Potless Arsenal are the moral victors this season

Surely I wasn’t the only neutral who felt gutted when the final whistle blew on Tuesday night. True, there can only be one winner and Liverpool were far from undeserving victors, playing some high-octane Football and pinning the Gunners back at various stages in the game. Like Gael Clichy, I don’t even have a gripe with the controversial penalty awarded after Kolo Toure’s clumsy challenge on Ryan Babel.

"We did well to score the first goal and to come back and get the game to 2-2. And at that point we were through. But what happened after that was really disappointing," Clichy told the London Evening Standard. "To concede a goal like this, whether it is a penalty or not a penalty, may be disappointing but it is not unlucky."

Indeed, you have to question why Ryan Babel was snaking into the Arsenal penalty area in the first place. Had the young Gunners lost their heads after Theo Walcott’s wonder run and Emmanuel Adebayor ’s slotted finish put them level on the night and ahead on away goals? It’s unthinkable that the opposite would have happened at the Emirates Stadium, despite Arsenal’s penchant for late goals.

The season started brightly enough for Arsene Wenger’s team, blazing a trail in the Premier League and generally acknowledged to be playing the best football in Europe. However, due to shallow depth of quality in their squad compared to their main rivals, there was always the possibility that they might run out of steam. With so many exceptionally talented but unproven youngsters comprising the starting XI, it’s little wonder that Wenger has described some of their performances as naïve this season.

You could say there were worrying signs for Arsenal fans back in October when they played Liverpool for the first time this season. Benitez’s men were far from their best, especially with a half-fit Torres only making it through the first half. In contrast, the Gunners played a blinder, with Cesc Fabregas and Alexander Hleb pulling the strings in midfield – the duo eventually combining to produce Arsenal’s late equaliser. But that was the problem; despite the visitors passing the ball so well and carving out numerous chances, they very nearly walked away with nothing to show for their efforts.

Yet their lack of killer instinct and the soft defensive underbelly they’ve displayed time and again this season have contributed to their appeal. I made the point after Arsenal beat Milan at the San Siro that the game very nearly went into extra-time, despite the North London side dominating proceedings throughout. In addition to the penalty conceded on Tuesday night, there was an equally valuable one given away at St Andrews on February 23, which marked the start of a five-match winless (not to mention Eduardo-less) run. As we all know, this has essentially signalled the end of their title bid for another season – perhaps they’ve done well still to be alive in April.

Nevertheless, it’s a shame for the Gunners to have produced a string of memorable performances (3-0 Seville, 1-1 Liverpool, 1-3 Reading, 1-4 Everton, 0-2 Milan to name but a few) without anything to show for it this season. Wenger deserves immense credit for putting his faith (some might say a little too much) into a crop of talented youngsters who will surely be mentally stronger after a season of joy and heartache, the latter of which they’re suffering from now. Three cheers for Arsenal’s glorious failures this season!