After a few hectic days on a work trip in Lisbon and predominantly missing most of the cold weather in England, I could be forgiven for feeling a little smug, as I type away now back into the grind and sat on the Metropolitan Line on a grey and damp Tuesday.

I’m not really smug though, because I know I’m starting to feel the effects of an Arsenaless period in the season and folks, it’s a long one isn’t it?

The weekend just gone was Arsenal free because Southampton played in the cup. For the weekend ahead there lies the footballing wasteland that is the international break. Then we have to wait until the following Sunday before we play Stoke at home on Easter Sunday. Our last game was the victory against Milan and that has helped to sustain the good feeling of football for about three days, but we’re now into full interlull territory.

And it is most definitely a ‘lull’. Scrambling around for any information that we can hope to muster at all, even reading through pointless ‘nothing to see here folks’ news on places like Sky Sports. I mean what on earth did anyone think would happen? Did the various affronted gutter trash journalists think they wield enough power to campaign for punishment of one of the unfavored English players, because they think they wield some sort of influence, in this day and age when everyone can write their opinion on the internet and people don’t believe half of what the journal say anyway?

It’s a farce that these journalists think they can create some sort of levelling exercise for their clear driven agendas in favour of certain players and then for the less fancied players, whip up some sort of faux outrage, in an attempt to show that actually the British press and game is a pure game and “we don’t like that sort of behaviour here” rhetoric.

It’s been hilarious to see over the weekend people like John Cross getting called out for lambasting Welbeck, having weeks ago just shrugged his shoulders at Dele Alli for similar theatrics, then conveniently ignoring people who call him out on it without actually abusing him.

Some of the exchanges I saw with Cross and some Arsenal fans are just brilliant. Just to be clear though, I don’t actually think this is a ‘picking on Arsenal’ thing or a ‘media love for Tottenham’ thing. I think this is based on an ‘international favourites’ thing. Alli and Kane are the jewels in the crown in the media’s eyes. That has happened to Rooney in the past. It was the same with Gerrard. He loved a dive, but he was British and a star in the team, a star who simply could do no wrong. So the blind eye kept on turning in the same way that the press and TV pundits chuckled when Paul Scholes made a dangerous tackle. Welbeck has been out of form and probably won’t play that much for England as a result. That makes him low hanging fruit in terms of some weird attempt at demonstrating moral high ground for the media.

“If we go loud and public on Welbeck, we’ll be showing the world that we don’t tolerate diving in England”

But if a player who is sure to play a big part in England’s World Cup campaign does it, then the proverbial blind eye is turned. It’s hypocrisy at the highest levels but I guess it’s just something we have to accept. Welbeck won’t be punished, the UK journos don’t get the sacrificial lamb for their campaign for the moral high ground, so we wait until the next time a dive happens and we wait and see who the person is rather than which team he plays for.

Aside from that is there anything else going on at the moment? We have the horrible situation of knowing either Mourinho or the Totts get through to the FA Cup final and although I hate United and that terrible narcissist that is their manager, to see Tottenham fail again and win nothing would be delicious. Mainly because I’d be interested to see if the media turn on their ‘putting the pressure on’ darlings.

Then of course the idea that we could see either of those teams play Chelski in the final leaves another bad taste in the mouth. I’d rather not countenance it for a second. So let’s just park it for now, eh?

And with that I’ll say ‘cheerio’ for another day. It’s going to be a long two weeks I think.

Laters peeps.