Darren Bent secured a shock win over Arsenal who lacked the dynamism to open up the Black Cats' defence.
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Was this the realisation of the importance of Robin van Persie or were Arsenal just missing a certain amount of cutting edge in the starting line-up?

Eduardo's instincts in the final third should ensure he endures a seamless transition to centre forward in the absence of Robin van Persie.
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No sooner did Robin van Persie get the hang of this goalscoring lark, he became the latest player in Arsenal's history under Wenger's tenure to fall foul to the November injury jinx.

KV crosses the reader-contributor divide to give us his take on the subtleties of Arsenal's 4-3-3 system.
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From time immemorial variation has led to the survival of species. Slight variations have caused species to evolve through the years, making them more adept to the environment.

Two own goals helped Arsenal on their way to an ultimately comfortable victory as Wolves tired from their early pressing to relinquish control.
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Alex Song gave a reminder of what is to be missed in January when he leaves for the African Cup of Nations as his introduction gave Arsenal renewed spark in the midfield.

Arsenal attacked AZ Alkmaar with speed and purpose to all but seal their place in the knockout stages of the Champions League.
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Whisper it quietly but this may be the real deal. Arsenal's speed and incision cut apart Dutch champions AZ Alkmaar but the win received as little as a whimper of attention across Europe.

Alan Dzagoev showed exactly why he is Russia's brightest new hope with a masterful display on how to use operational space.
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I was first alerted to the dazzling talents of Alan Dzagoev during a 1-1 draw against Aston Villa in last year's Europa Cup campaign and it is noticeable to see just how far he has come since then.

The standard of Arsenal's goalkeepers has come into question but changes in the modern game mean there is more to the position than shot-stopping.
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If goalkeepers are crazy then imagine having to summon the sparse vestiges of your sanity to defend three of them.

Arsenal's use of the whole pitch created space and angles to open up the Spurs defence as two goals inside a minute set-up a comfortable win.
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A period of forty-nine seconds in the first half typified what Arsenal are about this season as Arséne Wenger's Catalan-inspired reinvention has given the Gunners an explosiveness and unpredictability that was beginning to seep away from the side.

The Gunners will have to find their way through the midfield shield of Wilson Palacios and Tom Huddlestone in the North London derby.
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He wasn't able to find away to stamp his quality over Arsenal's midfielders during a trial with the club two years ago but Wilson Palacios now has a chance to do just that for the Gunners' biggest rival.

Goals from Fran Merida and Nicklas Bendtner saw Arsenal edge past Liverpool in an entertaining encounter in the Carling Cup.
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Arsene Wenger was reluctant to let Fran Merida go out on loan and the Spanish youngster repaid his manager's confidence by turning out a magical performance against Liverpool.

Arsenal surrendered a two goal lead against a spirited West Ham side who did well to deny Arsenal much fluency in central midfield.
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At 2-0, Alan Hansen said Arsenal could only beat themselves and as it was, the Gunners contrived to concede two late goals.

A late goal from David Mendes Da Silva earned AZ Alkmaar the share of the spoils as Arsenal relinquished two points they could have done without dropping.
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AZ Alkmaar entered the game promising to expose the Arsenal weaknesses they had amassed from watching the Gunners' 6-2 thrashing of Blackburn Rovers but it took until the 93rd minute for the Dutch Champions to finally retreat from their shells and revealed a chink in Arsenal's armour of which everybody already knew.

Arsène Wenger's quest for attacking perfection sees his two centre backs playing with more than a hint of libero.
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In Arsène Wenger's first match in charge of Arsenal, the French manager deployed a three man defence but despite a convincing 2-0 win over Blackburn the set-up was never to be seen again in red and white colours.

Andrey Arshavin wrapped up a late win for Arsenal but Lee Bowyer's goal ensured the Gunners had to work hard to earn the three points.
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Only two points were dropped last season by Manchester United against teams outside the 'big four' in comparison to Arsenal's fifteen and it seems manager Arsene Wenger is going some way in correcting that stat this campaign.

The current Premier League season has so far been the most prolific of all campaigns with three goals per game. So why have there been so many goals in the Premier League?
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They were mocked during the summer transfer window for being able to field nine strikers (three have since jumped ship) but it seems Manchester City's forward thinking is a view very much shared amongst the Premier League coaches.