Still got it Den

Sign him up Arsene! A big day's football tomorrow with Manu-Liverpool and our trip to Upton park. Eduardo is fit, Rosicky is not, Bendtner may be. Scott Parker returns from a one match ban for the hammers.

Elsewhere Henri Lansbury looks impressive and demonstrated his fitness with a couple of goals on loan at Watford. The wealth of talent that Arsene has assembled in terms of young midfield backup is pretty impressive. There are combative players like Coquelin and Frimpong sitting on the fringes, attacking players like Merida and Wilshere, we have Lansbury, Emmanuel-Thomas and Nordtveit all playing on loan in midfield too. I haven't even mentioned Aaron Ramsey who is pushing hard at the first team door. It's a shame we won't have room for them all.

Happy birthday Arsene - no pressure

Firstly happy 60th birthday Monsieur Wenger, thank you for the expert management over the years and hopefully we can squeeze a few more out of him before he decide sto call it a day. The club has been transformed since Arsene took charge, we have a new stadium, a new training ground and a new ethos. Football in England has also been revolutionised since Arsene arrived at these shores.

It was Arsenal Holdings' 8th AGM today, Arsene addressed the shareholders in the Woolwich suite in the Emirates complex today. Arsene is happy we are on the correct path and is keen to ensure that the 'Arsenal way' of doing things is maintained in the future. Talk continues about Stan Kroenke's plans given how close his percentage stake is to the level at which he is obliged to launch an official takeover bid. Better the devil you know I say.

Personally I am astonished that people still doubt Arsene's ability and think he has to win something this season. The BBC have an interesting program on this topic tonight with David Dein talking of just how much Arsene has brought to AFC. Emmanuel Petit has made some rather foolish comments in my opinion, it is not surprising that Arsene has not been sacked after five trophy free years, he has consistently delivered and with a bit of luck a league title or champions league title would have been his in the last few years. 2007-8 saw us go so close to the league title, arguably without some rather dodgy refereeing it would have been our year, the 2006 champions league final could have gone either way as well.

Any doubters in Arsene's ability would do well to have a quick glance at Rafa Benitez and Liverpool. It is not long since their second placed finish in the league but a run of defeats sees Rafa put under massive pressure to deliver. Contrast Arsene's performance to Benitez and there is only one winner. Arsene has spent minimal amounts compared to Benitez, yet our squad looks so much stronger in depth than Liverpool's, our football excites and our club is in a strong financial position, while we have top quality youth talent appearing from every crack. Liverpool have frittered away millions on dross and their level of debt is huge. Only a fool would criticise Arsene's record.

We have an incredible stadium, a strong squad, a fantastic youth setup with an abundance of talent emerging and a great manager at the helm. We should be positive about the future. I know we do have our problems which include our defensive frailty and a slight lack of experience, but overall we are in a strong position to do something this season. Against Alkmaar we had Bendtner, Eduardo, Nasri, Denilson, Walcott and Rosickyall out of action, yet we were still able to field a very strong attacking line up. Eduardo is back for the weekend, Nasri is expected back soon, as are Bendtner and Rosicky, the attacking talent is not in short supply.

Finally people should be very careful for what they wish for on Arsene's 60th birthday, often you only appreciate what you had when it has gone, and by then it is invariably too late to get it back. Keep up the good work Arsene.

Alkmaar trip - a learning experience

It is getting cold and miserable, so hopefully the lads can keep us warm with a few more sterling performances in the next few weeks. The starting eleven against Alkmaar saw the fullbacks replaced, Arshavin came in for Walcott and Mannone surprisingly held his place.

Alkmaar are a good technical side and passed the ball around neatly, they did lack a real quality cutting edge though, it was neat and attractive but it did not scare me. In the first half we looked very organised, solid and it seemed as if we could up it whenever we saw fit. Vermaelen and Gallas looked assured, a good partnership is developing there, Vermaelen attacks the ball so well, his slide rule passing is also something to behold. Song is a rock, Diaby was remarkably sensible and efficient, he didn't try to do much as he sometimes does by overcomplicated matters. Cesc probed and was a tad loose with the odd touch. Eboue was excellent, bright, inventive and direct.

