Caring Van can break mould
His two goals won the match for Arsenal, and his glorious spin and right-footed chip off the far post was arguably even better than the 30-yard free-kick with which Sebastian Larsson had equalised for Sunderland.
Naturally the effect of Van Persie’s superhuman performance was to get the media wondering whether Arsenal are now a one-man team. One journalist noted that Van Persie, who has a year-and-a-half remaining on his contract, is yet to commit his long-term future to the club. Arsene Wenger responded with a curious take on the word “commitment”.