By James Curtis

I started reading We all live in a Perry Groves World this week, the autobiography of Arsenal's "ginga" cult hero. 'Compulsive reading' say The Times.

In chapter two, Groves talks about his boyhood dilemma of balancing an addiction to football with an early interest in girls, despite his Dad's warning about the opposite sex. Here is a small passage: 

"But I do remember there was a nice girl called Jane Moorcraft when I was about 13. I could tell she was interested, so I came up with a great chat-up line, one that you don't hear every day of the week. 'Would you like to be a goalpost?' I said to her. It must have had the desired effect, because she said yes, so we had a kick around with her as one of the posts. All was going well and could have been the start of a great romance - until I sent a shot her way. Instead of leaning outwards so the ball went past her into the goal, she leaned inwards and the ball went past her on the outside. It meant I hadn't scored. 'If you can't concentrate and be a post then piss off,' I told her. End of any prospect of teenage romance. Well, a man has got to get his priorities right." 

Interesting approach Perry. It just goes to show what a young boy with a focused mind is capable of becoming. Emmanuel Adebayor might want to think about taking a leaf from his book. 

We all remember the Togoan's comments last month. "I am happy playing for this club, and to be honest I am happy AC Milan, one of the legendary clubs in the world, were looking at me" he said. "For me that must be something special. It is like a boy being told Beyonce is looking for them."

If my understanding is correct, Groves would have told Beyonce to go away, probably using two other, more bellicose words.

Had Adebayor a similar attitude, AC Milan would have received some of the same hostile treatment, instead his love for the Rosseneri, the fame and stardom has come between the Togoan and a repeat of last season's 30 goal tally. 

A string of criticism from Arsenal fans and pundits, mostly for his series of listless exhibitions has put Adebayor's future at Arsenal into question. Thierry Henry was the same lost soul in his last season at the Emirates and his torn mind was often transparent through spiritless performances. Wenger was wise to sell. 

Nevertheless, Adebayor has stressed his commitment to Arsenal this week, although it will take more than words to convince the clubs supporters. He said:

“Before signing for Arsenal I can remember people told me I have a chance to win things.

“Now I’m 25 I don’t have any reason for leaving until I have got the trophies that I came here for.

“Arsenal put me where I am today. They made me one of the biggest strikers in the world. I have to pay them back –by winning trophies.

“Next season I’m 100 per cent Arsenal.”

“I will do everything it takes to come back next season to show how good I am, show more character, personality and desire for this club." 

It is true there would be few murmurs of protest if Arsenal were to cash in on Adebayor this summer, but this is unlikely given the fact Arsene Wenger has seen enough senior talent prematurely sign out of the club.

If he can relay next season without injury, which he highlighted as the problem in a stop-start year, then the slate is clean for Adebayor. There is a lot to live up to. 

By James Curtis

It was David Brent who said: "You just have to accept that some days you are the pigeon, and some days you are the statue." Like all Arsenal fans last night, I was that statue. 

The messages from antagonising Manchester United fans rained down as I sat silently, staring blankly at Robson Green solving murders on Wire in the Blood.

I was exposed after my confident pre-match warning to them, and there was no cover to protect me because Arsenal had been out-played by United. I had no answers, no excuses. 

It was Brent who said: "Avoid employing unlucky people - throw half of the pile of CVs in the bin without reading them."

It is not the underlying reason for their blues, but luck has rarely favoured Arsenal over the last year or so. 

Never has a side been inflicted with so many injuries, and like a bad flu in the camp it seems that everybody has suffered at some time or another.

If Wenger inherits some Brent advice, next season we might see a more stout and seasoned style of Arsenal player. One that isn't made of glass or has a chocolate leg. 

Brent said: "If at first you don't succeed, remove all evidence you ever tried." A summer clear-out is calling.

Abou Diaby, Nicklas Bendtner and Denilson have failed to show any indication of a future at Arsenal, managing only a few flirts with first team standard. 

The young Brazilian has been at the nucleus of Arsenal's midfield in almost 50 appearances this season but failed to make the nominations for PFA Young Player of the Year. Time for Wenger to swallow some pride. 

"Know your limitations and be content with them" Brent said. "Too much ambition results in promotion to a job you can't do."

In the end, Manchester United was a job to Herculean for the young shoulders at Arsenal and resulted in humiliating defeat. 

Wenger is right to have ambition and there is room for youthful exuberance, but next season he must invest in more experienced clientele if Arsenal are to compete with the Bunyanesque waves rolling from Old Trafford.

