Well, that was a short off-season, no? It may be just the friendly with Barnet, but it’s better than nothing. Or rather, better than standing idly by the RSS Aggregator awaiting any tiny bit of transfer news. Which, is exactly what I promised myself I wouldn’t do at the somewhat disappointing close to last season. No, not me. I wasn’t going to spend my summer obsessively watching the comings and goings of the club, having learned a sore lesson from the summer before. Well… that promise lasted about a week. Yep, then I was right back at it. Reading up all I could on what was going on with my Arsenal. Call it a sickness.

But, short though it may have seemed, this Saturday I was able to put all that aside and actually watch a match. Just a friendly perhaps, but it felt good to see the boys back out there on the pitch. Even if said pitch was little more than some poorly tended cow pasture eight miles north of the perfection that is Ashburton Grove. It felt good. It felt new again. It felt right. You may call me nuts, but I feel that a shroud has been lifted from this club. Like some obscuring burka of self-doubt, a veil has been pulled back. Perhaps not reflected in the scoreline, but I could feel it in that first half. Our mojo is working.

First, we looked pretty solid. Obviously we weren’t playing at full tilt. I’d be surprised if Arsene would even allow it. But you can certainly tell there’s a result from the break the boys have had (some more than others), and it shows in their passing game. I honestly feel the mesmerizing passing flow we’re capable of is what we were never able to fully recapture last season. It’s there again. Just under the surface perhaps, but it’s there. I’m very much looking forward to seeing it fully unleashed when we play a serious match in anger.

More good mojo: Tomas Rosicky is back. He captained the side that strolled up to Underhill, which I thought was a nice touch by Arsène. After what must have been a grueling 18 month absence from the first team, The Little Mozart is back in action. And, he didn’t seem to be too gun shy to get stuck in, either. That’s good. He’s testing himself, and he must feel confident. I bet he’s feeling even better about his performance today, so long as he’s not feeling banged up. His steady appearance in the side this year, along with the same from Eduardo, could be a talisman for us.

Bad mojo? It’s gone now. It’s been lifted from our eyes and sent packing to Manchester City. With £25m coming back the other way. Very nice. I count myself amongst those who was a fan of Emmanuel Adebayor. I truly was. I looked the other way during the embarrassing celebratory dances (that’s just not Arsenal), and even convinced myself to give him the benefit of the doubt when last summer’s AC Milan debacle came about. But then, when things went south (or rather, didn’t) for him, he brought his lackadaisical ass back to The Grove and just left it in second gear. That’s the worst thing he could have done. Inexcusable. If you can’t, I can accept that. If you can, and you don’t? Then you can fuck right off. See? He’s got me starting the season with colorful language. But that’s how Mr. Manu the Lion has made me to feel about him. I think he’ll do well up there. I do… but a part of me hopes he doesn’t. H doesn’t deserve it. If he gets the sort of service he got from our midfield two seasons ago, he’ll probably rack up another 30 goals (9 against Burnley). And, he’ll be in good company amongst the other money-grubbing twats in Sheikh Satan’s Blue Militia. I just hope we stick it to the Citizens on both opportunities this year and Thomas Vermaelen runs circles around his lazy ass.

Speaking of TV23, he looked pretty good Saturday. And not just because of that fucking smart blue kit he had on (screw the haters, I like it). Again, the whole squad wasn’t in top gear Saturday, but I thought he and everyone present looked terrific. Particularly that sweet-ass curler that Nacer Barazite popped in the right side through traffic. I’m sure Arsene’s got a close eye on him.

So, the summer’s over and I’ll be posting regularly again. I was hoping to find time to redesign the site, put up a new theme, maybe even move it to its own domain, but alas… real life has prevented such fun from taking place. It may still happen, but we’ll just have to see. All you need to know (all three of you who actually read this) is that Great Guns is back. Ol’ Jack Scurvy is back and very, very much looking forward to the new season. I’m even hopped up for The Emirates Cup!

Let’s do it, GUNNERS!