Hold Me

Tony Adams receiving the 'Harry treatment'

I just have to say, I'm quite tired of hearing all of the sentimental sewage emanating from White Heart Lane in recent weeks. Each and every one of the Tottenham players should be ashamed of themselves for the way they began the season, and we should be hearing nothing other than their bitter cries of regret when they talk to the press. I don't care if Juande Ramos told them to step onto the field and do the Macarena for 90 minutes, that doesn't excuse their 'woe is me' performances. They virtually sulked their way into getting a new manager by putting in half-hearted displays, which is about as professional as refusing to play for the club that pays your wages (the spirit of Dimitar Berbatov was well and truly alive even after his departure from the Lane).

Of course we all know how the story went - Harry came in, and suddenly Spurs started winning, and more importantly, started being incredibly lucky. One can't help but wonder, what is the big secret to his success? Why the amazing turn around? What kind of tactics are at the heart of this revival? Well, judging by what has been said over and over again, I think it can be summed up in one lame, cliched phrase - "an arm around the shoulder". Stick that in your pipe and smoke it, tacticians!? Here are some possible quotes from various Tottenham players which support Harry's tactile approach to management:

"I didn't have a clue what Juande was asking me to do, but Harry came in and put his arm around me and told me I was a fantastic player, and that gave me the belief I needed." - Darren Bent

"We have a lot of young players, so we needed someone like Harry to come in and put his arm around our shoulders and instill some confidence in us." - Jermaine Jenas

"I was feeling a bit down, but Harry came in and put his arm around my shoulder. He told me my hair didn't look silly, and that he even found me quite attractive." - David Bentley

"When Juande was here, he kept on telling me how fat I was. But Harry came in, put his arms around my stomach, and told me I wasn't that fat at all. It meant a lot to me." - Tom Huddlestone

"As soon as Harry came in, he put his arm around my shoulder and told me I was the best player he has ever seen. Then he started whispering sweet nothings in my ear, which to be honest I found a little uncomfortable, but that's just Harry's style." - Gareth Bale

"Harry told me I was rubbish, and that if I didn't do better I'd be sold. But he said those things while he had his arm around me, which made it easier to take." - Heurelio Gomes (At least we know there's a limit to Harry's adulations)

Basically, if the Spurs players are to be believed, Harry Redknapp came in to the dressing room on his first day and said "Group hug!!". Then he went around and told each of the players that they are fantastic, and hey presto, a win! However, this begs the question, how fragile are the Tottenham players' egos? From what I've heard in interviews, it sounds as if they each have the mentality of a particularly sensitive teenage girl, constantly looking for validation and approval. "Does my hair look OK?", "Do these boots match my shorts?", "Does my manager love me?". It's all rather pathetic really, which is why I think that it won't last. The marriage between the players and Redknapp has been consummated, no question, but once the sparks begin to dwindle I sense that the spirit of Dimitar Berbatov/Hannah Montana will kick in, and Tottenham will be back to square one again.

Of course Harry wasn't brought in to make Spurs a Champions League club. He was brought in for one reason, and that is to keep Spurs in the Premier League. He will manage that without any problems, so fair play to him for that, and fair play to the Spurs hierarchy who humbled themselves enough to bring in a relegation expert with a penchant for hugs. But if Tottenham have got any ambitions to go beyond being a bitter disappointment of a club, their players will have to grow a collective pair and start acting like professionals.

Gourcuff

If you haven't heard of Yoann Gourcuff, or if you've only heard the name but never seen him in action, then check out these two clips from last night's game against Chelsea:

Making a fool out of JT (the replay at the end shows it beautifully)

The New New Zidane?

I only saw the highlights, but he looked very, very impressive. I'll be damned if Milan don't take him back, or if he doesn't find himself in the Premier League having secured a £120m transfer to Man City. The boy has talent, no question. Whether he has what it takes to be up there with the best remains to be seen, but lets hope so.

Marcos Senna

My new favourite player. Why? Here's why.

Oh, and as an aside, he is one of the best, if not the best holding midfield player I've ever seen.

The Shame Of It All

Fill in the blank: Figo, Ronaldo, Zidane, Ronaldinho, Cannavaro, Kaka, ______?

