After the defeat to West Ham at the weekend I took a bit of time away from social media and blogging. That defeat was the nail in the coffin for any lingering title hopes and I just didn’t feel like dipping back into the Arsenal world to lament and stew on what has been a Seasonis Horribilis for The Arsenal. So I delved into wine podcasts, jumped head first into work stuff and for three days it was good. Even during the day yesterday, when I would usually be looking ahead and worrying about the match in the evening, I didn’t really think too much about it. There was no real feeling of jeopardy for me.

I have this thing during matches in which The Management asks me what my heart rate is. That’s because usually it jumps to 110+ beats per minute when Arsenal are playing. It’s the nerves that kick in. Last night my heart rate never got above 85. I looked on four separate occasions.

I just didn’t have it in me to be nervous. There was no fear. There was no jeopardy. The title talk was lost and kudos to Henry Winter for calling it out last night – it’s not a ‘title race’ any more. It’s a procession.

And I think it’s been like that since Arsenal went away to Dubai. The domestic season was done when those players got back from their warm weather training; we all knew it, it’s just that none of us wanted to admit it. The failings of last summer have been compounded by the failings of January and as a result that’s where I am right now. I just want us to fast forward the season and get to the end. I’m done with the sh*t refereeing for another season, I’m done with the bad luck, I’m done with looking at sports media cream themselves over a Liverpool side who have had it their own way all season; last night after they went up against a Newcastle side who didn’t have Isak fit (having played against City without a fully fit Haaland), I realised that there’s no point looking at the table and there’s no point worrying about the final few months of the season. Our season was done when Kai Havertz stretched for that ball in Dubai and Martinelli did his hamstring in the North East.

I think what’s also compounding this feeling of “just fast forward to the end” for me is also that there isn’t really a lot that can change in the next month. Saka and Martinelli won’t be ready until after the international break, which will be April. That means we have a whole month of huffing and puffing like we did last night. The Leicester game gave us all false hope; I think deep down we all knew that playing a central midfielder with no experience as a centre forward would not cut it. Not in a title race, not even in a top four race. But his two late goals gave a false dawn that we could all look to. And now the chickens have well and truly come home to roost.

Last night we were toothless save an unlucky Calafiori shot off the post and it says rather a lot when on my social media timelines I saw Arsenal fans genuinely wondering if we should keep the Italian up top. He’s got a good shot, he’s good with the ball at his feet and given that Hudson-Odoi absolutely did him in that first half on a number of occasions (so much so he had to come off at halftime as he was on a yellow), the view was that sticking him up top might work better than Merino.

That’s not a slight on Merino by the way, because I think he’s doing his best in a position which isn’t one that he’s at all familiar with. We have a 17-year-old who is expected to work wonders, a central midfielder up top, Trossard dipping in and out of form and a captain who is painfully out of form too. Defensively we did what we usually do and reduced Forest to very little chances save a couple of Raya saves, but that isn’t where the problem is. The problem is at the sharp end of the pitch and the fact I need closed down my iPad when I saw Sterling coming on last night should tell a story in itself. An absolutely trash loan signing that at this point feels like we’re giving him minutes so he can secure some kind of testimonial at the end of the season.

In a couple of WhatsApp groups i’m on I’ve seen people turn on Arteta. Saying that this is on him and he’s peaked already. I can’t be having that for a second. This man has been clear as day that he wanted reinforcements. But of all of the footballers on this planet, of all of the options and with the scouting network we have, we couldn’t find one that would have been better than the broken shell of a Chelsea player and one of our midfielders who is being asked to do an impossible job.

I’ve barely talked about the details of last night’s drab 0-0 with Forest because, frankly, there is no point. There was very little to bother talking about. It played out with two teams who have good defences and whilst Forest had their counter-attack and long-ball first teamers out, Arsenal dealt with them well I thought. But it means nothing if you only have one half of the horse working. And that has been us since we came back from Dubai. Leicester was a horrendous performance until the late show from Merino. West Ham was the same. Forest last night. And we’ve got another month of this. But even then, pinning your hopes on a Martinelli who will have been out for six week’s and a Saka who will have been out for three months, is rather fanciful.

We are a ‘score first’ team because when sides come up against us and get the goal like West Ham did at the weekend, they retreat in to a low block and we have no answer. That would have been the same last night, but our defence stood firm. Our attack did little.

I find myself in a position where I’m glad we’re not playing this weekend. It gives us respite from what has become painful to watch. Next up it’s PSV. I may or may not take a brief hiatus again on blogging until the lead up to that game. Feels like I need it.

Laters people.