Anfield game a message to rivals

I’VE been castigated in certain Gooner quarters for suggesting that up until recently we hadn’t actually been playing as well as the media would have us believe and that our elevated status was more a reflection of the mediocre start to the season made by our competitors.

I stand by this, as I firmly believe that the fact that the much unfancied Flamini and our two full-backs have been our players of the season so far, is all the evidence needed to confirm that many of the more illustrious Gunners had yet to hit a genuine groove.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that we haven’t entertained. We’ve produced purple patches of absolutely sparkling football ever since day one. But with Arsène having set the Arsenal bar so incredibly high, up until the trouncing of the hapless Slavia Prague last Tuesday, the individual instances of brilliance were too disjointed or without any sting to the final ball.