Well, there's no right answer to that question, but I think it's safe to assume that one Cristiano Ronaldo will be the next name added to that list, and what a shame that really is. I'm not saying he shouldn't be voted World Player of the Year. However, his triumph will be more of a reflection of the dip in quality that world football suffered this past year than a reflection of Ronaldo's supreme status as the best footballer on the planet.

Cannavaro aside (though some may disagree), you could comfortably argue that each of the names listed above were the best around at that particular time - not just in terms of form, but in terms of talent and overall footballing pedigree too. They were magic to watch, and true stars of the game. Granted some of them had their flaws -- ranging from severe temper issues to consorting with male prostitutes -- but on the football field they were the creme de la creme. To question their place on a world XI would be foolish. These were professional footballers who made the game a delight to behold, a thing of beauty. They didn't go out to put on a show, but the sublimeness of their talent made it impossible not to be entertained and dazzled. (I'm aware that some of these players are still playing by the way. In fact Zidane is the only one who isn't now that I think about it.)

And then we come to Cristiano Ronaldo.

For me, Cristiano Ronaldo's case for winning the award is as strong as van Nistelrooy's would have been in 2003, except unfortunately for van Nistelrooy all of the good players hadn't just finished up their careers or gotten injured or played for a team in disarray, so he didn't really stand a chance, and rightly so. Horseface managed a staggering 44 goals that season, with the winner of the award Zinedine Zidane posting a not especially impressive 15. However, did anyone dispute Fifa's decision? Do we scratch our heads today and wonder how in the world 15-goal Zidane managed to beat 44-goal van Nistelrooy to the award? No, we don't. We wouldn't care if van Nistelrooy scored 74 goals that season, because that's not the point. That's right - goals aren't the point when it comes to watching football. That's the beauty of the game. There doesn't have to be a single score in a match , yet it can still be of the highest quality. And on the flip side, you can watch a 4-3 "thriller", yet it can absolutely abysmal. Sounds strange, right? 0-0 being better than 4-3? Well we all know it's true in terms of matches, but so it is with players also.

I mean if goals were all that mattered, then why don't we see Pippo Inzaghi popping up on the "best player in the world" lists of yesteryear? And where was Andy Andrew Cole's name when Roberto Baggio won the award in '93? The bottom line is that in the grand scheme of things, goals don't mean a whole lot when it comes to the "best in the world", and they are certainly not the measuring stick of success. Zidane or Figo where nowhere near as prolific as Lampard or Gerrard are today, yet the former were unquestionably better players in their time and did more for the beautiful game than either Lamps or Stevie G ever will.

Back to Ronaldo. He scored 42 goals last season, an astonishing feat for anyone, not to mention a winger (although we must bear in mind that he was a winger who took more shots than anyone else in the league, and probably even more than the whole Arsenal team combined). However, if all other things were equal, I wouldn't let him touch the award for World Player of the Year with a barge pole. Fortunately for the modest winger, all other things were not equal. Messi was injured, and when he wasn't, he was playing for a shambolic Barcelona side (the same goes for Xavi and Iniesta). Kaka also suffered an injury, and din't regain his form of old. Ronaldinho continued his downward spiral, Henry officially started his, and football outside of England was just a mess in general. To put it simply, there has been not one truly worthy candidate to win the award save for the 42 goal "genius". Unlike the big scorers of recent times, Cristiano Ronaldo's goals will actually be enough to see him crowned as the world's best, because the rest of the world decided to put its feet up for a year. However, was he the "best player in the world", and is he now? In my opinion the answer to both of those questions is "No". I still think he should get the award, but it should come with a giant asterix attached to it and a footnote that explains the above.

The players illuminating football (or with the potantial to illuminate football) today are Messi, Xavi, Iniesta, Villa, Zarate (I can't believe nobody in the Premier League picked him up), Del Piero (the old dog still has it in him), Xabi Alonso, Deco, Lampard (to a limited degree), Fabregas, Van Persie, Benzema, Senna, Kaka etc. Cristiano Ronaldo would have to feauture somewhere on that list for the goals he continues to get, but he's not the joy to watch that some of the rest are.

