"Come on Charlton"

Arsene Wenger said that on this performance Charlton would finish in the top ten this season. I'm not sure about their final positioning but Charlton Athletic are clearly better equipped to deal with the premiership this time round - despite the fact that we managed just one goal in 180 minutes of football against them in '98/99 season.

Conceding three goals (and still winning) is not the kind of performance we're used to seeing at Highbury, but for now, we should put this down to just a bad day at the office (the first in many years) for our first choice back four, or five, including "my little pony"! Hopefully today's game isn't a sign of a rapid decline in our evergreen defence, but a clear indication that the First Division Champions are here to make an impact on the Premiership.

What we saw on Saturday was a very well organised side (typical Curbishley and put together on a shoe-string) that worked hard for each other proving they can play a bit. And perhaps we shouldn't be so surprised that they managed to put three goals passed us, after all they won the First Division Championship at a canter; and I mean a canter, they only got 4 points from their last 7 games and still beat Man City to the number one spot comfortably. Andy Hunt (the First Division's top goal scorer last year) troubled Adams just as much as Owen, Shearer and Phillips have ever done and scored 2 good poachers goals, and had another disallowed. Supported very well by the likes of Lisbie, Kinsella and Stuart (and Johansson when he returns) I think they will score plenty of goals against quality opposition.

Fortunately, commanding performances from Henry, Viera and KANU in particular, combined with superior fitness throughout the team meant the win was always on the cards for us. But to also get 4, possibly 5, contenders for goal of the month to boot was the icing on the cake - they actually get better every time you see them. But Charlton's back four of Kishishev, Powell, Tiler and Rufus were not as bad as the scoreline suggests.

They won't keep many clean sheets but going forward they gave Arsenal problems, particularly in the first half, and I can see them creating plenty of opportunities throughout the season. Like most Arsenal fans I really look forward to the many London derbies we play - only eight this year - but it does make winning the championship far more difficult for us than Northern clubs. For years we have watched our London rivals raise their game against us, only to fail to offer the same level of opposition when they go to Old Trafford, Elland Road and Anfield. In Charlton I think we have a side that will not get a nosebleed and capitulate as soon as they are north of the M25 - something we saw plenty of last year from Watford (RIP), The Dons (bless them) and Sp*rs (ha ha ha). Its this spirited combination that will nick the odd point here and there from our main championship rivals - one of many factors we need to have on our side if we are going to win the premiership this year. And for that I welcome them back to the Premiership - "come on Charlton"!