What Arsenal Needs Is Winners

The season crushing game at White Hart Lane epitomises one of the major problems in the current Arsenal team: There are a number of players who either have not developed either a winning mentality or a hunger for winning. By winning, I do not mean winning a game, but winning the big prize at the end of the day. 

It shocked me to see that apart from Sol Cambpell, Clichy, and oddly enough Rosicky (quite unusual) no one else on the pitch seemed to know that we were playing in a derby, but more importantly in one of five important games, especially since united had drawn at the weekend.

You had people like Diaby, Nasri and Sagna using the same tricks they use in every game and the rest seemed to be crippled by the atmosphere (which I have to admit was the loudest i've heard in a long time). But if anybody was to be weighted down and crushed by this atmosphere it should have been Sol Campbell. The man who the spurs faithful have since loathed for leaving them in favour of Arsenal on a free transfer in 2001. His every touch was—as expected—greeted with a loud chorus of boos. But instead, this proven veteran played like a man on a mission. The pinnacle of his fantastic display was his determination to chase down and catch up with Gareth Bale at the latter stages of the second half, considering his obvious mobility difficulties. This man knew what the derby meant and knew what the game meant.

It is more than quite unfortunate that the good majority of the few winners Arsenal have are bench ridden for these important twilight stages of the season, e.g. Cesc, Gallas, RVP, and indeed Ramsey (anyone that watched his games and contributions so far will know why his a winner).

This is what made Viera and Roy Keane such good captains, as evident from the success of the teams they oversaw. It's what makes Henry so great—what separates Fletcher from Mikel Obi, and Rooney from many strikers out there. It's not just the skills or abilities but what is more important is that innate desire to win.