Brent said: "What does a squirrel do in the summer? It buries nuts. Why? Cos then in winter time he's got something to eat and he won't die. So, collecting nuts in the summer is worthwhile work. Think squirrels. Think nuts."

So I beg Arsenal, buy early and use the western freedom that is the summer transfer window. For sure, Arshavin was a late signing and who knows what might have happened had he been summer nut. 

David Brent, next Arsenal manager?

By James Curtis

So I finish speaking to my Arsenal pals on the phone and the general vibe is good. I explain how pure excitement has stolen the day's work and surprisingly the nerves have stayed at up north. 

Then I pick up a copy of the Independent from the coffee table and begin flicking through the monthly magazine The Red Bulletin, free inside. 

Thrills and over-the-top extreme sports is the general theme and May's edition is loaded with Hollywood's stunt heroe's. I flick to "Action" section to read about cliff diving, "Arc of a Diver". 

A picture of two figures in dive suits are silhouetted against a clear blue sky. "Some 24m below them lie's the Serpent's Lair, a natural pool formed over centuries as rock bowed to the might of the churning Atlantic beneath it." I read on:

"Fear is a response intrinsically entwined with the adrenaline highs of a dive. "It's amazing what goes on when you push yourself beyond you're comfort zone," says Rhona Cohen, a Sports Psychologist at Middlesex University who specialises in extreme sports. "You have a whole emotion of fear, and your body produces chemicals such as adrenaline at that point we call 'fight or flight'. But when it comes to the fear of danger and the adrenaline rush of a cliff dive, it would seem one can't exsist without the other."

Now the butterflies kick in, there they are. I am reminded of that feeling, "the fear". I flick the page and see a lonely rubber human figure free-falling, the stone cliffs a blur behind him, toes pointed for the perfect entry into the water. 

The angst has my mind wander and I think back to all those Champions League night's of the past. I see Batistuta scoring high and hard above David Seaman's head and John Carew in a Valencia shirt.

I feel like the child I used to be who couldn't bare big European nights for all the shaking, the lack of understanding in dealing with defeat, and the unbearable torture of being taunted by friends, supporters of rival teams. I can't shake off these nerves. 

Fabregas says we have no fear, he's a braver man than me. 

By James Curtis

Regret is terminal and attacks the conscience with torment and persecution. David Beckham might feel regret for his peevish kick-out at Simone during the 1998 World Cup finals, as might Lee Bowyer and Kieron Dyer for coming to blows in 1995 while both playing for Newcastle.

Such actions can be reviewed, understood and then sidelined, but more mind-boggling are our inactions. The missed opportunities, the unconverted, the could have been and the what should have been; these are the one's that come back to haunt footballer's.

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger will be hoping that Manchester United's missed chances in front of goal during Wednesday night's Champions League semi-final first leg prove costly enough to send Arsenal  to Rome.

In his post-match interview Wenger was relaxed and appeared untroubled by his teams lacklustere performance. Wry smiles and raised eyebrows suggested Wenger knew something that the rest of us didn't. He said:

"We still have a good chance to reverse the result. We have the quality to do it and we believe we do it. The tie is still very open. They [United] will have regrets because they didn't get a second goal and it's down to us to make sure they regret it. It's a good opportunity to show our character and mental strength. There's a final at stake and, don't worry, when we are playing at home and can reach a final we will be up for it. I'm confident because I know we will be on top on Tuesday."

Or maybe Wenger was hinting to the world that which in fact we all already know. How often have we seen a team punished for not converting chances into goals? How often does a manager attend a press conference cursing the failure to put a team to sleep in the first leg of a knock out tie?

Not so much clairvoyance as it was retrospect then from le Professeur. This must be Arsenal's ammunition going into the second leg at the Emirates because there is no doubt this is the only blotch on the United player's mental strength at present.

But an early goal can break this United momentum, as Arsenal found out in the first knock-out stage against AS Roma. Arsenal felt guilty then of failing to put the tie out of reach in the first leg, and came under heavy pressure away. Arsenal must look to break the deadlock early and rouse the Arsenal faithful.

 

And the cracks are already showing on Alex Ferguson's face after his comments about Arsenal's choice to rest players against Portsmouth this week if they wish to do so. 

"That's Arsenal's advantage," said Ferguson. "They can play Pat Rice at right-back and Arsene Wenger can play centre-forward; it doesn't matter to them. We have to put out a team to win at Middlesbrough in a lunchtime kick-off."

Despite how trivial they might have appeared, these are classic signs of a Fergie making excuses that I assure you will resurface if Arsenal swing the tie around and progress. Would he have said this if he was not slightly perturbed?

