. We have a clear winner here and it’s not the billionaire playboy. Unless, of course, Wenger springs a surprise and pulls Arteta out of his hat or hands Elneny his PL debut. Think we can safely forget about poor old Chambers’ chances at this point.

Walcott for Giroud is much less obvious. Yes, our handsome Frenchman hasn’t scored since the game at Anfield, but then Walcott’s last goal happened even longer ago, in December. Since then he has done little to convince anyone he is the answer (regardless of what the question is). Two things speak in his favour, though: Theo’s ability to turn up for big games in a big way and the fact Alexis seems much more comfortable with the Englishman up front. However, Theo’s recent form is abysmal in the extreme, so I, for one, would be mightily surprised to see him start.

And finally, we have the task of guessing the manager’s thinking on the Oxlade/Campbell subject. Personally, I’d start Joel over Alex, seeing as he offers better protection to Bellerin and I’m sure Bellerin will need all the help he can get to contain Vardy. Especially if Mertesacker starts and Hector will be instructed to sit tight so as not to expose Per’s lack of pace.

However, I think Ox is the more likely of the two to play from the first minutes. His recent escapades (an assist vs Burnley and a well-taken goal vs Bournemouth) surely have put him back into Arsene’s thinking:

“I’m convinced that that will give him appetite to score more, to give more assists and to go more in the final third, where he can be deadly.

You cannot imagine when you look at Alex that he will not score goals. He has power, pace, technique, finishing.

I believe that only he maybe did not believe enough that he can score. That will convince him and hopefully it’s the start of many more.”

Oxlade starting offers another dimension to our attack, as he is a very good dribbler and is likely to be much more useful than Campbell against teams sitting deep (something Leicester will undoubtedly do). Furthermore, he is one of the few natural wingers we have, one who sticks to the wing often and this in itself is another useful quality against the Foxes, who prefer to play narrowly and vertically, thus leaving space on the flanks.

But Oxlade will have to be very conscientious about his defensive duties. As I’ve said, Bellerin will require help to stop Vardy. If it doesn’t materialise, we may find ourselves in a difficult position indeed.

Predicted line-up: Cech - Bellerin - Gabriel - Koscielny - Monreal - Coquelin - Ramsey - Oxlade - Ozil - Alexis - Giroud

The verdict

It is quite clear how the teams will set up initially, if not for the most part/the entirety of the game. Wenger sums it up here pretty well:

“They (Leicester) are more cautious at the moment. They play a lot in their final third and come out very quickly.

Look at the number of direct balls from their half to the opponents’ half. They are higher than anyone else because they have Vardy on his way straight away when they win the ball - they do it very well. They suck you in and go very quickly in the opponents’ half. At the time they were a bit more all going. Today they are a bit more 'let’s sit here and use our strengths' in a very efficient way, which is what they did remarkably well against Manchester City.

We will try of course to stop their counter-attacking. But at home you have to express your strengths and our strength is to have the ball. We have to try to express our strengths and as well try to stop them from hitting us on the break."

We know what to expect, the question is, how we deal with it when it comes. That’s a question most Premier League teams have been unable to find an effective answer to this season. Indeed, I think only one team can be said to have had some joy against the Foxes in 2015-2016.

That team is Arsenal and that’s what makes me that bit calmer about the upcoming game. Yes, Leicester have evolved since then, Ranieri has adapted their approach, tweaked it enough for Leicester to go on an amazing run of 16 games with only one defeat in it. But it’s still comforting that we’ve already dealt with the Foxes once (efficiently too). It’s a precedent. Which means we can do it for the second time.

So come on you Gunners.

Back with a review

Bournemouth preview: time to kick on

Howdy.

The football is back today (along with yours truly) and, much as I like to avoid the cliched phrase, we really do have to win this one. Spurs scraped past Twatford yesterday to open up a 3-point lead on the Gunners (naturally, having played a game more) while City went down to Leicester at the Etihad, in quite spectacular fashion. It means a win today will see Arsenal leapfrog Pellegrini’s men and settle in 3rd, behind Spurs on goal difference only. We’ll still be behind league leaders Leicester by 5 points.

However, right now I see little sense in talking about Arsenal’s title chances. Before we can do that, Arsenal will have to string together a couple of wins and, indeed, score some goals, a feat that eluded them for the past three league games. Our winless run is even longer - 4 games.

