So a week ago, an unbeaten team at the top of the league was unbeatable and seen by many to undoubtedly win everything in sight. Now the unbeaten team at the top of the league is Liverpool, but are the media going to start ejaculating over us and handing us the league and European Cup? No, because Liverpool FC 'don't do hype.' While everyone was talking about Arsenal and enthusing over the beautiful football, we were slowly and quietly following on behind with only a 2 point gap, knowing but never saying that a win for us and a loss for them and we'd be top.
After a decade of underachievement none of us want to tempt fate, that is why we're trying not to say what we're all thinking, but everyone can be happy that at the moment things are looking very good indeed. A while ago we wouldn't have had a weekend like this, we would most probably got a draw with Leeds at midday and then see Arsenal lose and us miss out on the perfect opportunity to go top, this time, not only did we keep up with them, we edged ahead.
People will look at the Leeds game and say, they had all the chances you didn't deserve to win, I don't see it like that. We got the goal and we played maturely and intelligently to hold onto the win. Yes, they had more chances than we did, but surely it's their fault for missing great chances, surely you can't deserve a draw or win if you miss near open goals.
I was very, very pleased with the result, they always say a sing of a great team is to grind out a result when you're not playing well, and not only that, when you're missing three of your key players through injury and your best striker is left on the bench. That has been the great thing about this season, at times we've had a few injuries (primarily Henchoz who is a major asset to our side) and we've not always played to the best of our ability, indeed, I'm not sure there has been a game this season that we have been at the top of our game, yet we are top of the league.
Cynics will say, if you keep playing the way you are your luck will run out and you'll drop down the table, but that is not the case. Arsenal shot out of the scoring blocks, scoring goals left right and centre, yet now they are off the top spot. We on the other hand, had a great start, but in fact could have done a lot better, dropped several points with 2-2 draws and had to endure a goal drought from Owen, yet we are the ones on top. Without wanting to add any more sexual phrases, Arsenal it seems may have come to early. They have been top while playing their best football for years, but they are due a bad patch, we are top after playing decent football but not the best we know we can achieve, we are yet to hit our purple patch. This can only bode well for the future.
Slow and steady wins the race. There is no point contradicting everything I've just said and saying we're now bound to win the league just because we're top without playing our best football, you never know we might never play our best football this season, but there are certainly reasons to be optimistic. We'll have to stick with Arsenal all the way, there is no doubt they are the favourites, after all, they've lost one game, they lost three last season and walked the title. However, they're boasts of remaining unbeaten all season have not rung true and the media hype and general over confidence surrounding Arsenal can't be a good thing, it never is, the higher you climb, the harder the fall when it comes. Let's hope everyone continues to talk about Arsenal, because while everyone is doing that, we can carry on doing what we've been doing, steadily negotiating our way through the tricky Premiership campaign, fighting hard, scrapping for points, putting on glorious displays at times but most of all getting our heads down and trying to get as much as we can out of every game regardless of conditions or display. If we can do that, and hit our good run soon, while still picking up points through the bad patches, we might just be celebrating the odd thing come may. Let's hope so.