The classiest act around though is our little Russian, everything he does is perfectly measured, well almost everything, every touch, every pass, every timing of a decision, he has such a natural knack for the game. Our first good chance came when Arsavin broke centrally, he then released Diaby in the inside left channel, he then squared for RVP who controlled, came inside and forced a decent save. The goal had a similar architecture, Arshavin pressed and won the ball centrally, he attacked and released RVP in the inside left slot, he squared unselfishly for Cesc who did the rest. One nil it was. It remained one nil til the break but it felt more than a one nil performance to me, although AZ Alkmaar are no world beaters, we just looked so composed and set up for the job in hand.

The second half began in similar fashion, we looked comfortable and until the three quarter mark we strolled onwards. The problem was that our comfort became a little complacent as the half wore on. We were a tad sloppy with the ball, Alkmaar suddenly built up a mini head of steam after Diaby's inadvertent chesting almost ended up in his own net, it fortunately bounced off the top of the crossbar. We didn't make the most of some good positions in the final third, Alkmaar had a cracking chance from a free kick on which we went to sleep and the ball crept only a yard wide with Mannone stranded. Vela should have had a penalty when chopped down in the box, then from a hopeful direct ball, it was nodded down and smashed home from eight yards out, 1-1 in the ninety third minute.

For all our class and clear superiority over Alkmaar, if you only have a one goal advantage then your position remains eminently precarious. We need to learn from this as this would be important dropped points in the league, as it is we are in a very strong position in the group and it is not the end of the world. It's a good reminder though that you need to finish teams off and that you need to maintain your concentration for the whole ninety minutes. There was some positive though to take home, overall we were solid, Diaby and Song had excellent games in the midfield, while Arshavin and RVP linked up very well up front.

Walcott out for a few weeks

Theo has strained his medial knee ligament which means he is out of action for at least three weeks, pretty unfortunate given his recent bad luck with injuries. People have said it was a fair challenge, I disagree, it was an aggressive tackle and was definitely not fair. Ridgewell followed through with the leg that didn't win the ball and the venom shown with this follow through was clear. It was a definite yellow card in my book.

The injury list is lengthening, with long term absentee Johan Djourou already out til well into the new year, Denilson is out for several more weeks with his back injury, Eduardo has another niggle, plus Bendtner is also out. Gael Clichy is fit again but Tomas Rosicky misses the Alkmaar trip as a result of what is hopefully only a minor knee niggle. Elsewhere Arsene has commented on Brum chants of the weekend, pathetic at best really, it's hard to understand the motives of such stupid cretins, it really is.

Overall a good weekend

Three more valuable points won, it was not quite as stress free as it could have been but if Birmingham had managed to take anything away from the Emirates it would have been an absolute travesty of justice. It was a workmanlike and physical Birmingham side, they are not an easy side to break down but they do lack a cutting edge offensively and really need to add to their squad in terms of top draw attacking talent.

The game should really have been over by half time but thanks to a mixture of bad luck, missed chances and a goalkeeping error, Birmingham were well in the game at 2-1 down. Theo got crunched by a rather aggressive Ridgewell lunge, he did take the ball but he did follow through in a rather malicious manner with his non tackling leg, it could easily have been a card for the Brum defender. Theo's knee didn't feel right so he came off at around the half hour mark, hopefully he'll only be out for a couple of weeks or so. RVPs goal was top notch, he has deserved his recent goals as his all round team play has developed so much over the past year or two. Diaby capped a solid game with a nicely taken second goal to make it two nil.

