I try to avoid anyone else’s analysis of Arsenal’s games before expressing my own, but I was compelled to watch ‘Match of the Day’ last night. And the analysis of Arsene Wenger’s midfield when the opposition had possession was horrifying. The lack of ability to help out the defence has always been apparent, but to see it laid bare in this fashion was like watching a dissection in a mortuary.

Alan Hansen expressed the belief that the club won’t challenge for the title again until the philosophy changes. And his famous line all those years ago about never winning anything with kids holds true – the United side of which he spoke was stuffed with youngsters for one game. But it was the return of the old heads that secured them a double by the end of that season.

My own conclusion after yesterday’s match was a very simple one. Too many Arsenal players are not good enough. As Chelsea had ambitions of their own to take the game to the Gunners, there was plenty of space to create chances for the home side, and this they did. However, once the goalscoring opportunities presented themselves, what was required were footballers of requisite quality to place the ball between the two white sticks with enough precision to beat the keeper. Might I suggest that a number of the first team squad start staying behind for some extra afternoon training to practice the fine art of shooting?

Theo Walcott has signed a new contract. The only upside of this is that it ensures the club can maximize his selling fee to some mug who watched his hat-trick v Croatia and believes there is ever likely to be a repeat, because I don’t. The number of promising situations he fluffs makes for painful viewing. He gets so many chances that inevitably, he will score or set up the odd goal, but the bottom line is that he is about raw pace and very little else. Sell him. As soon as possible. I’ve said before I wanted to be proved wrong, but my initial instincts were that this lad had no football brain. What significance he didn’t start kicking a ball about until he was 12?

Arsenal have six players of the necessary quality to compete for the title. Fabregas, Arshavin, Van Persie, Nasri, Eduardo, Gallas. I would accept an argument that they could get away with Sagna in the team, although he’s in a bad run of form at the moment. The two sides that have each beaten Wenger’s men twice recently have probably three times as many footballers of similar standard – and indeed in many cases better – in their squads.

And that is why Wenger’s third Arsenal team have reached their ceiling. They reached the last four of two cup competitions because they had manageable runs to the semis and – against Roma – got lucky. Such fortune could not hold out. Wenger wants to buy two experienced players in the summer to bolster his squad. How about selling some of those that have performed so inconsistently this season and buying a few more? This is no longer about evolution, it’s about revolution. The manager is starting to look very stupid with his pronouncements about his belief in the squad, wanting to keep this group of players together and how magnificent they will be. Arsenal’s main problem now is that the duds are being paid so much, no club in their right mind is going to pay them as much so we’re stuck with them and are going to have to endure this bunch of clowns for the foreseeable future.

Next year, Arshavin’s presence will be enough to ensure Arsenal continue to scrape into the top four and have a half decent run in Europe. But for him, the recent game at Anfield would have been another defeat in which the team conceded four goals. Wenger needs to get real and do something to address the incredulous defensive deficiencies of his team. So buying experienced organizers who will compete for crosses to line up in defence and players to patrol the area in front of it would be a start. Getting in someone on the coaching staff to specifically work on defending as a team would also help immensely. It’s an area that has been simply ignored and allowed to rot. The reliance in the past was on the players to have the necessary ability to work it out themselves. The current bunch are either too inexperienced or simply not mentally capable enough to do that.

So we are left with a summer ahead in which something has to change at Arsenal football club. Wenger’s contract runs until 2011. He won’t walk out. The board won’t sack him because the finances look a lot healthier than what we’re witnessing on the pitch when a half decent team is in opposition. Someone persuade this dreamer to move upstairs and let’s get someone in who can coach a football team to both defend and attack to a standard that justifies their wages. What I’d give to have Fabio Capello at the helm tomorrow…

Wenger has served the club well and has deserved the chance to try out his experiments. It’s failed. We are watching the collapse of a house of cards in progress and there is no chance of rebuilding. It’s all gone wrong. There comes a point when you have to say enough is enough. The rich men on the board aren’t going to dig into their own pockets to fund the acquisition of enough necessary and proven talent, and there is not going to be a rights issue that could raise the money to buy enough decent players that can overcome the handicap of the lack of any defensive coaching. One defeat against a top team is unfortunate. Four in less than a month is more than co-incidence. Arsene knows? It’s sad it’s going to end in tears, the only question now is how long we have to suffer the long goodbye.

The manager has a question and answer session with shareholders at the stadium on Thursday. I am looking forward to seeing that on Arsenal TV. The man has some serious explaining to do.