“See how you lot get on with no money”.

I say this is interesting because every one of Arsenal’s current first team players (bar Wilshere, I think) was bought from another club. The noises from the board have consistently been that Arsenal have money to spend and although Wenger has chose not to make £30m signings let us not forget that the likes of Walcott, Arshavin, Reyes and Vermaelen to name but 4 didn’t exactly come cheap. Walcott and Reyes didn’t exactly fulfil expectancies, Arshavin for all the hype is having a relatively poor season (aside from that Anfield goal). And how many of the youngsters bought by Arsenal have actually turned out to be as good as they predicted to be 4 or 5 years ago? The answer is, Fabregas apart, none, because they either continue to get Arsenal into 4th or get moved on.

Which brings me nicely to your (and consequently, my) second point “you forget the 5 years without winning?”.

I’m taking that as referring to the recent three consecutive seasons we didn’t win the league.

Our “transitional” period, if you will. During those seasons we had two third place finishes, a second place finish, a FA Cup win and a League Cup win. Largely considered, as you say, a blark mark on United’s recent history. However that still compares favourably with Arsenal’s period since they last won a trophy or any 3 year period you take out of there.

That Manchester United side contained the likes of Carroll, Heinze, Silvestre, Smith, Bellion, Miller, Howard, Fortune, Djemba-Djemba, Kleberson, Richardson and whose top opposition was the best Arsenal side and best Chelsea side in each clubs respective history.

A wholesome list of players that any United fan will admit (bar an exception here or there depending on personal choice) were clearly not upto the grade. A wholesome list of players that I’m sure you as an Arsenal fan would have no worries about ribbing us about.

The sobering thought though is that past all the opinion and personal choice – the fact of the matter is those players were achieving more than the current Arsenal crop are.

Recently I had a harrowing discussion with an individual who only placed Vidic and Valencia out of United’s team into a combined Arsenal/United XI.

The facts suggest that there are a number of players though who still have to lift their game to be at the level of Djemba Djemba, let alone the likes of Anderson.

I agree that a good player can become a great player is they are placed into a great side. That’s not what is being presented here. The love and bias of Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal from the media (who are mostly based in the South) is one of the factors in this. Fabregas is a great player. I’d have him at United straight away, but what has he won at club level to warrant the praise that he is Maradona and Pele all rolled into one? His vision and delivery of the football is a superb and in that playmaker role you do generally excel when you have two player (or three in the case of Kaka in Milan) doing some of the running behind you. Fabregas evolved through the school of Barca so Cryuff’s 4-3-3 DNA is instilled into him. Anyhow, why I am going on about Fabregas! Yolkie has hit the nail on the head though – why is the general consensus that its all doom and gloom? We don’t know what goes on behind the scenes but we’ve know from May 2005 who owns the club. All that anger outside the Prince of Wales in Cardiff before the FA Cup final aren’t forgotten – that is why i’m not surprised. Its bollocks but what can we do in this day and age of commercialisation.

Damian – I hate it when people go on about the amount of money Wenger has spent. Yes I agree, he has spend less than Fergie’s has in the past five years – but in that time Fergie has won 3 Premier League titles and 1 European Cup – whereas Arsenal reached a European Cup final and scrapped fourth in the league the same season. Arsenal are a great football side and a good club – but remember Wenger said a few years ago that sides ‘have a duty to entertain’ and that ‘he would never play 4-5-1′ – things change.

/ as 4

As for the points about United…For the last 2 or 3 years we were labelled either a 1 man outfit or 1 man with a solid defence. If the majority were asked how United would fair without Ronaldo, Vidic, Ferdinand and Van Der Saar very few would have had us 2 points of the top at Xmas and through to the last 16 of the CL..

This is a huge testemant to the squad and the management.

I also hope to see Anderson blossom into the talent that he can be…Perhaps on the left side of a midfield diamond with Hargreaves holding, Fletcher/Valencia on the right and Rooney at point…Berba and AN Other up top Benzema???

Back to the blog you do raise a good point about Asnls new midfield 3, whenever we play anderson in a midfield 3 he looks brilliant, i recall him even putting the number on both Fabregas in the UCL and Lampard at our game at the bridge. Both look poor in a 442 but its something SAF insists on

Also can I just ask that we don’t get drawn into an Anderson-Fabregas debate, I’m aware I hold an opinion shared by few on that.

Any comments regarding the two should be regarding their respective performances and acheivements as per the blog.