It's amazing how sitting at the top of the table can make us Arsenal fans forget the fact we were mourning the loss of a legend. New hero Cesc Fabregas claimed likewise in a recent interview, pointing out that without their big star leading the line they have had to become even more of a tight-knit unit on the pitch.

Seeing Arsene Wenger’s side pummel Spurs from pretty much the first whistle confirmed to me, and most fans, that rather than suffering from the departure to Barcelona of Thierry Henry, the club as a whole has taken a massive step forward. The Frenchman at the Emirates helm has never been the type to get stuck in a rut and has had no problems with letting big talent go if and when they choose to leave the Gunners.

It's good to see a manager who is determined not to let his side become a one-man show. That is not to say that TH14 was ever the one man to watch out for in the Arsenal side, but there were times when we were over-dependent on his output.

''We're playing more collectively, more as a team, and this is important'' - Cesc Fabregas


Now the squad is not held down by any single presence and I am sure that should any one player  become injured for a prolonged period, the side would cope admirably. Arsenal’s mercurial No.4 Fabregas said: "Thierry was an important player, but now he's gone we have to play more as a team. We're playing more collectively, more as a team, and this is important." And I think he hit the nail on the head.

We should never downplay the importance of Henry; he was sheer class for pretty much the entire eight years he spent in an Arsenal shirt. But maybe the team was beginning to stagnate a little and it's clear that Arsene is looking to blood a whole new side low on years and high on talent.

I am sure that Henry would have left north London however hard Wenger tried to convince him otherwise. It was simply the right time to move on. I am just as sure that Arsene realises the importance of change and the key to change is to freshen things up and to not let things become staid.

In more than a decadewith their current boss, Arsenal have had no compunction in keeping players who felt their time had come to leave and that their future lay elsewhere. Patrick Vieira, Marc Overmars, Manu Petit and many other pivotal players were let go because Arsene was all too aware that no one player is bigger than the club. And that was never more the case than now, as the Premier League finds itself with Arsenal at its peak with a game in hand.

There’s a quote from the film Annie Hall that I think best illustrates the situation the Gunners could have found themselves in. Woody Allen’s character says: "A relationship, I think, is like a shark. You know? It has to constantly move forward or it dies. And I think what we got on our hands is a dead shark."

Thankfully, now it seems that the Gunners are a fish that is swimming stronger than ever.

Is Fabregas right - or will Arsenal's bubble burst? Post your comments below or submit an article to Sportingo.