I’m not inclined to blame the Gunners today, though. I was fuming when we have drawn vs Southampton, however a couple of days of mulling the whole situation over did what it always does: allow some perspective to be gained. The draws vs Liverpool and Stoke, while disappointing, are indeed two good points, something I’ve stated pre-Chelsea. Were it not for the fact these were back-to-back draws, I’m sure the fans wouldn’t have kicked up such a fuss.

The loss against Chelsea was infuriating alright, but here I’m with Marcotti, who said post-Southampton (can thoroughly recommend the article as a whole, by the way):

“Truth be told, you really worry when you're not creating chances or when you're conceding far too many. Some of the stuff that went against Arsenal in the past few games -- superhuman keeper efforts, stupid red cards from World Cup-winning veterans, last-ditch equalisers -- is down to those things that we don't like to talk about: happenstance and luck.”

We were fiendishly unlucky not to score against Southampton, while what Mertesacker did was just astonishing, something you wouldn’t normally expect from him (it was just the second red card Mert received in an Arsenal shirt in the Premier League - in 143 appearances!) So, after a couple of days of deliberation I came to the conclusion that our recent run, while highly frustrating, is mostly down to happenstance and luck (or rather, lack of thereof). It’s not worth losing your head over it, calling for wholesale changes, however it’s also obvious we have to pick ourselves up today if we are to catch Leicester who are pulling away dangerously, having already faced Spurs, Liverpool and City - and beaten them all.

Team news update

There’s basically nothing to report on that front. Mertesacker is of course back from his suspension (indeed he was back for Southampton, I wonder whether starting Gabriel was a means to punishing the German for his rash challenge on the cheating Costa). Welbeck played 60 minutes for U21s, but I doubt we’ll see him make the squad today. Leicester is a more realistic return date, maybe even Hull in the cup.

Jack and Santi remain sidelined, the former should return end of February, the latter end of March. And of course we have to count out Tomas Rosicky, who has suffered a set-back on his return vs Burnley.

It’s heartbreaking, truth be told. It was the word Tomas himself used when talking about this set-back and this is the one which I think best describes the whole situation. Tomas is not only one of our current longest-serving players, his status is that of a club legend. He is almost revered by the fans, something he understands and acknowledges himself. And now it looks like his Arsenal career will fizzle out with the Czech sidelined and not in the thick of things. This is not something he deserves. Furthermore, it doesn’t look like Tomas will get a Premier League medal should we win the title (unless he plays at least 5 games, that is):

“The League Champions shall further receive 40 commemorative medals to be presented by the Club to its Manager and to such of its Players and Officials as it thinks fit provided that any Player who has entered the field of play in a minimum of 5 of its League Matches that Season shall receive from the Club a commemorative medal. ” - Premier League handbook

A very sad situation indeed. The quickest of recoveries to Tomas, I hope he returns in time to play the required number of games, or, at the very least, in time for his testimonial.

Squad

The talking point after our Southampton draw was the midfield balance. The general consensus remains that a Flamsey axis is ill-prepared for a sustained period of successful performances. A lot of column inches were dedicated to the matter, so I won’t dwell on the subject myself again. I’ll just point you to two articles on the subject I liked best - one from Tim Stillman, the other from Jane Cavendish, both quite brilliant.

I’ll just say that a Ramsey-Coquelin duo seems our best bet for now and I’ll be hugely surprised and disgruntled if we don’t see them start together later today. Though I must admit the idea of pairing Coquelin with Elneny and moving Ramsey back on the right makes sense if Wenger is looking for minimal changes to the set-up in Cazorla’s absence. Question is whether Elneny is ready for the Premier League and if he is, can he shoulder Cazorla’s burden. At the moment it looks like the answer to both questions is “no”.

Apart from the midfield balance (which is the most important riddle for Arsene to solve), there are still a couple of selection dilemmas. For one, as I’ve stated above, I’m highly interested in how long Mertesacker’s exile will last.

Then we have the question of who plays on the right. Oxlade, having put in a good performance vs Burnley, wasn’t rewarded with a start vs Southampton, so I doubt he’ll start today. Walcott looks even less of a solution, especially with his finishing hitting an all-time low. However it doesn’t look like Campbell was entirely convincing too. Three candidates and none look perfectly alright.

