It's easy to get carried away with excitement this season; the media have billed this year's league as the most open in living memory, although those of us who aren't obligated to sensationalise everything can still recall a time when it was entirely possible that more than two teams might win the title. The appeal lies perhaps in the fact that whilst it's more than likely that the Premiership crown will go to Old Trafford or Stamford Bridge, there is less of a sense of the inevitable about everything: Arsenal have an outside chance of upsetting the odds and winning their first title since 2004 and the elusive fourth spot that brings Champion's league riches is still being contested by four teams. All this means of course is that when Chelsea win the league and Liverpool finish fourth, the sense of disappointment will be even greater. Still, best to enjoy the ride while it lasts.

Arsenal have been dropping in and out of the title race for the entire season. Every victory vindicates Wenger's faith in youth, every defeat brings his team closer to the scrap for fourth place. On Saturday the Gunners faced off against an out of sorts Sunderland team at the Emirates, and despite taking taking all three points, they made heavy weather of it.

Having conceded three against Manchester United followed by two against Chelsea, not to mention the farce in Portugal, the Arsenal defence has been under intense scrutiny in recent weeks. Against Sunderland however, it was the the lack of cutting edge up front that caused problems. It was a game that may have recalled for many the type of football on display during Arsenal's first season at the Emirates. The home team dominated the possession and shooting but with no reward, whilst allowing their opposition chances through rubbish defending. The major difference between events on Saturday and home games from several years ago was that Emmanuel Eboué was the stand out player of the afternoon; whilst his team-mates showed no real inclination to attack the game, Eboué was more than happy to run at opponents, getting in behind defenders and causing problems with low balls across the box. It was his run and cross/shot that created the first goal; the Ivorian found some space on the edge of the Sunderland area which he gleefully exploited, and when he was finally closed down on the edge of the six yard box, he dug out a ball to the far post which Bendtner turned in.

Sadly no one could match Eboué's drive, so Arsenal fans had to wait until injury time in the second half before the points were made secure. Ramsey, Nasri and Walcott all spurned decent chances, whilst at the other end Kenwyne Jones shot wide when through on goal and Silvestre was lucky that Darren Bent stayed on his feet after being grabbed from behind in the penalty area. Eboué's performance was probably the biggest positive to come out of the game, and will give Wenger pause for thought in terms of selecting his right back in weeks to come. Walcott looked more confident after turning in some absolutely terrible performances. He seemed happier to run with the ball and use his pace to beat players, but he still crosses as if he's scared he might hit someone. Promising though. An improved Walcott could pep up the offence no end.

This brings us on to the weekend's big negative. The most interesting statistic to have emerged recently came in the form of the revelation that Arsenal have averaged 3.2 goals per league game with Robin van Persie in their side this season but only 1.6 without him, which says it all really. Arshavin has tried his best, but he's not a number nine. Bendtner is useful but has had to recover from injuries, and isn't as effective at bringing other players into the attack as the RVP is. Rumours had suggested that the flying Dutchman would only be grounded until March, and could even return for the Champion's league quarters (assuming they are reached), but Arsenal have just released a statement which suggests we'll be lucky to see him back before the end of April. With any luck Walcott's resurgence will continue and we can look to Nick 'B-52' Bendtner to lead the line effectively, but on current form I'm not holding my breath.

With United dropping more points on the weekend against Everton and Chelsea beating Wolves in a particularly unconvincing fashion, Arsenal gained a little bit of ground on the league leaders; physically, in the form of points, and mentally, in the form of confidence. The Gunners remain rank outsiders, but when you consider that their eleven match run-in features games against only two of the top eight teams in the league, you may start to wonder for the umpteenth time this season whether it's just possible. If we can stay in the hunt until April third, when Chelsea play United at Old Trafford, then we'll take it from there. Otherwise, it looks to be game over.

Talk about the Champion's League fourth spot has thrown up an interesting debate in recent days. The premier league is considering the notion of a play-off between 4th, 5h, 6th, and 7th places to decide who gets the final spot in Europe's most illustrious club competition. I'm not sure if anyone else has noticed, but there already exists a play-off. It takes place over 38 games, each team plays all the others twice, and the final league standings reflect the successes and failures of the competitors. Seems fair to me.