The international break has given us two weeks to digest the disappointing defeat to Tottenham but now we have players returning and the game against Sunderland should be a chance to start afresh.
Instead, a small group of fans are planning to launch a protest to instigate the removal of Arsene Wenger. Ask who should replace the manager and they have no idea yet they are willing to unneccesarily raise the tension within the stadium on a day when we should be approaching a winnable game with the optimism that comes with players returning to fitness.
Laurent Koscielny, Johan Djourou and Tomas Rosicky should all be available on Sunday, with Vermaelen and Diaby also closing in on a return to first team action possibly before the end of October. Even Chu Young Park has been in good form in the international break, scoring in South Korea's World Cup qualifying victory over UAE, meaning we have a squad full of options.
Our downfall this season has primarily been our lack of concentration and organisation in defence which was evident again in our last game before the international break. However, we had also struggled to maintain possession and control matches but we rediscovered that skill at White Hart Lane which was a promising sign and it meant we restricted Spurs to very few opportunities. If we can continue in that vein and improve our defensive intensity then we won't be far away from being able to challenge at the top end of the table.
Sunderland have had an erratic start to the season, winning only one game but they did pick up a point at Anfield and have invested heavily albeit in an average squad. Niklas Bendtner will be absent as he is not permitted to play against his parent club but former Arsenal player Sebastian Larsson will represent one of Sunderland's biggest threats. Despite their poor start, Steve Bruce's side only sit one point behind us so a win is imperative at the Grove on Sunday afternoon. Those planning to protest should at least keep their disgruntled voices outside of the ground and lend their full support to the team inside the stadium.
The Arse Predictions:
Line-up: Wojciech Szczesny, Carl Jenkinson, Laurent Koscielny, Per Mertesacker, Kieran Gibbs, Alexandre Song, Aaron Ramsey, Mikel Arteta, Gervinho, Theo Walcott, Robin van Persie.
Score: 3-1