Having reflected on some of the comments on my earlier post, I realise I have not stated my case as well as I could have. I was to some extent posing a question that I felt few blogs had adequately answered, however I really should have suggested some answers as well, so here goes.

In my opinion you cannot draw parallels with the work rate required of this team and other current teams or even other former Arsenal teams. There has to be something other than just talent which lifts us so far above other teams when we get it right and I think it is the constant movement and concentration required to keep playing at that level for a whole ninety minutes. If it's not down to the players' movement then what is it that makes the difference? Once the physical level or concentration drops, we therefore have a drop in the cohesion of the whole team and only see the best in flashes.

Because of the understanding required to play this way, the first team which plays together the most will understand each other the best. Maybe this is why Arsene doesn't change the personnel as much as some of us would prefer. I also think this is the weakness in how we play in that it is hard for another player to come in and it not make any difference to the level the team play at. We have a number of very talented 'backup' players, but they cannot play exactly the same as any player they are replacing, so there has to be an adjustment in the team as a whole. Partly because they have played together and got used to each other, we have a second team good enough to hold it's own against Prem opposition. OK I grant you that isn't the whole story, but I do think it has a bearing.

So what would I like to see happening? Obviously not the Spanish Rotation, but certainly the first team being more of a squad thing. Now I know that goes against what I have just said in terms of stability, but how else will some of the excellent second string get to slot in when needed other than by playing in a real match. Doing it in practise is one thing, but playing a real match that matters is something else. I'm not suggesting wholesale, but when fit or not suspended I would like to see more of Diaby, Theo, Denilson and of course Bendtner. I think what this shows is that the way we play is a very high risk strategy, but that we haven't yet seen the complete evolution of this team and may even be punching above our weight this season. Time will tell, but it certainly doesn't mean we aren't capable of winning stuff this year.