Why it's time for Arsenal to show what they're made of

But if Wenger's side are to really make a fight of things with Chelsea and Manchester United they cannot afford any sloppiness over the next month.

When Arsenal trudged off the Emirates pitch on November 29 having been beaten hollow by Carlo Ancelotti's Blues, Chelsea's 11-point advantage looked like a chasm that could only widen.

Wenger's laughable claims that there was little between the sides and that Didier Drogba, so often the scourge of Arsenal and who had merely scored twice on the day, had barely been involved in the game, seemed to be a further signal that the Gunners chief was losing the plot.

Yet, incredibly, and despite a genuine injury nightmare which means he will be without Robin Van Persie, Cesc Fabregas, Nicklas Bendtner, Gael Clichy and Kieran Gibbs - as well as African Nations Cup stars Emmanuel Eboue and Alex Song - against Bolton this evening, victory will take the Gunners to within a single point of Ancelotti's Blues.

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