On Wednesday I played in the Essex Combinations League Cup final. Losing 2-1 with 15 minutes left on the clock, I darted down the left and into the penalty box unmarked. The ball floated over from the right. I was through on goal, but my control let me down, the chance was squandered and the game was lost. 

For the rest of this week I have been visualising what could have been. It's time for Arsenal to make Ronaldo and co. have the same sleepless nights. To Rome...

By James Curtis

All morning I have repeatedly been playing Warrior's Dance by The Prodigy and it has me pumped for the big Champions League game tonight.

For those who have not seen the music video, a dusty, dead-end pub is brought to life by a tribe of cheap cigarette packets during closing hours. 

First comes a whiny saxophone intro like some sort of warning, before the boxes mutate into a more human-like appearance, and the lyrics "come with me to the dance floor" is the calling for all cigarette packets to meet on the bar-top and lose themselves in a grimy session of drum and bass. 

It gave me visions of Arsenal marching onto Old Trafford tonight and taking over from the mortals of Manchester United. The Champions League theme replaced the saxophone intro and the dance floor became Old Trafford. 

The frantic pace and explosive repetition of the drum and bass reminded me of an unrestrained Arsenal attacking at will, those performances that no team, anywhere in the world can break down.

The cigarette boxes move freely to the music, like Arsenal at their most threatening, especially when everyone on the team gets involved.

Like the range of instruments The Prodigy uses, Arsenal must utilise all of their outlets. This means forward runs from the left and right backs to force Christiano Ronaldo into defending, and supporting Emmanuel Adebayor if Wenger plays 4-5-1.

To often this season he has been dispossessed of the ball after a lazy touch, or when two defenders have hurried him because no team mates are on offer. This would be slim pickings for Vidic and Ferdinand. 

More than this Arsenal need to put their strong words into action tonight, and not lie down to Manchester United who can be crushed if the team have the belief.

In an act of rebellion during Warrior's Dance one cigarette box smashes a used ash-tray to pieces. Towards the end of the video, the same box is the leader in a mass suicide ritual.

A shot glass of flammable liquid and the strike of a match sends the army of cigarette boxes up in flames. It seems they would rather be the master's of their own fate than lay down to the puff of another human being. 

Arsenal can learn much from the tiny cigarette packets, especially after bowing from the FA Cup to a Chelsea side that was there for the sacking. Arsenal must too be the master's of their own fate.

They must enter tonight's tie having no regrets about the way they play, so long as they play with determination, will and courage. 

Like the cigarette boxes they must also realise that their enemy is not superior, not immortal and can be burnt. They must march on Old Trafford tonight and tear down the walls, in due process smacking that bitch up!

By James Curtis

Time and again, Arsene Wenger has professed the strength of his player's mentality. In recent months the young guns have come through for their master and proven to the world Wenger was right to have faith.

However, after Didier Drogba crushed Arsenal hearts once again, dumping the Gunners out of the FA Cup at the semi-final hurdle, it will be Wenger's players questioning his own mental stength.

The game was heavy and languid, and Wenger claimed Arsenal's defeat was caused by their lack of fluency. This is true, but the problem lies in Wenger's cautious team selection. 

I was at Wembley, and most of the grumbles, before, during, and after the game were over Andrei Arshavin's omission from the starting line-up.

Instead, Wenger chose Denilson and reverted back to the 4-5-1 formation. This was the cause of Arsenal's early season woes and it wasn't surprising to see the similar stiff style of football. 

Missing was Alex Song, Samir Nasri and Arshavin. All have been playing well of late and are beginning to look like the senior type of player Arsenal lack, especially in the absense of William Gallas. 

In came Abou Diaby with Denilson, Robin Van Persie was moved to the left of midfeild and Emmanuel Adebayor was isolated up front, with it came his usual lack of interest and lazy work rate when playing in the lone forward role. 

After the game Wegner said:

This sounded like a weak excuse. If Alex Song is tired, then wouldn't Arshavin be his ideal replacement, fresh from missing out on Arsenal's Champions League campaign through inelegibilty. Don't forget either that Denilson is the most capped player this season featuring in 46 matches and if anyone it is the Brazilian who is running on empty.

Diaby might have a height advantage but he was possibly the poorest player on the pitch, but still managed to exert a full 90 minutes.

Usually I have enjoyed his twists, turns, long strides and unorthodox way of playing which gives that feeling he might produce something out of nothing, but Wenger's focus on the dangers of Chelsea and not his own men were his biggest blunder when choosing the gangly Diaby. 

