St Andrews, 2.46pm February 23rd 2008
Arsenal had bounced back from the disappointment of their 4-0 defeat to Manchester United in the FA Cup, and recovered from the initial shock of seeing Eduardo Da Silva’s leg splinter, They’d turned around a goal deficit and were heading for a hard-fought victory, and probably the Premiership title too. Or so it seemed as Arsenal led by two goals to one, a minute away from opening an eight point gap at the top of the Premier League. But what a difference a minute can make.

2.47pm: In one last throw of the dice for his team, Birmingham’s defender Stuart Parnaby bursts into the Arsenal box. Arsenal fans’ hearts are in their mouths, Parnaby was clear on goal. Somehow, though, Gail Clichy springs to their rescue, toe poking the ball away from danger with a left-footed jab across Parnaby’s body. But before Arsenal hearts could find their way down again, the shrill ‘peeeet’ of Mike Dean’s whistle has broken them: their hearts, and their team’s momentum. Penalty! James McFadden stepped up to score the last-gasp equaliser and Arsenal- having won their last 4 Premiership games - suddenly plummeted into a tailspin, with 3 consecutive draws and a defeat following.

In hindsight, Arsenal might not have tailspinned quite so drastically had the man at the rudder, captain William Gallas, shown greater leadership qualities in the aftermath of this incident. Nevertheless, the damage was done, Birmingham had dented Arsenal’s title chances beyond repair, something they would come to repeat wo years later when Arsenal arrived in Birmingham under similar circumstances in March of 2010.

Again Arsenal had built up a good head of steam going into the game (having won all their six previous league games). Again they were very much in the mix for the title chase: this time just two points behind leaders United. But once more the wheels would fall off their title-charge at the last possible moment. With injury time ticking away, Kevin Philips, with practically his first action of the game, directed Sagna’s attempted clearance goalwards with what looked like a combination of chest and face. Manuel Almunia parried it upwards only to see it loop tauntingly over his head, forcing the Spanish goalkeeper to scurry backwards in a desperate attempt to claw the ball off the goal line. It was too little, too late though: for Arsenal and Almunia at least, because Birmingham City had arrived fashionably late to gatecrash Arsenal’s party once more.

And to rub salt in the wounds (or deep-heat maybe) Arsenal were, as in 2008, again left nursing injuries to one of their key players. Wenger famously lost his cool in the post-match interview blurting out "Come on, leave me alone with that for f***'s sake” in response to journalists pressing him on whether he felt Birmingham had deliberately set out to hurt his players. Fabregas had taken a knock below the knee that would put his fitness in doubt for the Barcelona home leg four days later but Arsenal’s title challenge had received a mortal blow.

In the end Fabregas would return for the thrilling 2-2 encounter with Barcelona, but it would prove to be his last involvement for the club that season. The then skipper was discovered to have a fracture of his leg after the game. One that may well have had its origin in that fateful Birmingham match. Wenger later revealed that the “inflammation was certainly there on the bone but there was no medical reason to stop him from playing (against Barcelona). It was bruised and inflamed and maybe it gave away."

Arsenal held on for a scrappy 1-0 win in the following fixture but collapse inevitably ensued, as that win against Wolves was then followed by just one win and a draw from their remaining six games of the season.

So it will be with a sense of foreboding, as well as, of course, a fierce appetite for success (if not revenge) that Arsenal approach this Sunday’s Carling Cup final clash with Birmingham. After all, yet again the same circumstances seem to have fallen into place: Arsenal arrive in excellent form: unbeaten in 11 and very much in the hunt for silverware (only this time silverware is immediately in grasp).

Most of the cast will reassemble too, and not just from the Arsenal perspective either. Yes: Almunia, Sagna, Clichy, Denilson, Bendtner, Fabregas, and Walcott were all present for that fateful 2008 encounter but so too were Birmingham’s Maik Taylor, Ridgewell, Larsson, Johnson, McFadden, Parnaby Jerome and of course Alexander Hleb. And furthermore, according to Carling’s website, Mike Dean will also return as referee.

There are yet more familiar faces if you consider the line-ups fielded in the 2010 fixture. With the major difference being perhaps upfront, where Birmingham can now rely on Obafami Martins and Nicola Zigic, whilst Arsenal will hope Robin Van Persie can return to fitness in time to feature on Sunday (something that has now been discounted for Fabregas and Walcott and looks increasingly unlikely for Birmingham’s Alexander Hleb).

Having played in the three games leading up to the final, and scored in their last (a 3-0 F.A Cup win against Sheffield Wednesday) it seems likely Obafami Martins will start for Birmingham on Sunday. The Nigerian striker himself isn’t so sure though: “whether I have done enough to start in the final, I don’t know” he says. But his appetite for a goal at Wembley is certainly not in question -‘If I score in the Carling Cup final. I think I'll try and do 10 somersaults, maybe more than that!"

But Arsenal’s youthful squad might well triple that somersault count if they can finally clear the hurdle upon which twice now they’ve fallen, if they can lift the first trophy for their club in six years (the first ever club trophy for the vast majority of the players!). If they can do that, then perhaps rather like José Mourinho’s Chelsea or the 2006 Manchester United side they’ll finally find the confidence and self-belief that converts good teams into winners. But to do all of that, first Arsenal must beat the Birmingham ‘Blues’.

Twitter:@benvenceremos