There were thousands of unhappy Arsenal fans in the early stages of last season when the Gunners were hovering in mid table alongside our London rivals Chelsea.
Of course Arsenal fans were clamouring for Mikel Arteta to be sacked as the results just got worse and worse, but with Chelsea in the same boat, Roman Abramovich sacked Frank Lampard and brought in Thomas Tuchel.
The Blues started climbing the table and eventually ended up in the Top Four, while Arsenal were barely hanging on to the top half of the table. Then to add insult to injury Chelsea went on to be European Champions!
Of course it is possible that Arsenal may have been rejuvenated by a change of manager, but we all know that realistically the club was in such a state of disarray I doubt even Tuchel could have got us into the Top Four.
But we did have one bit of pleasure from Chelsea last season when, against all the odds, we broke a 7-game winless run by beating the Blues on Boxing Day, and then completed an unlikely double at Stamford Bridge in May.
Before last season’s Double, our previous meeting was in the FA Cup Final the previous season, where yet again we were massive underdogs but still managed to give Mikel Arteta his first trophy as a manager.
That gives Arteta a hat-trick of crucial wins against our rivals, and he will be keen to carry that on again today.
We have scored four goals in our last two pre-season friendlies, and wouldn’t I love to see Arsenal do that again today against Chelsea!
But remember, today’s game is not about the points, it is about getting minutes and fitness to prepare for the new season, but when Chelsea return to the Emirates in three weeks time in the League, we will be cheering on the Gunners as if our life depended on it….