Blackburn vs. Arsenal: The Glass Half-Full Perspective

Seeing as how manager Arsene Wenger saw fit to christen a "new era" for Arsenal in the run-up to Saturday's match at Ewood Park, I find that as a supporter, I can only continue what he started.

In Arsene I will trust, no matter how Lemming'd I feel doing it. Because isn't that what faith is all about? Putting your belief in an unknown?

Don't answer that.

Never mind the seedy defensive underbelly Wenger neglected to mention in his waltzing, jovial allusion to the forthcoming Arsenal renaissance: on this day, there was truly reason to celebrate.

Arsenal scored five goals! Their defense, put through the ringer of criticism in past years, allowed four fewer goals than their trip to Old Trafford on Aug. 28!

That's a 50 percent improvement, something a savvy economist like Wenger would certainly appreciate. And as a fan, I can do no less!

Those horrid memories of Arsenal's last breakdown at Ewood—the 2-1 defeat in May 2010? Faded into the dewy recesses of memory, as far flung as the since-departed Sam Allardyce's coattails descending down a West London tube.

For those who will deem it timely and necessary to ratchet up the pressure on Wenger for this "anti-performance," labeling it one of the costliest breakdowns in recent Gooner memory, I propose the wise words of two leaders renowned for their courage during periods of immense uncertainty and untold strife.

Honest Abe Lincoln, former president of the United States during the harrowing Civil War, exhorted his nation to maintain an outlook of "glass half-full" mentality. For a man of unequivocal brilliance, nearly unparalleled as a statesman, yet who also suffered from severe bouts with depression—as so many of the great figures seem to do—it was incredibly poignant.

Should you resign yourself to negativity, you resign yourself to a life seeping with unhappiness and a pervading sense of irrelevance.

Winston Churchill, prime minister of Great Britain during World War II, was made famous for his mantra of "Never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever give up."

Hey, that's two more evers than goals conceded by Arsenal on Saturday. No reason to panic! As Kevin Bacon's ROTC character so brilliantly proclaimed amidst swirling, chaotic debris in Animal House, "All is well!"

All joking aside, Churchill's words, which once rallied England to resist against the heavy odds of oppression, should be taken once more in London. North London's Ashburton Grove, to be specific.

Wenger should be asked questions about this performance, but all hands on deck this is not. Football is, after all, only a game.

While he glossed over so many of the obvious deficiencies in this current Arsenal side with his sweeping proclamation that he is ready to oversee a new beginning, a complete assessment must be forestalled until the first-choice XI are fully fit.

Still, it's easy to imagine Wenger hopping aboard the last lifeboat on a sinking ship, paddling furiously to safety, while the rest of his team lingers behind.

Clearly, he was caught in a fit of euphoria when he uttered that "new age" phrase. We've all been guilty of that.

Like so many men and women dealing with broken relationships, in which there is no chance of a future, he has stubbornly looked past the plainly obvious for fear that if he ever became privy to the reality of his situation, he would cease functioning properly.

There were no excuses for the Blackburn loss. Tired legs from the midweek Champions League tie? Injuries to starting XI mainstays Jack Wilshere and Thomas Vermaelen?

Too bad. Teams with title-winning designs have coped with far worse in the past. And won.

One worries that this Arsenal side at present consists of a jumbled collection of puzzle pieces that just won't yet fit. The fluid passing game upon which Wenger has built his reputation comes in fits and sputters, but it has yet to truly take hold in 2011-12.

On the park Saturday was elder statesman Robin van Persie, who's been with the side since 2004. There were the new additions Gervinho, Mikel Arteta, Per Mertesacker, and Andre Santos. There were the brilliant youth in Aaron Ramsey and Wojciech Szczesny. There was the well-coiffed Marouane Chamakh, who fooled supporters into proclaiming him a savvy acquisition a year ago with his convincing debut in an Arsenal shirt.

And hey, he scored today!

Like Chamakh's fashion sense, there were spells of brilliance at Ewood, like the second Arsenal goal, where a collective movement—seemingly picked of the annals of Gunner glory—found new-boy Arteta finish with resounding emphasis.

Yet in the end, that finish proved nothing more than an aberration in the wake of disappointment.

Like so many of Arsene's words over the past seasons, it fell flat.

But on a lighter note, think of the anticipation this match built. We can live and dream that we may, one day, see Johan Djourou deliver a serviceable cross.

It has to happen sometime, right?

Wait, don't answer that either.