Despite the disappointment from most, if not all, Arsenal fans over the failure of the club to sign a single new outfield player in the summer transfer, there was also unanimous support for the manager over his decision to make the Czech Republic international number one Petr Cech his priority target.
We all knew that we were getting vast experience of the Premier League and, perhaps more importantly, trophy success along with the former Chelsea star´s undoubted talent on the pitch. And that was all soon making itself felt in the performances and results, despite the setback of Cech making two very rare errors in his first Premier League game as a Gunner.
The way that Cech and the whole team got over the shock and disappointment of that opening day has been really impressive and the keeper himself has explained just how they have managed it, with a great deal of hard work on the training field.
Cech clearly thinks that the hard hours have been well worth it and that the players are now very aware of their individual roles as well as how they all fit together to make the team as a whole tick.
He told Arsenal Player, “We started very well in the Community Shield, our first competitive game after we had a very good pre-season. Then the first league game came and we lost 2-0 at home. That’s possibly the worst start we can imagine, but we recovered from it and learnt from it.
“Since then we’ve been picking up points and as a team we’ve settled into the way we want to play. I think everybody understands their role within the team. People try to do their best every day to make sure we are ready to compete, and so far it’s been bringing the success.
“It’s [down to] the work ethic of the team. You never win things without going for it, without being focused, without being right in the training ground. So far, I have to say that the team are focused on what we are doing every day and I have to say that this is the key.
“You prepare every day and if you are really focused in what you are doing every day, then you give yourselves chances to win games. I believe that this team has that ability to be focused and ready to achieve. We are giving ourselves the chance to win every game.”
So will Arsene Wenger´s solitary summer signing be enough for Arsenal this season?