So far, this pre-season has been a good one for Arsenal, three wins and a draw in the USA bodes well, especially when one of those wins was over Bayern Munich and the draw was against Real Madrid.
But generally speaking you cannot take too much from pre-season games, they really are not that much of an indicator of what lies ahead.
The classic example, of course, is the Invincible pre-season that saw a defeat to Peterborough United and draws against Barnet and Austrian minnows SC Ritzing.
Last year we drew with Atletico Madrid, stuffed PSG 5-1, beat Lazio and drew with Chelsea, great results, but the season we had was not once all was said and done.
That is not always the case I do admit, a good pre-season can also create momentum but with so many players missing from the USA mini-tour and just one signing on display I am not sure we can look at that tour as a reliable guide as to what to expect this coming season.
Having said that, I would not be surprised if how we have judged the defence on the tour ends up not being too far off the mark.
So, the bottom line is that while pre-season can set the mood, can give indicators of how certain areas are performing and give us a good look at the youth and possible new signings they are not competitive games and are generally not a barometer of what to expect once the season kicks off.