Wenger braced for a summer daze

THEY were selling ice creams at the Emirates stadium. There were few takers on a day cold enough to make your teeth ache but Arsenal could be forgiven for wanting to fast-forward to the balmy days of summer.

This is still a club in mourning for the death of its season and the mortal wounds inflicted by Liverpool, in the Champions League, and then Manchester United in the title race. Arsenal had clearly anticipated the funeral atmosphere and made cardboard clackers available to supporters in a bid to spread some cheer.

It failed: instead, the already morose home players emerged from the tunnel to a long, drawn-out death rattle which echoed around an otherwise silent arena.