Winning mentality and new signings can launch new era

Now the long wait for a trophy is over, Arsenal can finally focus on the future with enthusiasm — on completing, for instance, Arsene Wenger’s new contract, on painting an outline of the 2014 FA Cup on the perimeter hoarding at the Emirates (the section that until now has looked so conspicuously blank) and on building a team capable of fighting for the title next season.

The first two of those tasks will be actioned quickly — Wenger’s deal is already there to be signed and the FA Cup logo will be in place within a fortnight, officially unveiled at the Emirates Cup in August; but the third is a more complicated affair, leaving Arsenal fans excited but nevertheless anxious about the summer transfer market.

Once the celebrations have died down and Wenger’s crumpled shirt, covered in champagne by Lukas Podolski, has arrived back from the dry cleaners, the raw assessment of Arsenal’s season, and not just the happy ending in the sunshine at Wembley on Saturday, will need to be assessed with brutal objectivity.