In any sane man's books, Messi is the best player in world football right now. He's still got some improving to do, but the pocket-sized Argentinean really is a class above the rest. The two players who play behind him - Xavi and Iniesta - are a close second and third (which, incidentally, is why Barcelona are beating everyone 6-0). They both enjoyed an exquisite Euro 2008, and have continued that form on into the new season. So in other words, discounting January-May, these would be my 1-2-3 for World Player of the Year. You don't have to agree, but I think you'd be doing well to find three more consistent performers who play the game as it should be played. Cristiano is just not at their level in terms of footballing ability, intelligence, and professionalism. For example (and this is petty I know, but still) would any of them - or even any of the previous winners - have said the following:

"I think I did everything that is necessary to win and I want to continue doing even more."

This isn't the only time Ronaldo has backed himself (yes, backed himself) for the award, and it just sums him up really. When you couple this off-field nonsense with his on-field antics of diving, giving out out to his teammates, complaining to the referee, and showboating, he makes for a poor excuse for the best that football has to offer. Yes I'd give him the award, but I would do so with a large degree of shame weighing me down.

What It All Really Means

"The board has given him a vote of confidence." - He'll be sacked in a week or two, just so it doesn't like a complete knee-jerk reaction.

"He's a good squad player." - He's rubbish, but he can be play in a lot of positions.

"He's a good shot stopper." - He can save shots that you'd expect any goalkeeper to save, but he's crap on crosses and has no command of his area, i.e., he's a terrible goalkeeper.

"I'd be happy to stay at this club for life." - The only way I'm leaving is if someone offers me a truck load of money, so please, make a bid for me Real Madrid and I'll be out of here so fast it will make your head spin.

"It was a difficult decision for the ref to make, so I have a lot of sympathy for him. Anyway, these decisions even themselves out in the end." - We were just gifted three points because of a horrendous refereeing decision that was blatantly wrong. Cheers Mr Styles.

"The ref was awful throughout, and that decision at the end has cost us the match." - I'm aware that we just had a poor decision in our favour last week which has now been evened out, but I'm going to choose to ignore that and focus on the horrible state of refereeing, and how terrible our luck with bad decisions is.

"He's not a dirty player." - He's a filthy hacker who has been sent off more than anyone else at the club. You should see him in training. Yikes!

"He's a great man manager." - He doesn't have a clue about tactics or the subtle nuances of the game, but he gives good press conferences.

"He's a top, top player." - He's actually quite average, but he's English, so he must be one of the best around.

"We're not underestimating them." - We know they're rubbish, but it's not like I'm gonna admit that on television. I mean that would just be cruel.

"I can get even better." - I've reached the peak of my career, but I don't want anyone to know that.

"I should win World Player of the Year." - I'm a huge tool.

"He won't be able to make the international friendly midweek due to injury." - He's not in the least bit injured, but we don't want him to risk him, and to be honest, he doesn't even want to bother playing in the game anyway.

"He reads the game well." - He's as slow as Christmas.

"It's not just about me. It was a great team performance." - I was bloody good, wasn't I? And look how humble I am too.

Feel free to add your own as a comment!

Mixed Bag

Having posted about the decline of Arsenal right before they beat Man Utd in a thrilling contest I felt a bit silly. I was going to write another post saying I've got it all wrong, but I honestly didn't believe that. This weekend proved to me that the Man Utd game was not the rule but the exception to the rule - the rule being that Arsenal are indeed going backwards. Big four clashes involving Arsenal will still be pivotal with regards the title race, but they will only be pivotal for Arsenal's opponents. The Gunners will be doing well to hang on to fourth spot, but it may not be well enough to keep hold of their stars. Third wasn't last season, so there's no reason to believe fourth will be this time around.

In other news, it's good that Del Piero was given a few more lessons by Cristiano Ronaldo on how to take free kicks. The last hundred or so that crashed into the wall probably didn't do Alessandro much good (though he may well have learned that it's probably not the best idea to shoot at goal from virtually any position in your opponents half. Just at thought Cristiano). In case you didn't know, according to Sky Sports it was Ronaldo who taught Del Piero how to take a direct free kick, and I can only imagine that it won't be long before we hear that it was also Ronaldo who taught Oliver Bierhoff how to head the ball and Diego Maradona how to dribble.

