Don't like it up 'em

What a mixed weekend it was for Arsenal. Chelsea lost with two sending offs, three points were taken from the Britannia Stadium and the gap to the top was reduced to just three points but all that was overshadowed by 19-year-old Aaron Ramsey suffering a horror injury.

This, rightly so, took the headlines, in particular what Arsène Wenger had to say on the matter. He was his typical emotive self after the match; only stopping short of saying it was a malicious tackle, which it wasn't. He did say that after three serious potentially career-threatening injuries, you cannot say it is just coincidence, a lot has to go down to the "Arsenal don't like it up em" theory. I think he is spot on.

Before games such as Stoke away, Bolton away and Blackburn away the same old questions are trotted out, about how Arsenal can cope with the physical side of the game etc etc. While players don't 99 per cent of the time go into tackles with malice a fore thought, these kind of questions and media furore get into the minds of players and before you know it, your going into a tackle stronger than you might normally.

There is no bias here, it is clear for all to see that Arsenal get a tougher treatment than most other teams in the Premiership. All because there is this belief that you can beat Arsenal if you make yourself more physical, a belief that had led to three serious injuries in the past 4 or 5 years.

Arsenal have lost six times this season, five of those six have come against the other teams in the top four at the moment, doesn't that show that it's time that theory is no longer rolled out every time we go up North to these more battle ready sides.

I don't believe Shawcross meant to do that kind of harm to Ramsey and I don't think Martin Taylor had any intent in the Eduardo incident but I do not need the stories about how nice these players are, they made the tackles, they inflicted the injuries so it really doesn't matter if it's their first red or if they are the nicest people you'll ever meet.

The only reason you can give for these awful tackles and others that have happened in the past, is the idea behind the game plan. Get in their faces, show them they're in a game, all phrases I would not be surprised to hear were used on Saturday. It puts the idea in their head that they can be more physical than they might normally be. The talk about it before the game in the press only adds to this theory and the likelihood that someone will take it that step too far.

On the positive side, two years ago almost to the day, Arsenal crumbled after Eduardo was injured at St. Andrews, probably losing the title that day. On Sunday the opposite happened, Arsenal showed their mental strength, their determinedness to win that they've shown all season long.

Suddenly the title looks like a real possibility given the fixture list and the real grit Arsenal have shown this season, even Alan Hanson had to admit this on Match of the Day. The nature of Saturdays win just exemplifies how bad the side want this title this year and could the injury suffered by Aaron be the inspiration that the squad needs to bring the title back to his bedside.

Unlike two years ago in a similar position where the injury got to them in a negative sense, the likes of Clichy, Fabregas, Vermaelen and co looked even more determined to get the win and hopefully if this continues for just ten more games could we finally fill that space inside Emirates Stadium left after 2005?

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