Arsenal often get it right and control games when they play to their own strengths, prompting others to worry about where our threats are going to come from.

Arshavin would have forced Chelsea to think more defensively, especially with Theo Walcott's pace on the other flank. Van Persie could have linked with Adebayor and Chelsea would have been chasing space rather than comfortably covering it, what they do best.

Wenger's caution certainly rubbed off on his players, who tried to hold shape rather than press Chelsea higher, and prefered to stand off rather commit to challenges. Not the ideal way to play against a talented Chelsea midfield when given time on the ball. 

For the first goal Emmanuel Eboue failed to make any decisions. He was happy not to intercept Frank Lampard's cross-feild ball and backed off Florent Malouda allowing him to much time and space in the Arsenal penalty box, it really was training material. 

Before all of that, Arsenal had managed a good opening 20 minutes. For the remainder of the game the problems were obvious, but Wenger refused to change things up, either with a substitution or alteration in formation, obviously still concerned with Chelsea's central trio. He said:

It is concerning that Wenger was thinking about extra-time. The brilliance of the French master is his ability to know when the opposition are at their lowest and make changes to counter that.

Arshavin's earlier impact might have been the spark the game was searching for, after all it wasn't coming from the Blue's bench: Carvalho, Di Santo, Mikel, Belletti, Mancienne, Kalou.

Football is like a game of naughts and crosses. Make the first maneuver, and take the initiative and you can force your opponents move. Wenger failed to look at his player's qualities and allowed Chelsea to dictate, drowning the game is their favoured ploy. 

At Euro 2008, Marco van Basten made similar mistakes. When Holland palyed naturally with wide men and three forwards they blew away Italy and France, but when it came to Russia the young manager altered his stratagem, threatened by the Russia's impression on the competition. This was his undoing. 

Similarly, on Saturday, Wenger's failure to overcome his mental concerns with the opposition meant Arsenal's own faux pas. But in Wengeresque fashion he see it as another learning curve, let's just hope it is in time to take the battle to Manchester United. 

By James Curtis

Robert Pires' return to north London has been a popular talking point since the Champions League quater final draw.

Like so many in the last week, I have been cleansing myself with Pires youtube montages, and even dusted off the 49 Unbeaten DVD when Sky Sports continued to bore the nation with coverage of Wayne Rooney's red card at Fulham.

I certainly miss the free-flowing left flank football Pires used to be a part of, which the opposition knew so much about but could do so little to prevent. It was an integral deployment in the Arsenal offensive and has been missing up until now.

Andrei Arshavin's impact since signing in January has born new hope that Arsenal's wing play can again become a threatening strategy, and quick.

It is common knowlege that the best player's at Arsenal need time to mould before setting the footballing world alight. To name the obvious, Bergkamp, Pires and Thierry Henry.  Not Andrei Arshavin it would seem, as Wenger pointed out in his programme notes last month:

Arshavin possesses all of the craft that Pires used to frighten defenders, albeit within his own idiosyncratic manner.  

His directness has already been established, demonstrated by a shot against Newcastle from 25 yards which grazed the bar (sending Geordie fans cowering for cover) even though players were screaming for the ball left and right. Were it not for Arsenal's lack of attempts on goal, the Russian may have opted for the wider option.  

His goal against Blackburn remidned me of the old Pires mentality of getting to the byline, and his quality to finish suggested some of the same.  

More than this, Arshavin is the type of player that full-backs dream of combining with, just like Ashley Cole used to with Pires, incidently, a part of Cole's game that never travelled with him to Stamford Bridge.  

Already Clichy's attacking performance have been inspired by the little Russian wizard steering the left-hand side of the Arsenal ship, and his want to push forward is back in his game at just the right time.  

On many occassions this year Gael Clichy and Bacary Sagna have looked tentative to push forward. Their tepid approach when crossing the half-way line has been transparent, strung out of a hesitancy - possibly distrust - when linking up with the likes of Walcott, Eboue, Nasri and sometimes Diaby.  

Narrow play, congestion in the middle and misplaced three yard passes all become predictable when natural width is missing, take the second leg in Rome for example.  

Arshavin's style is energetic, creative, positive, controlled. There is movement off the ball and a desire to win, countering the hum-drum football which has so often been the talking point around the Emirates, and the anchor in a lackluster season.  

It is a shame he will not feature against Villarreal over the next two weeks, inelegible having played for Zenit St Petersburg already in the earlier stages of the Champions League, yet it does beg the question; why was this boy not signed in the summer?