There is a lot of negativity surrounding Arsenal and to some extent, it is justified but I get the feeling that memories are short and too narrowly focussed.
By that, I mean that everything is judged by the end of season form, the last seven games in particular.
Up to that point, the season had been far better than any Arsenal fan could have expected, if they are being honest with themselves that is.
If before the season had started we were told that after the 31st game we would be third in the Premier League and on route to the Europa League final we would have laughed such was the pessimism pre-season.
Lack of consistency cannot really be levelled at the team either, there were a couple of very decent unbeaten runs and as for our away record, well, we were consistently bad there.
You do not beat Tottenham, Chelsea and Man Utd if you are a poor team, you do not reach the Europa League final beating both Valencia and Napoli on the way if you are useless, you do not stand toe to toe with Liverpool, albeit in just one game and a thrashing in the other, if you are not fit for purpose.
And all this on the back of a new culture, new signings, new manager and let’s be fair, a hostile fan base.
Remember Pep Guardiola’s first season in charge of Manchester City and Jurgen Klopp’s at Liverpool and yes they spent heavily after that but Unai Emery has not even been given a chance yet at a second season and so how he can be judged I do not know.
Did he make tactical errors? Yes, did he make team selection errors? Yes
But were they worse than what Guardiola did in the first leg against Tottenham in the Champions League quarter-finals?
Or for that matter, Mauricio Pochettino in the Champions League final picking a clearly unfit Harry Kane?
All managers make errors and in their first season in a league that they have zero experience in they are guaranteed to make mistakes.
No one knows what sort of team Emery will utilise next season, will it have youth promoted, will there be new signings, will he reinvigorate Ozil and Mkhitaryan, will he find the best position for Iwobi, will he turn the form of Mustafi around and so on.
You simply cannot judge Emery on his first season, it is unfair and unrealistic.
This Arsenal team is nowhere near as bad as some are making it out to be. If they were then how the hell did they get to third in the first place before the collapse and how the hell did they get to a European final.
Two bad results, the home draw against Brighton and the Europa League final are all that separates this team from being a bloody useless lot and a team that punched above their weight, just two games.
Well, that is ridiculous, the season is 60 games long including Cup competitions and you do not jump from being a successful team to a useless one because of just two results.
We more or less have the same players and with some strengthening in key areas and with players like Torreira, Guendouzi and even Maitland-Niles almost certain to be better off for their Premier League debut seasons, as well as the experience that Emery will have gained there is every reason to believe Arsenal will progress next season.
Some serious perspective is required, patience is definitely required and memories that do not just focus on the last few games of the season.