Great news! I am going to the North London derby! As a red member getting tickets to the big games is always a challenge, especially when they are released at 10am you are waiting in the never ending online queue. However to my horror I set my alarm for 10.15 my mistake! Nice to see that they have updated the process slightly and after much persistence a ticket finally came up in the Clock End. £55 is a bit steep I agree but watching us beat Tottenham is always priceless. Also it is one of the few times in a season where Arsenal’s stadium is truly rocking.

Much talk about Wilshere's red card - and it is true that at the moment his tackling ability is a little like Paul Scholes - it is always a mystery to me how such a talented player never learnt how to time a challenge. However with experience, Wilshire will hopefully his curb his overenthusiasm. Many pundits failed to mention the treatment he received from Zigic, so it did seem as if Wilshere opted for old fashioned retaliation. Alex McLeish himself pointed out Arsenal are no soft touch, I recall Nasri, Squillaci and Djourou putting in a few tasty challenges last Saturday; long may it continue. The great Arsenal sides of yesteryear were always happy to mix it up with the opposition. It seems as if around 2005 we began to soften and opponents quickly caught on to this. Perhaps in part to the departures of Keown, Vieira and Parlour this was never rectified, but it does look as if the new breed are prepared to stand up or themselves. Look at the evidence, three red cards already this season.

Birmingham was a tough game, more so than the Tuesday Champions League tie against Shakhtar who tried to play football against us and were punished. Good to see El Capitano back, Wenger obviously sees plenty of potential in his partnership with Wilshere. If we can keep Fabregas fit for a whole season we have a very good chance of reclaiming some silverware. Eboue has been an able stand-in for Sagna and seems to offer more energy going forward. Depending on how long Sagna is out for, an extended run for Eboue in his preferred right back position will be very interesting.

Much debate on the relative usefulness of Diaby, fans either love him or loathe him. I stand in the mostly love him section, his best play often comes between the halfway line and the opponents box, however his final ball and hesitancy on Saturday was very frustrating. Interestingly Wenger left him out on Tuesday, but I do see him lining up on Sunday at City, especially in Jack's absence.

The City game will be tough, they tend to raise their performance against the best teams. They are strong and physical, yet have the attacking flair to finish teams, I expect an open contest, and see us ending our poor run of form at Eastlands. It is a must win game if we are serious about winning the title.

Fabianski continues to do ok. Four games and no howlers, the bigger mystery is whether Almunia is actually injured. Good to see Chesney at least getting on the bench now and following Mannone's rant, he has been shipped off to Hull on loan. Good luck Don Vito.

The Vermaelen mystery continues, looks like another three weeks. My bet is he will be back in January at best. However all three central defenders have looked fine in his absence. RVP also will be back in November, yet with Chamakh's form he has yet to be truly missed.