By Boris Mellor
December 29 2005

Although I expected Arsenal to win this fixture I did expect far stiffer opposition from Portsmouth. However Redknapp left out two key players, O'Neill and, Stefanovic, Harry had his mind on the next game against Fulham, and it certainly showed. His team sheet became a suicide note.

This was Arsenals best result this season; four goals scored for no reply. This may have been the Gunners best performance so far, but Portsmouth were clearly the worst team we have played this season. They have clearly degenerated considerably in the few months Harry was away.

 Nonetheless Arsenal can only play what is put in front of them and that they did that extremely well. I managed to get a spare ticket for my 12-year-old nephew and was able to take him on one of his rare visits to the home of football. He summed it all up quite well "that was fun you didn't have to worry". I know full well what he meant - most matches this season have been nail-biting affairs with missed chances and inept defending. This time it was fun as our forwards gleefully buried each chance well beyond the reach of the goalkeeper, and very rarely did Portsmouth ever threaten.

Indeed by 13 minutes the match was over, many have suggested that Dennis Bergkamp is now finished and should not start, but he played a glorious 90 minutes against Portsmouth. Within seven minutes he had put the Gunners one nil up and continued to play well throughout the game. On 13 minutes Henry gave Reyes a chance on a plate, with his new found confidence Jose slammed the ball into the top of the net. At this stage it was impossible to see beyond an Arsenal victory and for a while Arsenal were content to let Portsmouth make the running.

But Arsenal soon began to exploit the massive gaps in the Portsmouth defence and on 37 minutes Henry scored the best goal of the game from a fairly tight angle. On 43 minutes Reyes was pushed down in the area and won Arsenal a penalty. I must admit I did not feel that confident as Henry stepped up to take it. But full of confidence he cheekily and calmly placed the ball wide of the goalkeeper. That basically was the end of the game as a competitive event.

If Harry had his mind on Fulham then Wenger clearly had his mind on Villa, and for much of the second-half Arsenal played keep ball. Portsmouth had the one or two best chances of the second half, but they were hardly a threat. Pompey fans tried to keep their spirits up by singing Jose Mourinho. The Clock End responded by singing " Oh Harry Harry he’s going to take you down like he did the Saints", followed by "Harry Harry give us a twitch". One hapless Pompey fan decided to remonstrate with the Clock Enders. To his great misfortune one wag spotted his similarity to Harry Potter, with his owl shaped glasses, pudding basin haircut, and wearing a Portsmouth/England Cape he was a dead ringer for the boy wizard. This provided far more amusement than anything happening on the pitch did.

 Of course the real wizardry had been in the first half, but the real question is can Arsenal keep up this kind of magic performance against Villa away? Pires, Flamini, Henry, Bergkamp and Reyes all played brilliantly, if the Gunners can find this kind of form regularly then they should regain a top four place fairly quickly.