The Arse 4 Charlton 0

Whats the matter? Did you think the exciting game of catch-up was starting to look a bit of a cake-walk. New Manager, passion re-ignited, turned the corner and all that. No, no, get a grip, this year's determined to be endless roller-coaster ride so you better make the most of it.

And the papers this morning bring little New Year cheer, I'm afraid. Most of them point out that we have no chance whatsoever now that Darren Bent is injured and then go on and on about the returning French geezer. Best to start with the independent which can usually be relied upon to give us something to lift us up and in their report they do just that with a "Despite the scoreline it was no capitulation from Charlton."

The beeb is its usual unemotional self but does see the sending-off incident as "harshly dismissed" and thought that it happened just "as Charlton began to get more of a footing in the game".

There's not a lot of sympathy from the telegraph which pays more attention to the two managers than the football.

And if its consolation that you need you wouldn't find it in the upmarketmurdoch either. Here they wheel out the old "woeful" again, as if they are incapable of finding another adjective that rhythms or even begins with the same letter as Charlton and they also add the rather obvious comment that we need more than a Pards to turn us around.

The dailymail at least recognises there were other players on the park apart from Henry somebody and sees Scott Carsons giving an "excellent display" with "brilliant relex saves". And it seems that History has been made by an Englishman at last scoring for The Arse - although its been so long that several of the papers cannot agree when it last happened.

As for the guardian, its probably best avoided as it simply goes on and on ad nauseam about the Frenchman until you feel like throwing up.

Seems to me that the only answer Wenger had to the arrival of his old mate Pards and the Addicks was to usher back his captain before he was fit after 5 weeks in the stands. The last encounter with our new boss cost him 10 Big Ones and he was obviously determined to get his own back.

The Addicks: Carson; Sankofa, El Karkouri, Diawara, Traore; Rommedahl, Holland, Faye (Kishishev 77), Hughes (Fortune 33), Ambrose (Thomas 63); M Bent.

Subs (not used): Myhre, Hasselbaink.
Booked: Diawara 32 (foul on van Persie)
Sent off: Sankofa 29 (foul on van Persie)