Everybody knows what France did last summer and, equally, everybody knows what Arsenal's players have not done for the past five seasons. Take a World Cup meltdown or a club trophy drought in isolation and they represent potent motivational forces. Combine the two for Gaël Clichy and it is a wonder that he does not begin to froth at the mouth.
The defender is, among others things, the ultimate test of a journalist's short-hand and, as he bombs along at speeds in excess of 200 words per minute, he radiates excitement and enthusiasm. The 25-year-old from Toulouse is an infectious kind of guy, engaging and articulate in his second language and ever quick to challenge perceptions, particularly those that have built around Arsenal.
It is when he slows, though, to offer a simple response that he kicks open the door to his soul. Clichy is Arsenal's longest-serving player, a small but important part of the "Invincibles" Premier League triumph from 2003-04, who then missed out on the FA Cup victory of 2005 because of injury. He wants so desperately to find a cure to the emptiness that has come to characterise the end of Arsenal's seasons. "It has become an obsession," he says simply.
Clichy has heard the explanations a thousand times, the put-downs, and the doom and gloom. Arsenal can be a beautiful team but they fall short against the biggest opposition when it matters most. They can look lightweight and frivolous. Where is the clinical edge? Where is the winning mentality? If the criticism exasperates Arsène Wenger, then it also grates like fingernails on a chalkboard with the players.
"When you play for a club like Arsenal," Clichy says, "you don't lack the mentality. You are a winner. To be at the top level, whether it's NBA, NFL or whatever, you are a winner. If we play for Arsenal instead of another club in another country with smaller teams, it's because we have the winning mentality. After, it is other things that make the difference."
Those things, according to Clichy, are the minutiae, which can include the bounce of the ball, a split second's hesitation or the taking of a simple chance. He argues that the league match at Chelsea three weeks ago, which finished in a 2-0 defeat, would have played out differently if his team had accepted presentable early opportunities.
Then, there are the factors such as games after an international break against opponents who have few internationals, general fatigue and, invariably in Arsenal's case, injuries. Clichy's friend and team‑mate Theo Walcott once mused that he wished injuries "could be turned off, like in a PlayStation game", so that we could truly see which was the best team over the course of a season. It routinely feels as though Arsenal carry more injuries than their rivals.
"You don't want to hide behind this but come on," Clichy says. "At Chelsea, we missed Van Persie, Fábregas, Walcott, who was on fire, and Vermaelen. Take off Drogba, Lampard, Malouda and Terry from Chelsea and it's a different story. The fact is we've been without some massive players and it's quite difficult to cope. Football is sometimes not just as simple as 'you are the best team so you are going to win'."
Clichy believes that Arsenal are a "stronger side, with greater strength on the bench", compared to last season, when they remained in contention for the title in April, only to finish 11 points off the pace. This time out, he feels, it is a question of keeping the faith and hoping that fate deals them better cards. When you are so close in your own mind, the torturous yearning surely intensifies.
Tomorrow's visit to Manchester City is significant on many levels, not least as it pits two contrasting business models against one another. Wenger has long championed balanced books, sustainability and gradual development; City intend to blow that and everything else out of the water with their eye-watering spending power.
"Arsenal are one of the only big clubs in the world that is not losing any money," Clichy says. "With less money, we are managing to get to semi-finals, for example, and with young players. We have to give credit for this.
"Of course, this is not enough for people, football is about trophies and, in terms of trophies, we are not there yet. We need to win trophies but it is certain that Arsenal will be challenging for many years."
Clichy's competitive instincts, though, tend to hold sway. He welcomes the influx of fresh quality to the Premier League that City's petrodollars have permitted, reasoning that "you always want to play against the best" and he finds himself stimulated by the project at Eastlands.
"City have to be considered as title contenders," he says. "The question is not: 'Can they compete?' They have to compete. People don't accept how Arsenal are not performing and so City cannot spend all this money and just keep on finishing fifth or sixth or whatever. The pressure is on for them. They have built an incredible squad but now they must deliver."
For Clichy, the challenges keep on coming. In the Premier League, there is not only City and the more established top clubs but a larger and increasingly robust chasing pack. And at international level, there is the small matter of fashioning a new dawn under Laurent Blanc after the shame and regret of the World Cup finals.
Clichy went to South Africa with four caps to his name and dreams before his eyes. He returned as one of France's humiliated band of brothers, who sparked outrage with their ill-conceived decision effectively to go on strike in protest over Nicolas Anelka's expulsion from the squad.
Clichy's tournament was not all bad. He started in France's final group tie against South Africa and nobody can take away from him the fact that he has played at a World Cup. But his reflections on South Africa centre upon it being "a good experience in a bad way".
"It's a new generation, a new chapter now," Clichy says. "We're trying to give our best and get back the fans because that's important. As a professional footballer you need something to drive you and the disappointment of the World Cup does that. I have a double objective this season – to do well for Arsenal which, in turn, will hopefully allow me to do well for France."
Arsenal's quest for success continues to be built on the squad's togetherness. It was tested in the close-season with the latest instalment of the Cesc Fábregas-Barcelona saga but Clichy's take on whether the team has to win a trophy to keep the likes of the captain and Robin van Persie next summer is interesting.
"It's too easy just to leave if the team doesn't win things," Clichy says. "The challenge is to stay and help the team achieve glory. And who can assure that by leaving, you are guaranteed trophies?
"We have the examples of Alex Hleb, of Mathieu Flamini [who left for Barcelona and Milan, respectively]. Maybe you win a few trophies but you only play 10 games. And nobody can be assured that by going to a certain club, you are going to win the Champions League.
"Cesc is like Thierry Henry when he was here or Patrick Vieira, who was wanted by Real Madrid. You know as a team you are doing something right when great clubs are after your best players, you know that you have a truly amazing player. Besides, nobody can question the commitment of Cesc. Whatever he is thinking – when he puts on the shirt he is 100% committed and he was our best player in his first five games this season. That showed the character of the guy."
Single-mindedness. Professionalism. Obsession. It is what drives the very best. Clichy now wants the reward.
Source: David Hytner, The Guardian on 23 Oct 10
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