Physical (You're So)

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Date	Time	C	Opponent	F	A	R	S
15 Aug	5:30 PM	P	Everton (A)	6	1	Win

There's been an interesting reaction to Arsenal's emphatic destruction of Everton at the weekend. I sat through an hour or so of the Sunday Supplement yesterday morning and listened to Andy Dunn explain his conviction that Arsenal lack the "physicality" to win the league title. Which didn't particularly tally with what I saw on Saturday afternoon. But then, I am just a humble blogger, sir.

David Moyes, however, is the manager of Everton Football Club and knows a thing or two about physicality, so the following quote must be a symphony to the ears of one Monsieur Wenger: "For me the disappointing thing was that I thought Arsenal bullied us and pushed us around. They won more contests and nudged us off the ball. You wouldn't have known Arsenal for that. You'd probably say that was Everton."

When you look at the fact that dirty Phil Neville was part of the opposition ranks, it's some compliment. I could single out Alex Song here, but I won't because clearly, the team as a whole put in the hard yards. That they continued to do so even when the game was won, bodes well for the future and a title challenge that Kevin Gartside of the Sunday Telegraph seems to be a lone voice in suggesting is possible for our young tyros. His point is that whilst Arsenal may be perceived to be weak physically, they do not exist in a vacuum and whilst Manchester United are still likely to be the team to beat, the departures of Tevz and Ronaldo have weakened them. Chelsea are another year older and Liverpool? Well life without Alonso got enough to a fairly inauspicious start at Tottenham yesterday afternoon. Surely, they are too reliant on Gerrard and Torres.

So, the physicality myth is, if not busted, on the way to becoming so. Let's have a look at another couple of myths, helpfully, Football365's Mediawatch section has laid waste to Stan Collymore's lazy and oft repeated claim that Arsenal get nosebleeds North of the M25. Whilst it is true that we lost three games away from home last season, at Stoke, Manchester City and, the decidedly not North of the M25, Fulham. But then we also lost three at home too. We also smashed teams like Blackburn, Bolton, Newcastle and Hull to bits, whilst drawing at Anfield and Old Trafford.

Likewise; my favourite pundit, Tony Cascarino, another one who likes to peddle a certain anti Arsenal line, had the following to say about us: "If Arsenal win the title this season without adding to their squad, it would be one of the greatest acheivements in English football history, given the spending power of their rivals. But when the weather's nice and the pitches are good they can beat anybody. Let's see how they do on a wet night in February."

Yes, let's, but aside from a home game with Liverpool on the 9th, the only evening games we are likely to be taking part in in that month is in the first round of the Champions league knockout stage. Not, traditionally, an stage that has given us too many problems and certainly not something that is going to have a direct impact on out chances of a first league title since the dim and distant win in 2004. So, I think Tony should maybe do some rudimentary research before advancing such negative lines.

Of, course the eagle eyed amongst you will have noticed that I said "likely to be taking part ... in the first round of the Champions League stage" and you probably read that and thought "Shut up, you presumptuous ******... we haven't even qualified for the group stage yet!"

Which is, of course, true. But the club certainly aren't thinking about anything other than qualification for the group stage, and nor should they be. Thomas Vermaelen is expecting a "physical" battle. Though I think he's being a bit optimistic in saying it will be a similar match to the Everton one. Seriously though, and perhaps this is rather arrogant, you wouldn't expect Celtic to outplay us anymore than you would expect Everton to do so but it isn't always about playing the best football. Saturday's display gives us all ground to believe that perhaps the players have now realised this.

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