There is only one question Chelsea fans are asking their Arsenal counterparts after a second successive Emirates demolition job and that is…’who’s your daddy!’

The answer comes in at a robust 6ft 2in, 185lbs, 31-year-old by the name of Didier Drogba. The Ivorian simply owns the Gunners and over the past few seasons, if anyone has damaged the North Londoners trophy winning credentials, it’s the man they call Drogs.

Having met Drogba on a couple of occasions, I can attest to the hulky menace that his presence exudes. Standing next to him is intimidating, almost frightening and one can only wonder what that feels like when he’s breathing down your neck.

From what I’ve seen of Drogba this campaign, when’s he’s on, he looks as good as his ever been. That means explosiveness and a physicality that very few defenders on the planet can cope with.

Certainly, Arsenal’s back-four were no match for Didier, who has now scored ten in his last nine starts against his London neighbors. Arsene Wenger must long for the day when he can once again match fire-with-fire in the Tony Adams/Martin Keown mold.

Scarily for the rest of England, Chelsea is not a one man team and therein lays the rub. How do you contain this array of talent that not only has skill but the two Premiership ingredients that almost guarantee success – power & pace.

Arsenal for all their majestic, free flowing football simply didn’t have the depth, strength or a plan B to halt the Blues. They were bullied defensively, stunted creatively and rather timid in the area of the pitch where it really mattered. Other than a little burst of passion in the second half, it felt as though they knew that the game was up from the moment Drogba scored with the most exquisite of finishes.

It could be argued that Eduardo was a little unlucky to have been penalized by Andre Marriner for a high boot against Petr Cech. I’ve seen them go both ways over the last twenty years but even if Andriy Arshavin’s goal had stood, who honestly thinks that Chelsea was giving this one away?

Wenger has recently stated that his kids have matured, that maybe the case but their BPL results against the teams that matter have been poor. Strong, physical clubs still give Arsenal more than they can handle and I can’t see that changing in the immediate future.

Another aspect of the Arsenal experience that disappointed me today was the Emirates crowd. The amount of empty seats at the end was disgraceful. Whatever happened to supporting your team until the bitter end, a soft crowd unable to come to terms with reality equals a soft team.

It will truly be interesting to see what happens in the January transfer window if American, billionaire, Stan Kroenke goes through with his takeover of the club. Will the American unleash a war chest for Arsene Wenger and if so just who will Wenger buy - I would suggest a big strong center forward, a bruising holding midfielder and a hard-as-nails center back!

Looking at Chelsea, their spine is Drogba, Michael Essien and John Terry – ‘who’s your daddies’

With the holiday season approaching and the African Cup of Nations (where they lose four players, Drogba, Salomon Kalou, Michael Essien & John Obi Mikel) just around the corner, there were legitimate questions being asked of the Chelsea outfit and how they would cop however the fixture list couldn’t be kinder.

Once the Blues get past draw happy Manchester City next Saturday, it becomes and not to be rude, a succession of cream puffs. Everton (h), Portsmouth (h), West Ham (a), Birmingham (a), Fulham (h), Hull (a), Sunderland (h), Birmingham (h) and Burnley (a) represent the league schedule at a time when many clubs are on their knees physically and in squad numbers.

If the Blues can’t obtain at least 24 out of a possible 27 points from this motley assortment while the African lads are away on international duty, they don’t deserve to win the title.

They will win the title though – I expect the 24^th April to be crowning day as they entertain, Stoke, and the cherry on top of the cake will be the following week when they travel to Anfield.

This Chelsea team is a re-incarnation of the club that swept all before it under Jose Mourinho. Yes, it sucks for the artist of football such as Arsenal and Tottenham, but the game is about power, it’s about pace and if you don’t know who your daddy is, well, you know who just to ask.

Until then, I’ll see you at the far post.

A few years ago, Arsenal boss, Arsene Wenger had this description regarding the use of his players by international teams and coaches. He likened it to them taking a car from his garage without asking permission, he then added "They will then use the car for 10 days and abandon it in a field without any petrol left in the tank. We then have to recover it, but it is broken down. Then a month later they will come to take your car again, and for good measure you're expected to be nice about it." 

One wonders when this situation will end because in all honesty it is getting beyond a joke. Wenger for all his moaning and tunnel vision at times is 100% right because it seems to me that the national associations are blind, deaf and dumb to their complaints. 

I'd love to be a fly on the wall when he discusses his feelings about the Dutch Football Association, the KNVB, now that his shiny red top-of-the-range Ferrari, Robin Van Persie (ankle ligaments), has just been dinged up and will be in the shop for 4-6 weeks. 