While Ronaldo's free kicks were OK (although when you see the 99 that he misses you realise it's just mostly pot luck when they go in), you'll be doing well to find a better worked free kick scored over the weekend than this gem by Xavi/Messi/Everyone on the Barca team besides Valdez. Just watch it a few times and you'll see the meticulous set up no doubt conjured up by Pep. It's not rocket science of course, but it was the x factor that Barca needed in order to secure a valuable three points.

A Premier League handicap table consisting of Robbie Keane, Cristiano Ronaldo and Frank Lampard? Not sure about Keano, but the rest seems about right. Well done Paddy Power for telling it like it is.

Are You Xavin' A Laugh?

Why there are still gossip columns while the transfer window is shut I do not know, but there are, and even worse, I read them. Today's purveyors of lies ran quite an intriguing little story, claiming that Xavi Hernandez might be on his way to Old Trafford for 20m. First of all, I don't believe thid deal will ever take place. I mean why on earth would Barcelona sell the best central midfielder in the world - a player in his absolute prime - to Manchester United for the same amount of money that brought Robbie Keane to Liverpool? It would possibly be the dumbest sale ever to take place, so I can only conceive that Xavi's agent wants more money, ergo he's stirring up some rumours to try and get Barca to cough it up.

But while I don't believe there to be any real possibility of this move happening, it does raise an interesting discussion - something I talked about at the start of the season in an earlier post I think. One obviously can't blame Fergie for being interested in a player of the calibre of Xavi, but it does highlight the fact that he may well see a weakness in United's midifeld, a diagnosis which I wholeheartedly agree with. To spell out the situation in dire terms, Darren Fletcher has easily been Man Utd's best central midfielder this season. Need I say more?

I've said it before and I'll say it again - Anderson is not a replacement for Paul Scholes, nor is he ever going to be United's answer to Fabregas. He has important qualities, but he's just not creative enough, seeming more determined to stick his bulky posterior into the oppostion than make a clever pass. Then there's Carrick, who quite simply has very little quality in my opinion. His passing is average at best (when he's under absolutely no pressure) and he just runs and hides behind games when the going gets tough (see last Saturday, and almost every other big game he has played in). Hargreaves is a useful squad player, but he's basically the midfield version of Saha - decent when fit, but never fit. However, even when he is fit, he's an average holding midfielder at best, and certainly not worth the 18m United paid for him.

With Scholes absent (and even when he's not absent, he's still old), United's distinct lack of quality in midfield is being ruthlessly exposed. They have the players up front and behind to make amends in most games, but when the big games come around it's very hard to see United being dominant in the middle of the park. Even though they enjoyed more possession than Arsenal last Saturday, this was in spite of, as opposed to because of, the likes of Carrick and Anderson. For all the space on the pitch, neither player ventured forward and seized the opportunity to really cut holes through a lightweight Arsenal midfield. And in the dying moments, when midfielders should be getting the ball and feeding it into the box, it was telling that Arsenal were the ones with all the possession, while Michael Carrick was nowehere to be seen.

One may argue that United where shorn of three of their central midfielders against Arsenal, which is true. However, even with a fully fit midfield, the problems do not go away. Fletcher can only offer you so much, and Scholes is on his last legs at this stage (something which Ferguson seemingly understands, having hauled him off early against both Liverpool and Chelsea). In my opinion, if you want a good midfield then you need to go foreign. Generally speaking, English players just don't seem to have the passing range nor the ability to read the game that Spanish and Italian players have. Ferguson invested heavily in two of these English players, and I think he's suffering as a consequence (Yes yes, I'm aware that United won the double last season, but I'll be damned if that wasn't because of Ronaldo's 965 goals and United's almost impregnable backline).

If by some incredibly bizarre turn of events Xavi does end up in Manchester, then United will be maybe one player short of having a seriously good team (that one player being a left midfielder of course). But while I just can't for the life of me see Xavi heading north, it should be positive news for all followers of United that they're looking for a player of Xavi's ilk, because that is exactly what they need if they're going to remain dominant in the years to come.

