Arsene Wenger says: 'Is the Champions League a Holy Grail? Not for me. It's presented like that but, if you approach games in the right way, then you usually win what you deserve to win.' Hands up all those who believe that. (Didn't think there'd be many!) After just two trips to the quarter-finals in six seasons, winning the Champions League is almost an obsession within the Highbury dressing room. If only Thierry Henry had been fully fit for the quarter-final second leg against Chelsea last season.

. Yet Arsenal stuttered and struggled against PSV Eindhoven and Rosenborg Trondheim. The Gunners' usual fluency was missing. Maybe it was, as Wenger suggested, a case of playing too many games in a short time. Perhaps, also, there's a difference between Premiership sides and teams in the Champions League. As George Graham has pointed out, so many English teams have forgotten how to defend properly. However, Arsenal's Champions League rivals tend to be much better at keeping their defensive shape and discipline 

. It's been a huge relief to have Sol Campbell back after three months out with an achilles tendon problem. The partnership between Campbell and Kolo Toure was central to Arsenal's recent success. The Gunners never look so secure when one of them has to be replaced by the ponderous Pascal Cygan. Perhaps the Swiss youngster Philippe Senderos will stay fit and progress, to provide an alternative for the cover defender role that Martin Keown filled last season.

. Arsenal looked uncharacteristically vulnerable in the air against Bolton, who made a point of targeting Jens Lehmann. The keeper was hustled and blocked off at setpieces and pressurised every time he tried to kick a back pass. Rahdi Jaidi was able to head Bolton's first goal because Lehmann couldn't get out to reach Jay-Jay Okocha's corner. I wonder how many other teams will copy Sam Allardyce's tactics? (Charlton certainly didn't!)

.The young Gunner who's made the biggest impression so far is Cesc Fabregas, the 17-year-old Catalan midfielder. Fabregas was the 'one who got away', from Barcelona last summer. He was a revelation, standing in for Patrick Vieira at the start of the season. No wonder Arsenal have signed him on a long-term contract. He said: 'My first year here has been like a dream.' Wenger said: 'Cesc has shown great maturity. He's a playmaker with real vision and he's very much a part of the future of the club. He can be a big player for us.'

. Jose Antonio Reyes has also made a flying start, and he's level with Thierry Henry on seven Premiership goals. Reyes looks much more settled this season. Wenger said: 'He wasn't used to the English weather when he arrived and he also had difficulty with the language. But we have a Spanish colony here now, with Cesc Fabregas and Manuel Almunia also in the squad. ' Reyes has played mainly on the left, but Wenger believes he will become a central striker. He said: 'He's played wide because Dennis [Bergkamp] has done so well in the centre. He's used to that role and it gives him some freedom but I'm convinced that, in the future, he will be a central player.' There's just one problem, though, when Reyes, Thierry Henry, Robert Pires and Ashley Cole are in the starting line-up: Arsenal's leftsided attacking bias becomes more pronounced than ever!

. Arsenal have signed Italy under-17 forward Arturo Lupoli on a pro contract after he scored three goals in two reserve outings. Lupoli arrived as a 'scholar', from Parma in the summer. 'He wasn't used to the English weather when he arrived and he also had difficulty with the language'