When do we start to believe ?

[Power n Glory]

Well that's a lie. We were aggrieved at our summer spending and pissed off at the beginning of the season. No-one thought we would be where we are.

Speak for yourself.

[milla]

I think a major difference to previous years is that we now have winners in our team.

Ozil has won La Liga.
Flamini Seria A.
Giroud Ligue 1.
Podolski Bundesliga.

You have 3-4 players with a winning mentality in the team and it filters through to others.

You forgot Rozza

[She Wore A Yellow Ribbon]

Speak for yourself.

Nah. I'm man enough to admit being negative at the start but changing my views. Posters like you aren't. Hence why the forums fucked

[Power n Glory]

Nah. I'm man enough to admit being negative at the start but changing my views. Posters like you aren't. Hence why the forums fucked

Give it a rest and stop assuming you’re speaking for everyone. Before the whole Suarez debacle, there was a real buzz around the club. I’ve always said we have a real opportunity to win the title this year because we’re the only stable club with the same group of players and manager. When Gazidis announced the money, expectations shot through the roof. When we took a gamble in the summer with transfers, I was pissed because I knew this opportunity wouldn’t come again and we had to capitalise now. It’s why I’m quite happy for Wenger to rest key players for domestic cup games. Something I’m usually 100% against.

[Özil's Panoramic View]

Nah. I'm man enough to admit being negative at the start but changing my views. Posters like you aren't. Hence why the forums fucked

SWAYR.

GW's last great hope.

[Power n Glory]

I wouldn't bet on that. The guy want David Moyes managing Arsenal! No thanks.

[Blink 1nce Quince 2wice]

I don't think I need to see us against the chavs or City. I think it's more than possible for us to win it and for Chelsea to have our number still. We have open games with City so I'm quite looking forward to playing them and we have the form centre half in the league who especially plays well against City imo.

I do however think so much is dependent on Giroud. In a funny way he is more important to us than Ozil, Cazorla or Ramsey because we simply do not have the quality to replace him. We've already had to plod on without Cazorla, Walcott, Podolski, Arteta, Gibbs and Wilshere for periods at a time and we've dealt with it admirably. As long as Giroud is never out for too long we will be in with a good chance imo.

A wise man/woman/creature once said (it may have been a reference in book of Sun tzu) don't just seek to defeat your enemy....destroy him. That is why in January we should equip ourselves in such a away that absolutely capitalises on our vantage point.

In short, I now believe, but I cannot know what will happen or not to Giroud.

[Alpha]

I started to believe but we need consistency till the end . People including the media especially the pundits are under illusion of thinking that to win the league you must beat the so- called big teams . I still remember once when we beat Man U and they got beaten by Chelsea and drew with Man City and ended up with the trophy at the end of the season . We also had a good run against the top four but we reverted to our usual fourth spot .

To win the league you need to beat more team than anyone no matter who you play . You need to lose less game than anyone and also probably draw less game than everyone . Beating Chelsea or Man U will not make you get more than 3 points .
It is surprising that a game against Spurs which was labelled as big test for Arsenal is no more regarded as such simple because Arsenal have had a good result against them .
We are in a good run at the moment . We have to continue and never let ourselves distracted by what others think or are saying .
It may be a blessing in disguise if other teams fall into the trap of thinking they absolutely need to beat the big teams to win something . So Man U getting beaten by West Bromw or drawing with Cardiff is not a problem as long as they can beat a top four team . I find it a big illusion .

[Fist of Lehmann]

I definitely believe we can win it, if we're talking about quality.

That's just one of the requirements though, you've got to have the mental strength as well. Make no mistake about it there will come a time in the season when the wheels come off, so that's the biggest hurdle we'll need to overcome.

We've crumbled in the past when we've had a sniff of success but in fairness I do feel more confident with this team given they are a lot more mature than the squads we had from 08-11.

The way we've taken two key losses in our stride (Manure and Dortmund) suggests we are stronger mentally than in previous years. Promising signs we have eliminated our streakiness, unless it's winning streakiness.

The kind of nervousness that kicks in when you get closer to the prize and are leading the pack is another issue, not one we've really had recently. We know we can chase, we've been doing that plenty, but can we lead from the front? That brings it's own pressures.

My main concern isn't mental though, it's in certain areas where if we lost our starter, our backup would cost us points. That is, Giroud, Sagan and Mertesacker, in order of impact. I think the risks to the two defenders can be largely mitigated with some clever transfer business.

But with Giroud - it's going to be very difficult to get someone in January who would be of the required quality and would slot seamlessly in if Bif were unavailable. Even a footballer as good as Ozil still needs time to adapt. Someone already playing in the Prem would have the best chance so the options are limited.

[Master Splinter]

I believe, yes.