Paradise Lost

As even a half-hearted reader of this blog would know, Arsenal are my main topic of choice. I'm not an Arsenal supporter, nor have I ever claimed to be. To be honest the only team I'd come close to supporting is Barcelona, but that's just because 4 of their players are amongst my favourite playing the game at the moment (Messi, Xavi, Iniesta and Hleb). Were these players to move on, then my interest in Barcelona football club would wain considerably.

None of this is to say that I'm not a fan of Arsenal. Ask me who I want to see win the league, and I'd say the Gunners without hesitation. However, that probably has more to do with my not liking the other 3 viable contenders than anything else. However, as I've said before, I sincerely don't think that Arsenal have a chance of winning the Premier League this season. What I haven't said is that this saddens me, and I truly mean that.

Rewind to just over a year ago. Arsenal were playing some of the best football the world had ever seen, and this is no exaggeration. "Perfect football" is what Clive Tyldesley called it on one occasion, and in some sense that is exactly what it was. Wenger had his team playing football the way it should be played, and it was a thing of beauty to behold. Many people, myself included, were enamored by this young, vibrant Arsenal side who were not only easy on the eye, but who actually won too. Even John Giles and Eamonn Dunphy (two notoriously hard to please stuck-in-the-muds) almost admitted to being supporters of Arsenal, so in love with their brand of football they became. Neutrals were powerless to resist their charms (that's Arsenal's, not Giles' or Dunphy's), and the really scary thing was that one could only see them improving.

After a slight dip in form during the Christmas period Arsenal got back on track, when all of a sudden things started unravellings at the seams. Many will cite the 2-2 draw with Birmingham as the turning point, and it's hard to argue with that. However, for me the wheels came off a week before that. Arsenal were pitted against United in a mouth-watering F.A. Cup clash, but failed to turn up. Or more accurately, decided not to turn up. A weakened Arsenal team was trounced 4-0 by the Red Devils, but it was the manner of the defeat that for me sparked the series of events that would unfold. Arsenal approached the game against Man Utd as inferiors, and in my opinion they decided not to try because at least then they would have an excuse for losing. Such a mentality is not to be found in a winning team, but Arsenal showed all the signs of fragility in their non performance in that game, and such fragility characterised many of their remaining games. In the space of something like 5 games, they went from having a chance to go 8 points in front at the top to going about 5 or 6 points behind, and that, as they say, was that.

However, amidst the doom and gloom, the signs were still there that they had the makings of something really special, provided they made a couple of astute additions over the summer. Though wrecked from a physically and emotionally draining season, they still managed to outplayed all three of their main title competitors in various games in the run in, but conspired to lose all three thanks to a combination of being completely knackered and being defensively naive. Their sublime season had nothing to show for it in the trophy cabinet, but surely some silverware was imminent. Some players to fix the defensive problems coupled with the experiences of a hard fought season would surely be enough to propel this Arsenal team to the next level, provided the hunger was still there.

The summer came and the summer went, but Arsenal's problems were only worsened if anything. They lost two of their star performers from the previous season - Hleb and Flamini - who went on to join Barcelona and Milan respectively. Flamini was seen as the bigger loss, but I would tend to disagree. Though Hleb was a woeful goalscorer and shooter in general, it was his influence that really gelled the Arsenal team together as an attacking threat. After all, scoring goals was not Arsenal's problem, therefore it didn't really matter that Hleb did not contribute directly, because he certainly contributed indirectly. His movement, his dribbling, and his passing were all of the highest quality, leading him to constantly pick holes in defenses for the likes of Adebayor and Fabregas to exploit. He was a massive contributor to Arsenal's beautiful football, and though Nasri has potential to fill the void left by him, there was and is a uniqueness to Hleb's giftings that can never really be replaced.

On the other hand, Flamini was your typical defensive midfielder, and easily replaceable in my opinion. However, Wenger decided not to replace him, and has indeed suffered the consequences for this obvious mistake. However, more than Arsenal losing two players, it seems to me from various interviews and such that Fabregas lost two friends. I know this sounds silly and girly, but I honestly think these transfers have really affected the young Spaniard. You could see from Arsenal last season that there was a real togetherness about them, and by all accounts Hleb, Flamini and Fabregas were good friends as well as teammates. To see Flamini and Hleb walk out must have been tough on Cesc, and you can honestly see that in the way he's playing this season. I'm not trying to make excuses for his poor form, but we have to be human about this and understand that such things have effects on people, especially people of such a young age. Fabregas went from having a few older people to look up to and learn from to being the oldest person in the midfield...at 21 years of age. This I find ridiculous, and if interviews are to be believed, then so does Cesc. For Wenger to put him in this position is irresponsible. It's costing Arsenal dearly at the moment, and could eventually cost him one of the most talented players to ever play the game.