Finally, there’s a case to be made for Theo up front. Yes, I know I’ve just put him down, and I had reason to, but our best spell this year came with Theo playing centre-forward. He brings the best out of Alexis Sanchez (for starters), but he can also rediscover his form there, so who knows?

Predicted line-up: Cech - Bellerin - Gabriel - Koscileny - Monreal - Coquelin - Ramsey - Ozil - Campbell - Alexis - Giroud

The verdict

Bournemouth look a mixed bag right now: since losing to us in December, the Cherries won 4, drawn 2 and lost 1 (home loss to West Ham). However, they are doing very well for a team keen to avoid relegation, not the least because of their ambition in the transfer market: Iturbe and Afobe are a testament to that.

No doubt we’ll have to work hard today to get a win. However a win is absolutely essential. Let’s hope we break our spell today.

Come on you Gunners.

Until later

Chelsea preview: picking at old wounds

We play Chelsea on Sunday and the Blues remain a very tricky opponent for us. We have improved against City and United in the last year or so, but hardly against Chelsea, being held to a goalless draw at the Emirates in April and losing away at Stamford Bridge (thanks to an atrocious performance from Mike Dean). However we did beat the Blues in the Community Shield.

Head-to-head

Our last home league win over Chelsea happened in 2010. Before that in 2007. And the one before? In 2004. So basically we beat Chelsea at home every three years (2013 exempting). Hey, that means our next win is due in 2016!

Jokes aside and that’s a piss poor record. Manchester United is probably the only team in the league we have such a poor recent record with. It’s miles better against City and Liverpool.

We suffered a lot of heavy home losses in the last 10-12 years against Chelsea too (though, interestingly, none of them were inflicted by Mourinho. In fact, I don’t think Mourinho’s Chelsea has beaten Arsene’s Arsenal either at Highbury or at the Emirates).

However, we have to take into account the banter years, which the last 10-12 undoubtedly were. Also, Hiddink, unlike Mourinho, is surely to come to the Emirates with a positive mentality. Beating a team which wants to play football is much easier than banging your head against the parked bus.

We go into this game on a pretty decent run too. Since the beginning of December Arsenal won 5 league games, lost only one and drawn two (the last two, incidentally). While we are on the subject, these are two good points. Liverpool are the only “big” team to leave Britannia with 3 points - Chelsea, United and City all lost their games there, while Leicester barely escaped with a draw. Also, while it was infuriating to only get a point at Anfield from the position we put ourselves into, two factors come into play: Liverpool actually outplayed us on the day and, again, it’s fiendishly hard to get three points there. United did it (how the hell did they do it?!), but Leicester lost, while both City and Chelsea are yet to play there. Given both the Blues and the Citizens lost to Liverpool at home…

Anyway, back to Chelsea and their recent form is an improvement on what Mourinho achieved in his last four months with the club. That’s not saying much (anything is an improvement on what Chelsea demonstrated from August to December), however, the Blues are yet to lose a game under Hiddink, winning 2 and drawing the other 4. Chelsea have also started scoring again, netting 13 times in these 6 matches, although their defense remains leaky and shipped 8 goals in the same time frame.

Team news update

It looks like both Ozil and Sanchez will make the squad:

“Compared to last week we have no big problems from the squad that was available to face Stoke. The good news is that Ozil will certainly be available. For Alexis the next few days will be decisive but I think this time he will make it to be available for selection.”

The manager talked at length about Alexis, about how he wants to minimize the risk of a set-back:

“I am cautious with him because we cannot afford a setback with him. A setback would mean a very long period out so we don’t want to take this gamble. The signs he has shown in training this week are positive.

The doubt is that he has been out for a long time and the risk of a setback if you try to go too early. To be clear on all the tests is one thing, after he is clear on training is another things, and after the intensity of a big game you can never repeat in a training session. You can make sure after a certain amount of time that the risk is minimal.”

Once again, I’m against risking Alexis for one game. Our next league game is on February 2nd, plenty of time for Alexis to get fully ready if he isn’t yet. Though I have to say the whole affair is getting tiresome. If Alexis makes the squad on Sunday, it means he will have spent 8 weeks out, instead of the initial 2-3. Furthermore, I have a strange feeling we are going to need Alexis to win this one, so maybe we should stop being overly cautious and give the man some minutes already. The Chilean’s been training for some time now and looked perfectly alright even last week.

