So the new season begins....

and I hold more optimism at the start of this season, than I did at the start of last season. Then again I didn't foresee the team transformation in the wake of Henry's departure, it really did allow us to vary our style of play and ultimately to become less predictable not always looking to Henry as our output.
I also didn't imagine that Flamini and Adebayor would be such revelations. In previous seasons Flamini just didn't seem like a viable option alongside Cesc, he just looked like he lacked the tactical nous and was just a headless chicken. And casting my mind back to our away game against Pompey in 2006, a day I could not believe we had wasted money on Adebayor, I would never have thought he would become the striker he is today (albeit with a lot to improve still)!

Based on that a came us some shock when we led the Premiership for the majority of last season. I always knew we would be in the top 4, that thought never crossed my mind, but I never predicted that we would ever be in a position to throw away the title as we unfortunately did in the end.

The summer transfer sagas came as no shock however. Us gooners are all too familiar with clubs swooping in for our stars, not to mention the annual mass exodus predicted by the British press (and the naughty Spanish). Flamini and Hleb are the only integral players to have left us really. Gilberto and Lehmann were only bit-part players for the majority of last season, and I have confidence that any of our young midfielders are equal to anything Gilberto offered on the pitch last season, however we will miss his experience and professionalism within the squad. And of course I still feel we could bring in another keeper...

So far we have brought in Samir Nasri, an exceptional talent, and a player whom in my opinion can fill the void left by Hleb, and I have a god feeling he will even surpass the role Hleb played in an Arsenal shirt. Fellow summer signing Aaron Ramsey is more of a rough diamond, another hot prospect, but I can't see him making a significant impact in our title credentials for the coming season. I have no doubt he will show his quality in the Carling Cup but we won't see much of him week in week out. A good signing nonetheless....
Amaury Bischoff... well at the end of the day, like you lot, I know absolutely fuck all about this guy so I won't even bother trying to pretend I do... it will either turn out to be another stroke of genius by Wenger, or a low risk gamble which didn't work out, lets hope its the first one though eh...
I expect to be reading bout Coquelin in the reserves this season, he looked good in the preseason games he featured in and I will be no surprise to read about his great performances in the reserves.
Then of course there are some additions from within our squad. Carlos Vela is back from loan and fits in as fourth choice striker. An agile striker with an eye for goal it will be interesting to see what impact he can make in his first year, he is yet another bow to our striking talents and I don't really think we can get any stronger in this department now, Wenger has tipped Vela to make a big impact and I am too, especially with Van Persie's injury problems and Eduardo still recovering.
Jack Wilshere looks to be an amazingly talented player. At just 16 years of age he had a hugely impressive preseason, not once looking out of his depth against top European clubs. Definitely another one for the future, and I'm sure we will see him in the Carling Cup, plus some substitute appearances in the FA Cup and the Premiership...

The summer transfer window does not close until August 31st and we all know we will bring in at least one more player. For that reason I will delay a full squad analysis until we know who we have in the squad... that doesn't stop me from having a stab in the dark for the forthcoming season mind you...

Premier League - Its hard to imagine a season with Rosicky and RvP fully fit, we could assume that it would be amazing, which it could well be but we really don't know, neither seems capable of doing it. I think to stand a chance we need some luck, we need to have hardly any injuries, and maybe for Chelsea or United to pick some up, we might be able to make some ground on United before Ronaldo is back fully fit so that is already a good opportunity. Unfortunately I still feel United are very strong, and Chelsea have got better, a new coach and some very good new additions to their squad. Not going to write it off though, I mean we did effectviely throw it away last time so maybe we can get in that position again but hold on to it?... Still a top 3 finish.

Champions League - If Wenger never wins this in his career it will forever be a dark cloud over his managerial days, and he really wants this. I expect us to go at least one step further than a hugely unlucky quarterfinal last season, and possibly we could win it this year. Our slick passing game has been getting more and more successful in Europe and of course much depends on the draw but I really fancy us to be there or there abouts.

FA Cup - This competition is increasingly becoming less important, that said it probably wont remain with a club outside the top 4 this season. I always think it favours the slightly bigger suqads like United and Chelsea, and Wenger has seemed less and less interested in it in recent years. A good draw always puts you in a good position though so will have to wait and see, of course we have the quality to win it, but do we have the squad when the title and the Champions League are our main targets?

Carling Cup - Wenger will continue to blood more young guns, and I wonder if we will continue our good form in this competition? There is bound to be a night soon when our youngsters fall to a lesser team at an early round when will it happen? Who knows, no one wants to see a repeat of last year but with Ramos keen to impress I am sure he will be treating this as a key competition to perform in once again, that just about sums up Spurs ambitions.
It will be interesting to see the likes of Wilshere, Ramsey and other fringe players like Song possibly featuring to see what they are capable of, the Carling Cup is always exciting to watch some youngsters shine, I think Ramsey and Wilshere are the ones most of us look forward to seeing. Carlos Vela will probably be a key striker in this competition too so I guess he really needs to be added to that list.

I am looking forward to the new season, I know that we have the capability to win any of the competitions we are in, I also realise it could be yet another trophyless season. It as always depends on the luck of the season because I don't think we are ahead of United or Chelsea as such, Liverpool have strengthened and I think that Villa and SPurs are probably likely to take some points off the top 4 as well. One thing for sure is that I am so happy the season is back, and I am optimistic for the season ahead!!!

In Wenger we trust.