Here’s a line-up for you: Buffon – Pessotto, Thuram, Cannavaro, Zambrotta – Mutu, Emerson, Nedved – Del Pierro – Ibrahimovic, Trezeguet. Okay, it’s a 4-3-1-2. And more realistically, Mutu would lose out and Italian international Blasi would come in, but the long and short of it is your answer to the next two questions: Is such a line-up capable of keeping a clean sheet at home? Could such a line-up score twice against Arsenal in 90 minutes.

I’d be surprised if your answers were at the very least a maybe. And to my mind such a scenario is very possible. It means that although the odds are definitely in the Gunners’ favour, the job is very much only half done. So let’s not get carried away about a semi-final appearance and just celebrate the 90 minutes of football witnessed at Highbury last night.

Arsenal were superb. The stakes were high and the pressure on and to a man the team did not disappoint. Cesc is obviously the headline maker and rightly so. His involvement in both goals actually demonstrated that Arsenal are now a very different beast from the days of Patrick Vieira, and one wonders if Cesc had been played centrally in last season’s FA Cup Final, as opposed to on the right wing, whether a penalty shoot-out would have been needed. Remember also that when Vieira was injured for the early part of the 2004-05 season, as Arsenal established their 49 match unbeaten record playing some breathtaking football, the central midfield consisted of Cesc and Gilberto.

Conclusion – as a player who wanted to get forward as well as cover the defence, Patrick Vieira was holding Fabregas back. They are different types of players – Cesc so much more creative, and in a sense, Arsenal are not so solid now (as the Premiership away displays have established). But when they click and are on their game, the team is beginning to look even more irresistible in every sense of the word.

There were massive performances all over the pitch. I feared that with the absence of Freddie Ljungberg, we’d prove a little lightweight. But Pires was immense – beating Vieira on the floor and in the air. Where has this player been? Forced, positionally, into the fray, Bobby showed that he does have the right stuff if required. A wonder to behold (although cynics have suggested the opportunity of a fat contract and signing on fee in Spain or Italy in the summer might have inspired his performance). I’d put the disappointing display of Patrick Vieira down to the fact that his opponents have played him thousands of times on the training pitch, and pretty much knew how to nullify him. There was no surprise factor. But the guy is still a winner. His reaction to the defeat – it hurt the man – shows how much winning means to him. The irony now is that he must sit in the stands next week and potentially witness the reason for his wanting to get away from Arsenal be turned on its head.

His former partner Gilberto did his usual trick of losing possession about three times to the catcalls of the Highbury crowd, but the Brazilian’s performance was actually immense. For once, the invisible wall came good. With the luxury of two partners in central midfield, the number 19 dropped back and shielded the defence so many times that it proved a critical factor in the limited number of chances the visitors enjoyed. I could go on about every one of the back four and indeed every Arsenal player, but you presumably saw it all for yourself. The Gunners at the top of their game.

What I also see, partially because of the youth of the side, is real desire, real hunger. These guys were working their socks off to close down space when Juve had the ball and I can’t help thinking that the Pompey postponement may have been the best thing that could have happened in this respect. The proposed re-scheduling in the event of progress to the semis means the prospect of a final Premiership week with games away to Sunderland (Monday), at Man City (Thursday) and finally the Highbury farewell v Wigan (Sunday). It’s not ideal, but if you just imagine those days to be Sunday, Wednesday and Saturday, it’s difficult to believe Arsenal have not played such a schedule before.

Let’s just hope that we have such fixture congestion to worry about as it will mean Arsenal have made the last four and got past Juventus. Before I finish, a word for the referees in the last three European matches. I know some have been critical of the Italian who took charge of the Real Madrid v Arsenal match, but for me all three have been top notch, and totally unbiased. The standard of officiating – and specifically not blowing up for every piece of minor contact – has made the games a joy to witness. Here’s hoping that the ref at the Stadio Delli Alpi next week puts in such a good performance.