To see Arsenal in this position is a real footballing tragedy given what happened last year. From being in a position of almost football perfection, they've lost to Fulham, Hull, and Stoke, and in all likelihood will suffer another crushing loss tomorrow. I don't believe that anyone at the club truly thinks that they can win the league this year, and this I feel is affecting their performances. While they've put on a few great displays, the majority have been patchy at best, if not utterly abject. the real problem is that all of this is only serving to open the door for Fabregas to move on, and when this happens, that's the end of Arsenal Football Club as we know it. What promised so much a year ago will have delivered so little. Their potential will be sold on to bigger clubs who have the resources to seriously challenge for trophies. Their "perfect football" will become a myth, a spook story that Arsenal supporters tell their disbelieving kids about at night time.

Of course one player does not make a team, and Arsenal will not go down the drain because of one loss. Viera left, Henry left, and still they have survived. However, they have yet to thrive without these two talismen, and the loss of a third can only be a massive setback, one that even a genius such as Arsene Wenger would do well to recover from.

The House That Dunphy Gambled

Eamonn Dunphy thinks that Chelsea are going to win four trophies this year, and if I know Eamonn Dunphy like I think I do, he's probably put a lot of money on said outcome, if not his house along with everything in it (although given the amount of times he's said "I'd put my house on it" in the past and been subsequently proved wrong to do so, it wouldn't surprise me in the least if Eamonn Dunphy no longer had a house to put on anything - ah, the highs and lows of being a degenerate gambler).

Well, while Eamonn Dunphy's opinions on footballing matters are suspect at best -- except when it comes to La Liga, where he is known as (and I quote) "a student of the Spanish game" -- this is a sentiment that might well be shared by many, although maybe four trophies is pushing it. Still though, Chelsea appear to be everyone's favourite for everything, with Manchester United just behind. I used to agree with this, but now I'm not so sure.

This isn't necessarily backlash to their 3-1 loss to Roma last night, although natually enough that result does have a baring on my opinion. But take Chelsea's four hardest games so far this season (or at least the four hardest games one would have forcasted at the beginning of the season). For me, these games would have been the ones against Man Utd, Liverpool and Tottenham (all at home) and Roma away. Well, in those games Chelsea lost twice a drew twice (one of those draws being against a pitiful Spurs team under the not-so-magic Juande). I can confess to seeing only two of those games in full, and in both of those the flamboyant Chelsea who seem to beat most teams 5-0 looked void of ideas and penetration, eventually resorting to playing long balls up to er, well, John Terry in the end.

Don't get me wrong. I very much think Chelsea will be there or there abouts. However, they ain't all that in a bag of chips, or something. Take Frank Lampard for example. By the looks of those 5-0 victories he's been involved in, he's been phenomenal, showing poise and guile to go with his useful penchant for scoring goals. However, contrary to what Dunphy said last night, Lampard (like Gerrard) very much has a tendancy to going missing in games. Against both United and Liverpool he was largely ineffectual, offering none of the creativity that Chelsea so desperately craved. I don't say this to knock Lampard. I've been secretly impressed with some of what I've seen of him lately, but I still don't think he's capable of dominating a game when it really matters. He almost epitomises Chelsea this season - great against the weaker teams, not so great against the stronger teams.

In my opinion, Chelsea's utter dominance against the weaker teams will be enough to make them Premier Leauge Champions, although if I was to do a Dunphy and gamble my house (or at least my parent's house) on an outcome I'd go for United. However, when it comes to the trophy they seem to most covet - the Champions League - I think they will fall short. There are quite a few strong sides in Europe these days. They may not be as strong as the Premier League sides, but I think that on their day teams such as Real Madrid, Villarreal, Athletico Madrid, Inter Milan, and even Lyon can upset any one of the 'big four'. And then there is Barcelona, who are my tip to do the double (La Liga and CL). I don't make them as favourites because of their shakey defense, but they will take some beating, as they proved last season against United.

