When Abou Diaby is playing well, I have to remind myself that he’s not Patrick Vieira. His wide gate and prowling maneuvers in midfield sure give the impression that Vieira has returned in prime form. In the post match press conference, Arsene Wenger highlighted his Vieira-like ability to move from box to box very quickly. With Denilson playing the defensive mid role, along with Diaby, there will not be many midfields we do not control by the fact that both have such an awareness of space and positioning.

The troubling thought during the match however was that, even with a 3 to 1 lead, the game was still questionable. We are great at going forward and attacking. The problem seems to be with shutting down oppositions and being able to hold the ball when we’re not going forward. Pompey’s attacks were sporadic but, every time they went forward, its worth asking how they were getting through our defense. These are the mistakes we tend to make when the win becomes too easy.

It’s also time to start asking questions of Almunia. I think its time for a better decision maker between the posts. That Pompey goal should never happen and its one of the reasons why the game never seemed out of reach for them.

After two Premiership games, Arsenal 10, opposition 2.

On the other side of the pond, the start of the Premiership is just around the corner. After watching MLS games played in terrible heat and worse conditions, it’s almost time for the “Ahh, ha” moment when we see what club football can be like with real competition and players with extraordinary skill.

Its time to get the funds together for Arsenal TV Online and start integrating the Arsenal blogs into my daily reading. There is so many good writers out there, writing about Arsenal, its hard for me to put myself into the blogosphere as any kind of expert on the subject. I’ve followed them since 1997, so at least I have a decade under my belt. My 12th season of Arsenal starts August 15th!

We’ve been able to finally get rid of Adebayor. He really endured himself to supporters last summer with his “maybe I’m Arsenal, maybe not” remarks. Unfortunately, Kolo Toure has left as well. Both have signed with Manchester City, which should make the watching of “Citeh” finish mid-table again even more interesting. With all of the money they’re throwing around to sign players, they think they’re heading to the top four of the Premiership. I think that’s hilarious but I guess we’ll see. Arsenal has supposedly pocketed 40 million pounds on the deal, so if we just get them to take Eboue as well, the whole thing would go down as the biggest swindle ever, in the whole history of the world. Well done Arsene!

We may actually get to see Rosicky, Arshavin, Walcott, and Fabregas all in the midfield together at some point. Rosicky is said to be back after being gone for so long. Our new Belgian centerback Thomas Vermaelen looks to be a great acquisition as well. Rumors are swirling around talks to get Patrick Vieira back at Arsenal and to sign Daniele de Rossi from Roma. I’m not holding my breathe for either but just one of them would be outstanding. Vieira is past his prime but coming back to the club he loves (and we love you too Paddy) would probably throw the engine into overdrive for at least a season or two.

This weekend, as part of the pre-season Emirates Cup, Arsenal take on Atletico Madrid on Saturday and Rangers on Sunday. Then, we take on Valencia next Saturday, before opening day against Everton on August 15th. Ooh, the anticipation!