The win over Manchester United still feels good, as good as a big sigh of relief. And it was as tense as it can get. And you know what? The moment Rafael got the ball in the edge of the penalty area, I somehow knew it would end in. How? Well, he just couldn’t avoid to join the Giovanni, Leadbitter, Bentley and Jenas list, could he? It’s amazing how opponents keep on scoring candidates for goal of the month match after match.

Meanwhile, below is an interview by former Arsenal vice-chairman David Dein which caught my eye earlier today:

The team has a bad patch, a wobble, and everybody starts criticising him – and that’s grossly unfair. See what happens at the end of the season and see if the team are good enough. You are seeing quality football week in, week out. If I’m not mistaken we’re still in the early part of November – the season doesn’t finish until May. So, let’s see what happens then. Meanwhile we’re six points behind (league leaders Chelsea) and you can’t say we’re not going to catch that.

Six points it is, and I am also as optimistic as Mr. Dein, but all depends on whether or not it will still be six points when we face Chelsea at the end of the month. And, these are our next fixtures for the month of November:

11: at home against Wigan Athletic(League Cup)
15: at home against Aston Villa(Premiership)
22: away at Manchester City(Premiership)
25: at home against Dinamo Kiev(Champions League)
30: away at Chelsea(Premiership)

Needless to say, there is not one single match in which we can fail to win. My dream at the moment is to win our four upcoming matches and then go at Stamford Bridge in another live-or-die encounter. Actually, it’s more than just a dream, it’s something we can achieve if we approach the next matches in the same way we did on Saturday.

As for tomorrow, according to BBC, Wenger will stick with 90% of the players who faced Sheffield United. And can you guess who that 10% is? Robin Van Persie of course, who should replace Bendtner who is now a regular for the next two weeks or so. It will be nice to see again Ramsey, Vela and Wilshere in action, especially the first two, who I believe are in for a shout for a regular place. I always have this strange, positive feeling when Carling Cup matches are around the corner as I get to see and admire our “real” youngsters.

The match will kick-off at 19:45 in England, that’s 20:45 for us in CET zone. As always, the Gunning Hawk will provide half-time and full-time reports, player ratings, post-match thoughts and video highlights, if available.

Probable line-up
Fabianski, M. Hoyte, Wilshere, Djourou, Fran Merida, Gibbs, Ramsey, Randall, Song Bilong, Van Persie, Vela.