The bottom line is that if Chelsea are going to win four trophies, then they are going to have to start playing well against good opposition. Their next chance to do so comes against Arsenal on the 30th of November, although to be honest, it wouldn't surprise me if Arsenal were all but out of the title race by then. I guess this Saturday will be a good indication of that. Regardless of Arsenal's form however, it will still be a test for Chelsea's new brand of football. It's all well and good to be able to mow teams like Sunderland down, but you need to be able to transfer that kind of football to the big stage as well. Last season, Arsenal proved that this can be done, overrunning Liverpool for 45 minutes, and Man United for 60 with some of the best football of the season. If Chelsea are to be the dominant force in world football then they need to start doing the same, except doing it for longer periods of time and without being completely abject and naive at the back (which was and still is Arsenal's downfall, but I've talked about that enough in this blog already).

RVP

I've been wanting to write about the North London derby for a while now (well, two days to be precise), but I feel like most of what I have to say about has been said already on this blog. The bottom line is that nobody learned anything new about Arsenal last Wednesday. The same old problems reared their ugly head, and it shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone that an Arsenal team that was naive last season is even more naive this season now that they've lost three senior members (Flamini, Hleb and Gilberto) and failed to replace them. Arsenal cannot win the league this season. The Spurs result hasn't contributed to that fact as much as it has proved it.

Before I write about what I actually want to write about, I just have to say that all this talk regarding the "character" which the Spurs team showed is ridiculous. They had basically given up until Clichy's abysmal mistake, and once they got within in a goal, should it come as surprising that they tried to level things up? I don't know a team in the world who would throw in the towel if all they needed was a goal to rescue a point, so as far as I'm concerned there is absolutely no need to praise Spurs' "character". Such character should be a given, not a bonus. Also, I just looked at the Fantasy Football stats, and Bentley got 2 bonus points for the game. Granted his goal was exceptional, but it was basically the only contribution he made. Clichy was completely dominant for 89 minutes of that game, and in no way did Bentley deserve plaudits for anything else other than his 5 seconds of magic.

This brings me on to my subject of choice, which is Robin van Persie*. Adebayor actually got the 3 bonus points, but it was the graceful Dutchman who deserved them more than anyone else. He was absolutely brilliant against Spurs, assisting two goals with wonderful crosses, creating the third with a sublime pass to Nasri, and scoring the fourth with a thunderous right footed (yes, right footed) shot. And aside from being heavily involved in all four goals, his general play was assured and penetrating, with him rarely giving away the ball.

In my opinion, Robin van Persie is one of the most talented players in the world, and now thanks to a run of injury-freeness, he's proving himself to be one of the best performers in the world. He basically has everything you need to be a centre forward in the mold of Denis Bergkamp - vision, creativity, strength, skill, technique, and a deadly accurate shot. He's an incredibly unique player, in that his link up play and creativity are like that of a playmaker, but he's also a good finisher and can quite possibly notch up 20+ goals in a full season.

And then there's his set pieces. His corners are as good as I've seen, as are his crosses from dead balls. And once he's within about 30 yards of the goal, there are few players I'd rather have standing over the ball, with Cristiano Ronaldo certainly not being one of them. He strikes the ball so purely that it really is just a joy to watch him kick a piece of shaped leather.

If I was to hand out an Arsenal Player of the Year award based on this season so far, van Persie would most certainly pick it up. In 12 games he has scored 7 goals and assited 5. In this kind of form he is bound to pick up a lot of admirers, so while it's good for Arsenal that he does well, it's also bad in the sense that he may decide to leave in order to win things. Fabregas leaving Arsenal would undoubtedly be the biggest blow to the club, despite the fact that he's enjoyed an indifferent season so far. Van Persie leaving would be a close second, because players with his talent are few and far between.

* I wrote this before yesterday's game, in which van Persie came on and got himself sent off for a stupid challenge (which I don't actually think deserved a red card, but it was extremely silly nonetheless). Call it a "blogger's curse", or something.