Twice Arsenal showed real character in this fixture, at the end of which, this observer feels like he has witnessed something new from this group of players. Just short of half an hour into the game against Stoke, the Gunners began battling back, Gael Clichy going in for a header with all of his strength and informing his opposite number that he was on the pitch and ready to battle. It was symptomatic of a period of play that led to the visitors’ equaliser. The first Groundhog Day moment had come with Stoke’s opening goal, which I won’t dwell upon, suffice it to say it surprised no-one.

However Bendtner’s leveller made a game of it and as the second half wore on the home side unquestionably looked the more jaded, doubtless largely due to their midweek cup replay exertions. Then the Aaron Ramsey injury. Thanks to Ian Tanner for providing some context to this. He texted me to say ‘Shawcross attacked Barndoor last season from behind and off the pitch and was not even booked (RVP was later sent off)’. That particular assault came back to me. Adebayor had shepherded the ball off for a throw-in and, even though the ball was dead, Shawcross lunged in and took the then Arsenal forward off his feet from behind. It was a cynical and unnecessary challenge that the referee that afternoon did not even warrant as a yellow card offence. However, it says a lot about what was in Shawcross’ mind when he went into the challenge with Ramsey. As Andoni Goikoetxea became ‘the Butcher of Bilbao’ after assaults on Diego Maradona and Bernd Schuster – two flair players – in the Spanish league, so Ryan Shawcross has become the Bastard of the Britannia.

The English media will point to how upset he was and what a good English pro he is. Will they be showing replays of his assault on Adebayor in November 2008? The man is exactly the kind of wreckless thug who should be drummed out of the sport, but is actually encouraged at places like Stoke, Sunderland, Birmingham and Bolton. He was probably crying about his red card and the three games he will miss. I haven’t read the ‘The lad’s inconsolable’ quote from Tony Pulis yet, but I’m sure it’ll be there when I read the reports of the post-match press conference. F*** off Tony Pulis and well played Cesc Fabregas for telling the Stoke boss to shut his hypocritical mouth when he had the audacity to complain when our captain hacked down a Stoke player. You can’t have your cake and eat it pal.

The second Groundhog Day moment was obviously Ramsey’s (assumed) broken leg. All that can be hoped is that the break is a clean one and that the lad recovers. The match went predictably flat for a few minutes after he was loaded into an ambulance. In 2008, Arsenal did rally from Eduardo’s injury to take the lead in the second half at Birmingham, but ultimately the late concession of two points became a turning point in the campaign, and the team never recovered.

However, on this occasion, Arsenal were able to establish a lead and hang onto it, and this was the second time that they showed immense character. It took real balls for Cesc Fabregas to step up and take such a pressure penalty under the circumstances, but the goal he scored was a moment of affirmation. The Gunners’ winning the game – that was already so vital to the season even before Chelsea’s defeat to Man City, and then losing Aaron Ramsey until at least the following campaign – suddenly developed even bigger significance, real make or break for this season, perhaps even for this generation of players. Time will tell.

But in a horrible kind of way, they needed something like this to set them up to battle with real purpose in the games ahead. There is talk of an easier run-in on paper, but when every match becomes a must win fixture, it’s all about determination, focus and attitude. The players had to get it from somewhere and the adversity of this victory might be what galvanises them and actually gives them the fighting spirit to go on the necessary run of victories at places like St Andrews and White Hart Lane.

I like the sentiment of the notion of ‘doing it for Aaron’, but in reality that idea did very little after the Birmingham match in 2008. What is more of a factor is the drawing on reserves of character to overcome injustice, to battle against the odds and triumph in adversity. It’s what makes boys become men, and this misfortune might just provide the spur. The table certainly offers hope, but so does the response of Arsenal to win at the Britannia. It’s backs to the wall and a siege mentality from here on. And in the seasons that this club has triumphed in the league, that is usually the story. This has nothing to do with the beautiful game and everything to do with winning your battles. Aaron Ramsey’s broken leg is a very unfortunate incident, but the response on the pitch might just be a turning point in a very weird football season.