Concern for Wenger as Arsenal start to wilt

ARSENE WENGER did not have to say a word. The pose said it all: rocked back on his haunches, his head buried deep in his hands, Arsenal’s manager suddenly looked a worried man.

The Frenchman had just seen yet another home attack crash fruitlessly against the solid blue wall erected at one end of the Emirates stadium and an air of foreboding was creeping over this sparkling arena. For perhaps the first time this season, Arsenal’s tyros were visibly buckling under the intense heat of a Premier League title race.

Wenger’s dark mood had blackened even further by the end of the night, when Manchester United had barged them off the top of the table, and it might be some time before the north Londoners clamber back to the summit. United are currently playing the best football in the country and their fixture list in January has a decidedly benign appearance. With Chelsea also beginning to develop an ominous rhythm, Arsenal simply cannot afford any more days like this.