Well it appears the young ones have turned a corner. They are now playing to the potential that Le Boss has believed in for years. Everyone at the club is saying this is the season where it will all come together and the four years of ‘training’ will really pay off. We saw how we played United off the park recently, but as usual, we leave with nothing. I for one am sitting on the fence. I think it’s possible for us to do great things this year, however we should have still spent some of that City cash.

Wenger recently stated that buying players isn’t the answer to everything (actually he’s been saying this frequently for a decade), and to some degree this is true. He stated that when you bring in three or more new faces to the changing room, you take a ‘technical gamble’ and when you look at teams like Real Madrid who’ve been splashing the cash for years with no real successful return, you can see what he means. However, whilst I believe that our first choice 11 can outplay any team on their day and could sweep the board, we know we are going to get injuries.

The new partnership of Vermaelen and Gallas looks simply awesome. True, the opposition so far hasn’t exactly been world class, but they had a much stronger test when we visited Old Trafford, and their performances were fantastic. United didn’t manage to penetrate them once. No, our downfall was through Almunia’s awful inability to judge a situation. I actually believe he was at fault for both goals, as any commanding goalkeeper wouldn’t have left Diaby to have that moment of madness that lead to our self-destruction, but would have snatched the ball out of the air. The ‘Almunia experiment’ needs to end and a real world class keeper needs to be purchased.

If either Gallas or Vermaelen get injured, and I assure you this will happen at some point, who can we really bring in? Whilst I think Djourou will be world class, it is far too early to be piping him against the world elite (this submitted before his international injury – Ed), and as for Senderos, well we know what happens to him when the big guns come to town. So a solid centre back that will have the steel and experience to come in when called upon is a must. I cannot understand why we didn’t buy Newcastle’s Steven Taylor on the last day of the transfer window. Taylor is a young, no nonsense, English brute and this guy would have been more than happy to wait to fill the boots of Gallas when he’s ready.

I have to say I am delighted with the squad of midfielders we have. I will put my neck out and say that it is the best in the country. We have ample players that can play in the midfield and do the job. On the wings we may be a little lightweight but Arshavin’s constant ability to dazzle and with players like Rosicky, Nasri and Walcott all to come back, it needs no addressing. The new formation is obviously doing wonders for the midfield, as goals are flying in from everywhere. However, in the centre of midfield we need one more defensive midfielder. Song has been an absolute revelation and has really fitted the bill as the partner for Fabregas we so strongly needed. However when he departs for the African Cup of Nations, we will be struggling to fill that void. Hopefully, this position will be filled in the January transfer window when Song leaves us for eight weeks.

We seem to be a little thin where goalscorers are concerned. If both Van Persie and Eduardo cannot stay fit for the whole season, I can see a problem. Watching the United match was more than frustrating, as the build up play was awesome, but we appeared to not have anyone to grab the bull by the horns and kill the game. We need someone up front who is a real match winner. I hate to say it, but we haven’t had one of these since Henry left for sunny Spain. Every single other team in the top four have one. United have Rooney, Chelsea have Drogba (and Anelka for that matter) and Liverpool have Torres. Our closest striker to these three is Van Persie. He has the ability to be as good as anyone, but if he gets injured, which is likely, we do not have anyone to fill the void. True, Bendtner looks to have improved, but is far more effective as an impact player, to muscle defenders and provide the final ball, not as an instinctive striker. I am a great lover of Eduardo. His finishing, pace and skill can be frightening, however we need a strong out and out goalscorer with strength and height.

It’s clear that Wenger had to wait until Champions League football was 100% guaranteed before spending the Man City millions. But I think it is madness that none of this money was spent at all. Whilst spending isn’t always the solution it seems to have worked out well for all the other teams so far. The frustrating part of these transfer windows is that before a single million is spent, we all say in the stands that three or more players need to be brought in, even if nobody is sold. But to sell two big figures (whatever you think of Adebayor or Toure , you cannot be ignorant of their ability) and to buy one centre back seems a little small-minded for a club of our stature. Only time will tell if ‘Arsene Knows’ or if we have been short-changed this summer.