Arsenal backs to the future

THEY used to sing ‘one-nil to the Arsenal’ in the days when beautiful football hadn’t yet arrived at Highbury, but for all Thierry Henry’s goals and Robert Pires’ flicks, it is defensive quality that is guiding the club to glory again.

Last night, Arsene Wenger’s team took one step towards the Champions League Final with a scoreline that had familiar echoes for anyone who has followed the club for longer than the 10 years of the Frenchman’s tenure.

The football was nothing like the high-energy, long-ball, up-and-at-them stuff from the good old days of muddy pitches, packed terraces and tight-fitting shorts. But Wenger may well reflect that his biggest achievement as a manager was embodied in the way his defence performed.