Liverpool's, Rafa Benitez will have the same complaint about the treatment of his Rolls Royce's. Steven Gerrard (groin) and Fernando Torres (groin) both returned from international duty six weeks ago nursing injuries that have severely impacted his club. 

Even Carlo Ancelotti of Chelsea will get his oily rag in to this act. His two Humvee's, John Terry (ankle) and Frank Lampard (thigh) returned from their desert adventure with sand in their carbs and in Lampard's case, a lengthy spell on the sidelines. 

This whole borrowing of player's situation is creating mixed feelings for me though.  

On one hand I love international football when the stakes are high which means either World Cups, European Championships Copa America etc. However 'friendly' matches, which are in all honesty, worthless, have to be played to weed out just who can compete at this level. 

On the other hand, club football is where I make my bread & butter and it's where the fans devote most of their time, energy and money. If the best players are injured due to international play, it's diluting our product. 

So just what can be done to make this situation more equitable to everyone concerned - here are a few ideas that might be worth further discussion. 

Compensation: This is a complicated idea as how do you monetize an injury? For sure, the guilty Football Associations should pay the players wages while they are unfit. In fact why not penalize the Association from which the player who caused the injury pay (think Italian, Giorgio Chiellini on van Persie)!  

The bigger problem occurs when back in domestic play a team loses or ties to a club they should ordinarily beat with ease without their stars. Think Gerrard & Torres with Liverpool's struggles. If a point is worth $1,000,000 at seasons end and you've dropped six while your match winners are out, is the national association on the hook for six million? 

Transfers: The transfer window is now open only twice a year. Surely, if you lose a player to injury while playing in FIFA or UEFA sanctioned competition, you must be allowed to replace them outside of the window. This to me is a no-brainer and given the fertile imaginations of Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini, I can't believe that they haven't brought this proposal up. This would certainly protect the lesser clubs who don't have a bevy of international players and can't afford to lose anybody. 

Central Contracts: Okay, I'll admit that this idea is a little whacky but it works in a few sports. Perhaps the Football Associations own the contracts of their players and rent them out to clubs or we work it the other way where clubs rent players to the Associations. Either way there is an implied sense of responsibility and not the washing of hands we currently have. 

The End of International Football: Of course the most radical proposal but one I could envision at some point unless things change quite radically. Seriously, if you spent $30 million on a player, lent him to someone else and then they return him broken, you're going to go mental. At some point the clubs are going to say 'no more' and I can guarantee you that the courts will back them up. 

Ultimately what the National Associations and clubs need is a clear, defined, set of rules that are enforceable, fair and transparent? Until this is achieved, you'll have players deceiving clubs because they are desperate to play for their countries, players & mangers deceiving countries because their club is more important. It is a situation that's coming to a head. 

Hey, you can borrow my car, but if you bust my car, you fix my car! 

Until then, I'll see you at the far post. 
 
 
 
 

In theory, over the course of a season, the good, bad and ugly refereeing decisions will even themselves out. That may be fine and dandy when you look back at the entire campaign but when it effect's the outcome of the biggest match of the season to date, well, that's another story.

The margins when Chelsea and Manchester United meet are always gossamer fine and Sunday was no different which is why each and every decision is magnified 1000 times more than usual.

At 68 years-of-age, Sir Alex Ferguson's eyesight is as sharp as a laser beam. Those beams would have been boring into Martin Atkinson at the end of this contest as a couple of questionable calls didn't go the Scotsman's way.

"It was a bad decision, but what can you do? You lose faith in the refereeing sometimes. That's the way the players are talking in there. It was a bad one. That goal should not have been allowed. We've dominated the game and had great chances to win the match", he fumed afterwards as Stamford Bridge rocked in delight as the Blues took all three points.

I could see his frustrations with the Wayne Rooney offside call, it was desperately tight, but who knows if the United striker would've finished the chance. The real game changer was Atkinson not whistling for the pull down by John Terry on Luis Antonio Valencia. If it's a penalty, Terry is on a yellow for 75 odd minutes and United have the opportunity to score from the spot.

The complaint that Darren Fletcher didn't foul Ashley Cole on the free-kick that led to the Chelsea goal is legit but in all fairness there was a stonewall penalty for the Blues minutes earlier. How Atkinson overlooked Jonny Evans as he almost put his foot through Didier Drogba's chest was unbelievable. For Drogba to receive a yellow card was baffling. My only thought was that it may have been for over acting as the Ivorian was surely auditioning for 'flatliners'. I guess it does go to prove that in a way calls do even out!

I thought that over the course of ninety minutes, United, probably deserved at least a point as Sir Alex, who got his tactics completely wrong at Anfield, showed that he still has the smarts for the big matches by getting the x's and o's spot on.