Mannone showed why I have by doubts about him, he really should have gone for the ball with some conviction, instead he looked a bit ponderous, he went in too half heartedly and consequently he wasn't able to get two solid hands on the ball, it then split to Bowyer who finished without mistake. The second half saw few moments of Brum danger, Mannone did do well to tip away a cleverly weighted left footed centre that created some panic as it zipped across the six yard box. Andrei Arshavin sealed the deal with a lovely little side footer into the bottom corner, his marker backed off and that gave our little dynamic Russian all the space he needed to beat Hart with ease.

Our points tally is very decent indeed after only eight games. while no single team looks particularly dominant this year. Chelsea dropped points again away from home and look strangely vulnerable at the centre of their defence, Manu are picking up points but are not convincing, Liverpool have lost four games already.

Some things have been very positive this season. Eboue appears to have been reborn is is arguably looking better than Bacary Sagna, Kieran Gibbs is developing fast and putting the pressure on Clichy. Song has been outstanding in the centre of the park, not only defensively but he has also constructed a lot of our play. Cesc is finding some form again, even Diaby is having some good games. Our array of attacking options could merit an essay on their own, Chamakh appears to have been a victim to this abundance of talent. Above all the players are getting on with each other and that must have a lot to do with a certain nasty piece of work from Togo.

Starting XI and updates

Arsenal : Mannone, Eboue, Gallas, Vermaelen, Gibbs, Fabregas, Song Billong, Diaby, Walcott, van Persie, Rosicky. Subs: Almunia, Sagna, Ramsey, Silvestre, Wilshere, Arshavin, Traore.

Good to see Theo back on the team sheet. Plenty of ammunition on the bench that can be used later on if neccessary.

A high tempo start with Hart's goal peppered early doors, Rosicky looking sharp and goes close twice.

1-0 RVP with a cracking finish taking the ball in his stride and firing hard and low into the bottom of the net.

2-0 Diaby slots in from a great Rosicky cut back.

2-1 Damn. Mannone fumbles and Bowyer scores, about Birmingham's only effort on goal.

Half time. Mixed emotions, great football but how we are only 2-1 up is a mystery and the way in which we can concede so easily is very much symptomatic of our season thus far.

3-1 Arshavin. Surely that seals it.

Enthisiasm on the return

Is this a mirage? Or are we about to see some exciting football return to our planet as the boredom and general dullness of international football is replaced by the hustle and bustle of the Premier League. I certainly hope so. God FIFA and UEFA have a lot to answer for. The international game is so bloody dull, we so so rarely see decent teams play each other, there are so many meaningless or uncompetitive games, even the big competitions have become so expanded to include the useless that they have been massively diluted down in terms of quality.

Personally I think they should have a more Davis cup tennis style of competition where the weaker sides play each other and the stronger sides play each other, the successful small sides can be promoted up divisions while the under performing sides get relegated. If things carry on as they are then interest in the International game will drop, drop and drop and that will be a great shame. Just look at the list of teams that have qualified for the World Cup, it includes Honduras, North Korea, Mexico, Japan and more. There are many more weaker sides that will make it to the 32 team tournament, it is so watered down it beggars belief. The reason for this is the fact that appeasing the small weaker countries is a good way for people like Blatter to win lots of votes for their elections.

Anyways back to all things Gooner. Gael Clichy is recovering from a knock picked up on International duty, other than that Eduardo is still out, as is Bendtner, while Diaby is expected to be fit. Nasri is expected back soon which is rather good news. Gibbs will surely get his first start of the season at left back which will be good for him, while Manuel will return in goal to hopefully command his box as well as he did last season. The rest of the side will be fairly predictable, I'd imagine Song, Diaby and Cesc will play in the midfield three, while Rosicky, RVP and Arshavin will spearhead the attack. Birmingham have been solid if unspectacular, I'd like to see us defend well and keep a clean sheet tomorrow, hopefully an early goal will be forthcoming. Another three points is needed to keep up the pressure on the top spots. Off the pitch Stan Kroenke is building up his share quota which must be a good thing if it keeps that fat repulsive criminal out of our the running of our club. Come on you Gunners.