Peter Kenyon is never knowingly shy about blowing his own trumpet; this time in dismissing the chances of Liverpool and Arsenal for the title, he has done part of Benitez and Wenger’s motivational aims for them.

They [Arsenal] are one of the top four. We always see Liverpool as a threat but you have got to see Manchester United as the No1 threat. It is between us and United

If he seriously believes that, I say Bring It On. Whilst the other three have brought in new ‘headline grabbing’ players, it is noticeable that the dimissal of Arsenal is because of a different mentality, the inability to see that a squad can grow together. Which in Kenyon’s case is a surprising blindspot having seen what Ferguson achieved in the late 90’s with a young(ish) squad.

The squad been put together is not just about the next nine months nor is the one at Old Trafford. In both cases, there is a strong sense that these players could be together for a number of years. In the case of Arsenal, it is sense that the players could re-introduce ‘loyalty’ to a club over a period of time, an element that has been rapidly disappearing from the English game over the past twenty years at the big clubs. At Stamford Bridge, there is a sense of the ‘mercenary’ footballer, money is the overriding loyalty. That is the way Chelsea choose to operate, their business plan if you like. But it is something that requires three or four new faces each Summer. It is also a breeding ground for discontent in the long term for whilst the money may placate the lack of playing time, there is a continuing ‘Bogarde’ element in their squad, players who cannot possibly play regularly enough to obtain career fulfilment. The medals that are won do mean something but if you only participate in the minimum number of games, there is a hollowness to their adornment. It is a business plan that cannot be argued with in the short term though as it has brought two Premierships and an FA Cup but is it of any use in the long term? In that it buys them time to develop a youth system, yes although the likelihood of Chelsea breaking even by the end of the 2009-10 season diminishes because of the nature of their operation; the player purchases continue until a sustained chain of youth comes through the ranks. The past two seasons have seen them use the ‘free transfer’ market well but that is limited with Clubs tying players to longer contracts, negating the effect of FIFA Contractual Rulings in recent years. Moreover, the ‘Lyon’ methodology of increasing transfer fees once Chelsea are interested diverts profits to someone else.

So it is interesting to see a wave of optimism amongst Arsenal supporters when you would expect the opposite effect to take place with Henry’s departure. Gone is the ‘talismanic’ forward of yesteryear, in is a forward line that is young and potentially full of goals. It is a word used frequently about the squad, they have the ‘potential’ to do everything but equally nothing. However, having seen in the past two seasons how they have coped with the testing circumstances that injuries have thrown up and a move to a new ground this explains in part the encouraging mood. To retain a top four place is an achievement in itself but the previous decade had raised the expectations to an extraordinary level compared to those of the preceding half a century. Some have no truck with the view that we have achieved in the last two seasons, the word ‘under’ would be prefixed. And there is truth in that view but only because of the immediate past.

So to the coming season. There was a lot of comment about the goals in the squad. To be honest that is not the area of concern for me. For a talented bunch of individuals, the defence remained just that last season. Even when a rare clean sheet was kept, there was a sense that is was achieved more by luck than judgement. Injuries played their part but the lack of understanding was there all season, even when you had the experienced Centre Back pairing of Toure and Gallas in two. It takes time for that to be built and Gallas’ spells on the sidelines undermined this process. In the event though, it was a collective weakness despite consistency from Toure and Clichy. Too often goals were conceded by lapses in concentration, too often home games were chased rather than directed. It is this has to be eradicated. Until the forward line is proven to be firing (and I do not expect Eduardo to score consistently until Autumn with the ‘bedding in’ that has to take place), the defence must get back into the habit of not conceding. If more clean sheets had been kept then third would have been clearly won with Liverpool’s ‘European’ strategy being followed and second would not have been unfeasible.

For me, the defence will be the key to a successful season which is an almost perverse way of looking at the most attack minded squad in the Division. Yet without a return to the habits of old, no amount of attack will solve the problem.