The sight of Gael Clichy walking back to get into position in the last 10 minutes of last night’s game after yet another blistering run was enough for me. He is shattered. I fear he has hit a wall and must along with Cesc, Mathieu, Adebayor and Hleb be rested for this Saturday’s league game.

Play the stiffs and get the crowd behind them, Liverpool will rest most of their team ready for the push in the last 20 minutes of next Tuesday’s return leg at Anfield. The title has gone - it went at St Andrews - but the Champions League has not. It will be a tough ask yet we can get past Liverpool… but only with another high energy flat out performance and Gael and many others will need “a blow”, a weekend off, a trip to Alton Towers, anything but another game of football.

Anfield next week is like Anfield 89 in only one way, we must not let in a goal. 0-0 at half time is the grand plan and then a goal in the latter part of the second half, because even if Kuyt’s father had given us the penalty last night, a 2-1 win is no different in my opinion to 1-1. Liverpool still need a goal next week. That might change if the score is 0-0 with 20 minutes, and should they shut up shop it could let us in.

We have all done the sums this morning but one thing I hope is that Arsene forgets the title and concentrates on a possibility and not waste our players energy on the “cat in hell’s chance” that is the league.