In other news, we’ll soon have Rosicky, Welbeck and Coquelin (!) back:

“Coquelin is back in full training today (Thursday) and he is ahead of schedule. He has still a few steps to go through. Welbeck will be in full training next week so that is positive news. It is possible Rosicky will play in the under-21 game [on Friday].”

That’s some very good news right here. Rosicky may even make the squad on Sunday, while there’s a chance all three will be in the squad for our game vs Bournemouth, maybe even for the cup game against Burnley. A very timely boost, given our February schedule. Fingers crossed we’ll see all these guys back in action very soon.

The squad

I think the participation of the following players from the first minutes is not in question: Cech, Bellerin, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Monreal, Ramsey, Ozil, Giroud.

Yes, part of me would like to see Gabriel, but given how his last game against Chelsea went, I’d rather have Mertesacker pairing Koscielny. Also think it’s sensible to stop  omitting Mert from the probable squad. He is our captain and a starter by default. Unlikely Wenger will pluck Gabriel out of the cold suddenly. For now, at least.

Ramsey and Ozil will occupy 2 of the three available midfield slots, but I do wonder who is going to occupy the holding position. No, I don’t mean Coquelin, it’s obviously too early for him, but is it time to give Elneny a try? As much as I like Flamini for his professionalism (the man pocketed Silva and Bojan without breaking a sweat), the Frenchman hasn’t really clicked with Ramsey. While Ozil's return and (hopefully) Alexis starting should contribute to making our midfield look less disjointed, the Flamini-Ramsey duo still stick out like a sore thumb.

How our front three shapes up is another interesting question. Obviously Giroud should start, but who play either side of him? I’d say neither Theo nor Oxlade merit a starting spot given their recent form and output. Campbell seems to provide the most even contribution, balancing the side in a way Ramsey did when playing on the right. If Alexis is fit, then I’d start him. However, given Arsene’s caution regarding the Chilean, I’m not sure the Frenchman would want to put him straight back into the starting XI.

Predicted line-up: Cech - Bellerin - Mertesacker - Koscielny - Monreal - Flamini - Ramsey - Campbell - Ozil - Walcott - Giroud

The verdict

The main obstacle we’ll have to face will be our mental block. As I’ve said our last home win against the Blues happened in 2010 (although we did manage an away win in 2011) and our scoreless streak against Chelsea is 5 matches long (league only).

Should we overcome this psychological hurdle, then I’d fancy our chances. Because, let’s face it, like Manchester United, this Chelsea side is not much to look at. Their defense is still leaky, their spirit seems very fragile and their league position is not accidental.

For all I know, we should try and get off to a flying start, like against United. Pin them back, score a couple, then let them chase ghosts. I’m convinced we have the quality to make it happen.

Now we just need to get on the field and do it. Come on you Gunners.

Unfortunately I won’t be able to watch the game live as I’m going on holiday for two weeks. I hope to be back in time to cover the Bournemouth game. If not, then I’ll see you again pre-Leicester.

Until later

Stoke preview: Gunners have to prove they have moved forward

We travel to Mordor on Sunday and, having dropped points on Wednesday, now need a win. While City are hosting Palace and can thus drop points, I highly doubt Leicester will do likewise against Aston Villa.

Leicester continue to amaze everyone. Way back, before we took on City I think, I predicted their goals will dry up and when this happened, Leicester would start dropping points big time because their leaky defense would go nowhere. However, despite scoring only once in their last 4 league games, Leicester picked up 5 points. Considering they played Liverpool, City and Tottenham in that time frame that’s an amazing achievement. Even Arsene openly admitted Leicester will fight for the title this season:

“To be completely honest with you I thought they might not last, [but] I have changed my opinion today because their remarkable consistency makes them one of the contenders. When the bubble bursts, most of the time it’s before Christmas or during the Christmas period. They didn’t. So I believe you have to count Leicester.”

Leicester still have a lot of tough away games - City, United, Chelsea and us, obviously, but then are we much better off ourselves? City, United, Tottenham and Everton are all away fixtures we’ll have to play at some point.

And Stoke. Stoke is our most burning problem. Especially since we aren’t particularly adept at beating the Potters away - no wins in 5 tries is a testament to that. We also happened to lose the last two in a row. Both managers are aware of this record.

