TERRACE TALK: Arsenal - Trust old hero Fabregas to ruin our weekend
By contrast, there was an impressive turnout of around 4,000 Gooners on Saturday, despite a customarily inconvenient kick-off time depriving us of any possibility of returning to the capital via public transport.
Mind you, the myriad of northern accents in the away end at such outings nowadays serves as a reminder of the increasing universality of the Gunners’ appeal.
Although it remains “de rigeur” for everyone to imitate the broadest possible Cockney tones, when bellowing out the traditional terrace ditties.
I presume that such a healthy turnout for so tortuous an away day was largely down to our desire to enjoy more of the sort of wonderful entertainment that we’d witnessed last time out.
And the Gunners did indeed begin where we’d left off, against Liverpool, with a flurry of fabulous football, in an open, end-to-end contest, which culminated with Aaron Ramsey’s opening goal.
Sadly, we couldn’t maintain this vivacity and having taken an early lead, one sensed that the remainder of the contest was all about merely getting the job done, rather than putting on a show for the troops.
In the past, we’d have probably struggled to break down Sean Dyche’s tenacious, miserly side.
But where previously we’d have tried to pick an overly intricate path through the heart of the massed ranks of Burnley’s two determined banks of four, in the Gunners recent, more mature incarnation, we’ve discovered the necessary width to stretch the opposition.
Whereby if we should fail to “tikki-takka” our way through the midst of a stalwart defence, we’ve now learned to go around them.
Doubtless reinvigorated by their manager, Burnley returned to the fray after the break with a renewed appetite.
It took a couple of timely, typically doughty, interventions from Coquelin to steady an Arsenal ship that looked to be in serious danger of being scuttled. But ultimately, for all their earnest endeavours, Burnley lacked the necessary quality to punish our odd defensive aberration.
Still, normally I’d have been bristling with anxiety, right up until the final whistle, convinced that the home side were certain to snatch a last-gasp equaliser. Yet this encounter felt like something of a metaphor for gallant Burnley’s entire season, where they’ve been bravely battling against such stiff odds for so long that their concerted efforts to make up for what they might lack in ability were bound to run out of steam eventually.
Burnley seemed to hit this wall long before the final whistle on Saturday and for once it was a pleasant surprise to be able to run down the clock in relative comfort.
However, don’t be fooled by Arsène’s supposed sang-froid afterwards, as he was as animated on the touchline during the second half as he’s been all season.
He knows better than most that the last couple of miles of any marathon are the toughest to complete. If Chelsea are to continue to make a meal of reaching the finishing line, Arsène wants to ensure that Mourinho continues to feel the Arsenal’s breath on the back of his neck.
The Blues’ consistent team selection was a significant factor in their runaway start to this campaign and has doubtless contributed to the fact that some of their star turns, such as Fabregas, are now looking a little jaded.
Whereas injuries have perhaps forced le Prof to manage our tortoises’ fatigue levels more vigilantly.
Trust Cesc to pop up and ruin our weekend, with Chelsea’s single shot on target at Loftus Road. But then, as they say, it’s the hope that kills and with the media doing their utmost to fuel Gooner delusions, there is some comfort in quelling the barmy title bandwagon, so that we might focus on the business at hand at Wembley next weekend.
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