Is it time to believe? by Dan Smith
Okay, I been burnt so many times that Arsenal will have to lift the title for me to ever be fully confident that we will be Champions.
Yet there are moments in seasons where you look back on and say that was the moment everyone believed.
A point against Man United wouldn’t have been the end of the world. It certainly wouldn’t have been the consequence of the pressure impacting the players.
It simply would have been a 2-2 draw out of a high-quality encounter.
It would have been, though, two successive home draws, inviting the theory that we don’t have the bench that Man City have to change games.
It would have also meant our lead over the Champions was reduced to three points (with a game in hand).
If we get to March or April and it’s still a tight race, Pep Guardiola’s men have the advantage due to simply knowing how to get over the line.
The Gunners still with the youngest squad in the division, couldn’t handle the pressure of a top 4 race last season, so it would be asking a lot to ask the majority of the same squad to cope with the expectation of a title race.
That’s why our late goal was celebrated like it was on Sunday.
It maintains our breathing space over the chasing pack, our most likely route to being Champions.
Like Leicester’s triumph, our mostly likely route to success is to keep winning and maybe in the end zero pressure is put on us?
I invited Eddie Nketiah to prove me wrong and he continues to do so, but not just with his goals.
He now has a presence about him, like he believes he belongs on this stage .
As he was keeping the ball in the corner, 60-000 were chanting his name. He needed an afternoon like this to feel a part of the furniture.
It’s rare to say this about a left back but Zinchenko has changed so much about the club on off the pitch.
His tactical understanding is world class, knowing when to step into midfield.
If there was one criticism about our attack in the later stages was it became too obvious, players taking the extra touch when it was not needed.
For our third, the Ukrainian didn’t.
How he celebrates is contagious, you would think he’s a lifetime gooner, and not some player who’s only be associated with the club since the summer.
This is one of the few players who in our dressing room knows how to win and as he roared into the North London sky, he knew the significance of that victory and it’s manner.
All I ever wanted was Arsenal to try and be the best version of themselves.
That’s why I said 8th was unacceptable and 5th was not progress.
That’s Liverpool and United now, who in the final parts of the game we simply had pushed back, where our attacks were so constant they buckled, they could only clear to the half way line and we would be back in their faces.
It’s been years since we had this mentality.
I always said comforts can save your life.
I have been in hospital over New Year and yet my one constant when everything else is upside down keeps going.
That’s the beauty of sport, anything can happen, and at times it’s like Shakespeare wrote a play.
Is this the game where we look back on and say that was the moment we believed?
Dan Smith
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