Arsene:

"We have had difficulties at Stoke. They have a good record against us in recent years, and I must say as well they have overall a good record against Man United, City, the big teams.”

Mark Hughes:

"They know it is a difficult game for them, too, because we have enjoyed good results on home turf.”

But again, we would have more room for manoeuvre had we beaten Pool. No one said it’s easy to beat the Scousers away, but we simply can’t afford to drop points in two consecutive games, especially with the Chelsea game looming large. However bad Chelsea have been this season (and it looks like they have improved under Hiddink) playing a game vs them is never a walk in the park.

Team news update

The new boy Mohamed Elneny was registered in time and will be available. Now it’s up for Arsene to make a decision:

“Elneny is available for selection, I haven’t decided yet [whether I will play him]. I have to see how everyone has recovered. Elneny is a possibility to be in the squad for Sunday.”

Tomas Rosicky, however, isn’t quite ready yet:

“Tomas needs first to have a game somewhere. We hope for maybe an under-21 game or at least a bit more training with the first team.”

Alexis Sanchez, meanwhile, is a 50-50. Or should I say 60-40?

“Alexis I would say has a 60:40 chance to be available and be back in the squad. He has two decisive days - Friday and Saturday. He is fit, he has worked very hard and the decision we have to take is whether to take a gamble or not on his injury.”

Now, once again I’d like to reiterate that we’d better not rush Alexis for just one game. If he’s not fully fit, if there’s a risk he’ll aggravate the existing problem - rest him for one more week. However, I trust Arsene to do the right thing - that means I won’t fret over Alexis if he makes the squad. I’ll take it as a signal that the Chilean is fully fit.

Finally, Wenger provided us with an update on Danny Welbeck, who looks on course to return in the (dreaded) 2-3 weeks. I’m a bit confused here, as The Times reported earlier all of Wilshere, Welbeck and Coquelin returned to training and could feature in several weeks. However, as Arsene only mentioned Danny, I’ll assume the other two will be back later.

Squad

I’m going to presume Ospina (who wasn’t mentioned in the presser, weirdly) will return and Elneny will be included too. What the hell, if there’s a 60% chance Alexis makes it, I’ll throw him in too for good measure. Doubt the Chilean will start if deemed fit, however.

As for Stoke, they will be without Sherdan Shaquiri for this one, but, unfortunately, Marco Arnautovic should make it. Stoke this season have been notorious in robbing big clubs at home, beating all of Chelsea, United and City - the latter two comfortably - but their overall home form indicates they are far from unbeatable - the Potters have actually lost more home (4) than away (3) games. They are likely to step it up against us, however, so lapses in concentration from our side will be punished.

Regarding the line-up Arsene has 3 serious decisions to make - Gabriel or Mertesacker, Flamini or Elneny/Chambers and Walcott or whoever can actually play on the left. Just not Ox. Guess that means only two decisions, unless Sanchez is fit enough to start. We simply have to one else. Sigh.

If it were up to me, I’d definitely play Chambers alongside Ramsey. That’s a partnership which worked quite well in the few games they’ve had together. Elneny is a bit of an unknown quantity, I’m not sure throwing him at the deep end is the way to go. However I think Arsene may just stick with Flamini. In that case he’ll have to either instruct Ramsey to sit more, or order Flamini to play closer to halfway, not his own box.

The second decision, well, again I’d do the thing Arsene most likely won’t: play Gabriel and not Mertesacker. Think the Brazilian is just better suited to handling both the pace of Bojan and the physique of Arnautovic.

Predicted line-up (sincerely hope I’m wrong on several counts): Cech - Bellerin - Mertesacker - Koscielny - Monreal - Flamini - Ramsey - Ozil - Walcott - Campbell - Giroud

The verdict

“Last season we had a very bad start and I think we have more experience now and we are more stable defensively. We have a good opportunity to show that.

Stoke have improved their creative potential and we will want a really strong defensive display from our side because players like Arnautovic, Afellay and Bojan are all very creative players.

They have a strong record against us at home and they will have to maintain it but for us it is a good challenge to prove that we have made a step forward and can change that record.”

I really hope we rise up to that challenge. We are generally very good at bouncing back from disappointing results - even our three-game winless league streak in November was broken up with a thorough bashing of Dinamo Zagreb.

So let’s show up at Britannia and do the job.

Come on you Gunners.

Back with a review of the game.