The observations about Blackburn’s style of play may not be far off the mark; it’s physical, it’s not pretty to watch. To read the reaction to Sunday’s game, you would think that they had taken to the pitch with machetes, guns and other weapons of their choice. The truth is though it was frustration at our performance. Their style of play suits them. It is not pretty, it is not popular and is punished when outside of the rules. It does not bring them trophies nor does it bring full houses to Ewood Park every home game as a lot of other Premiership teams play to. It is however something we have to live with and find a way to overcome. We have done so regularly in the past; the reputation Arsenal currently have is that the players do not ‘like it up ‘em‘ so against a technically inferior team, as they admit, that is a style of play that we have to strive to overcome.

The failing on Sunday though was that having shown them we were up for the physical aspect, we did not take charge of the game technically. Perhaps it was due to injuries but that cannot be the sole cause. Gallas’ early and untimely departure from the pitch would not have helped, disrupting the team momentarily but Senderos came into the fray, performed his role and played well. However, it is that next step from physical to technical that was missing. The platform was there with an early, scrappy goal scored; we just did not build on it, particularly in the second half where possession was conceded to Rovers too readily. That is the role that Gilberto has fulfilled and has not been covered in his absence, Flamini a willing worker but unable to impose himself on the game in a similar manner. That Gilberto is missing due to FIFA’s inability to schedule an International calendar correctly – why sanction an International Tournament in a Close season directly after a World Cup and preceding another? – makes it all the more the galling and accentuates an acute loss to his Club. That is where Arsene’s focus has to be because maybe a dozen Clubs have noted the outcome.

Media friendly words such as ‘violent’ give writers their headlines and direct the story of the match as Arsene wants. It backfires though because it draws attention dynamically to the oppositions methodology and highlights the fact that it worked in getting them a point from a match they would in analysis beforehand have thoroughly welcomed.

Dennis Bergkamp has been nominated for inclusion in the National Football Museum’s Hall Of Fame. There are apparently six others on the shortlist of a Viewer Vote from Football Focus. The site only mentions their clubs which are Liverpool, Tottenham, Manchester United, West Ham, Sunderland, Huddersfield Town and Everton but those clubs, at the time of writing, had chosen not to include the news on their sites so you are none the wiser. Short of any England World Cup Winners being there and riding the wave of Nationalistic Pride, it is hard to see how anyone can fail to vote for Bergkamp. Certainly in the top three of the most skilful players to appear on these shores, he was technically on another planet to almost everyone who has appeared in the Premiership. He was no Angel on the pitch but that aspect aside, he is a player who should be held up as an example to those coming through the ranks. Do you ever recall seeing an ‘expose’ on lewd behaviour? Did he sell his soul to a rag mag for his family to be hawked around like meat? No; he did not seek the limelight away from the pitch, showing how vacuous todays Generation of footballers really are. That he should be put into a Viewer Vote is beyond me – surely his contribution is meritous in its own right for his own inclusion, especially when you look at some of the names of those who have already been inducted.

There is some surprise that Arsene has announced that he is not averse to signing new players but that there are no immediate candidates out there. On the transfer front, surely we did not expect him to say that new faces were imminent? He rarely comments before the deal is done and little, if anything, should be read into his apparent ambivalence. Keeping these actions quiet is his style and benefits the Club, in that hype does not push the prices higher. It is also his way of countering the clamour that builds every Summer towards the closure of the transfer window, deflating expectations of the support over new faces coming in. I would be surprised if anyone did join, more likely that any changes occur in January. It is not what you might want to read but it is the likelihood. The only thing that may change his mind is injury, if one of those suffering now is worse than believed. There has been comment about the wisdom of letting Djourou go with Gallas out. As his is a relatively short term absence, there appears to be sufficient cover. There is no guarantee that Djourou would have been fit in any case, he missed Birmingham’s defeat at the weekend having failed a fitness test.

’til Tomorrow.