The five-man midfield bossed the proceedings making Chelsea's diamond look pedestrian and outmoded. First to the challenge, quick to fill holes, the pairing of Fletcher and Michael Carrick was inspired. With Ryan Giggs looking even better that he did last season when he was named the player of the year, you thought that if United scored first they would take control.

Here you have to give credit to Chelsea's back line. They didn't allow United any good looks and when you consider it's now been 872 minutes since they last conceded at the Bridge, you'd have to say JT and Co. were good value for the clean sheet.

One cause of concern for Carlo Ancelotti may be the amount of chances his side created especially when you consider the goal rush his team has been on. Still, the Italian is pragmatic enough to know that 1-0 over your closest rivals is as good as 3-0. It also maintains a decade of dominance for Ancelotti over Ferguson. Since losing to United while manager of Juventus in 1999, the Italian is unbeaten against the Scotsman and I can guarantee this rankles SAF.

Ancelotti will also know that his team didn't play well but did what was required as there was a whiff of Mourinho around this display. It was old school Chelsea mixed with grit, determination and a slice of luck, truly a potent mixture.

With a perfect two-for-two record against 'B4' opposition this season, the final piece of the puzzle is just a few weeks away when they take the short trip to the Emirates on the 29^th. The last time they were in North London they ransacked Arsenal's home, a repeat performance and you can start draping the Premiership trophy in blue ribbons.

With the transfer ban temporarily lifted and money to burn, I can't see anything other than a bad decision or two from derailing their quest for domination. It'll just depend on when and where those decisions go against them. Bolton away, no biggie, at Old Trafford in the return fixture - we might just hear Ancelotti chirp.

Until then, I'll see you at the far post.

Since the inception of the English Premier League in 1992 only four teams have lifted the trophy, Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal and Blackburn.

Of those sides how many were truly great? Blackburn certainly weren’t anything to write home about and you could say that their solitary title was bought and paid for.

Chelsea was brutally efficient but their twin tittles came the same way as Blackburn’s.

United could honestly say they had two great vintages, ’96 and ’99 while Arsenal will proudly point to the ’04 outfit.

If you know nothing about football, the history, players, great rivalries and just looked at records, you would probably say that the greatest team in Premier League history was that Gunner team.

The reasoning being is that they played 38 - won the league by 11 points - and was unbeaten. The only other team to achieve this feat was Preston North End in 1989 when the league table consisted of 12 teams! They were nicknamed the Invincibles - Arsenal inherited that name with ease.

A year later Arsenal won their last trophy of this decade, the FA Cup. Since that afternoon at the Millennium Stadium, Arsene Wenger, Arsenal’s longest serving manager has been telling us that his new Gunners would rule English football for years to come.

For five years that boast has seemed hollow, callow and deluded as one third and a bunch of fourth place finishes have marked the new Arsenal as also-rans. For sure they’ve always started the seasons strongly. They’ve been pleasing on the eye but eventually they’ve flattered to deceive.

Give Wenger credit though because through all of this he has stayed on message. His mantra has been simple. His kids will eventually come good and to be fair, if you say something long, hard and often enough it just may come true.

For sure this isn’t the team of Thierry Henry, Patrick Vieira, Sol Campbell and Robert Pires but would you argue against the following. Robin van Persie has the sweetest left foot since Liam Brady. Abou Diaby has Vieira plus goals flowing through his veins. Thomas Vermaelen is a better footballer than Campbell. Cesc Fabregas is the best thing since sliced bread!

Okay Fabregas may not match up to sliced bread but on current form is there anyone better than him in his position in world football? The answer is no!

Fabregas is just one of two holdovers from the Invincibles season, the other being Gael Clichy.

Other than that these two players, this team is built from scratch. If you look at the likes of United and Chelsea, they’re squads look almost ancient compared to the youth and vigor of the North Londoners.

Yes, those two teams have won the last five titles and yes they will be there in May. They have experience and they know how to win and that is the key, knowing how to win. This Arsenal team is just starting to learn that hardest of lessons. Once they know it, feel it, understand it, Wenger, if he can keep the team together will embark on a run that will rival that of his greatest rival, Sir Alex Ferguson.

On Saturday against Tottenham, the Gunners were not playing well. They were not playing that eye catching Wenger football however they were also not in any discomfort. What they did display though and what you rarely see from youth is patience. They waited for the mistake, it came, they punished! That is a sign of maturity and a sign that perhaps, Wenger’s team has finally arrived.

Without any international interruptions and a smooth progression in the UEFA Champions League, with key players returning from injury, I think the next four months will see Arsenal move through the gears and become one of the most potent forces in English football.

The Professor has that hunger again and this could yet be his greatest experiment ever.

Until then, I’ll see you at the far post.