The striker has become almost a by-word for confidence and belief. In recent psychometric tests at the club designed to measure self-perceived competence, players were rated on a scale of up to nine. Bendtner scored a 10.
The 23-year-old Dane scored a hat-trick in the 5-0 FA Cup fifth round replay win over Leyton Orient on Wednesday and has the future mapped out. In the absence of the injured Robin van Persie, he will lead the line next Tuesday in the Champions League last 16 second leg and help the club past Barcelona to provide the catalyst for a silver-lined finish to the season.
"At the end of the day, we know all of you guys are going to rate us on one thing [trophies] but that is what we are trying to achieve," Bendtner said. "I believe it will be different this season. We have beaten some great teams and we are in amongst it for everything. I believe we have the players and the mentality to create something special."
"The way you rate strikers is with goals and with teams, it is what they win. It's part of the game. We want to try and get our beautiful football into trophies."
Bendtner outshone Marouane Chamakh from the right flank against Orient and he looks to have done enough to start up front in 's Premier League fixture at home to Sunderland. He would then travel to Barcelona for the eagerly awaited second-leg tie with his tail up.
Bendtner scored the opening goal at Camp Nou last season, in the Champions League quarter-final second-leg, as Arsenal briefly threatened to spring an upset. They went close to scoring a second on the night for a 4-2 aggregate lead before Lionel Messi took them apart and Barcelona advanced. Arsenal head to Catalonia this time with a 2-1 first-leg advantage.
"The dream scenario is to lead the line and score again against Barcelona," Bendtner said. "It is a difficult place to go and Barcelona have not failed to score there ... forever, but we have to be compact, press in a good way, have a good balance and then take our chances because Barcelona always score at home."
"It is going well, we are a team and I think that the team will win in Barcelona, not just one player."
Bendtner's off-the-scale reading in the psychometric tests is an amusing tale that bears retelling. The French psychologist Jacques Crevoisier, a long-time friend of Arsène Wenger, has worked regularly with Arsenal's young players, assessing their belief, concentration levels and determination through a series of questions, but Bendtner astonished even him.
"One of the categories is called 'self-perceived competence', ie how good the player himself thinks he is," Crevoisier said. "On a scale of up to nine, Bendtner got 10. We have never seen that before. Pat Rice [the assistant manager] was sitting next to me and he couldn't stop laughing.
"When Bendtner misses a chance, he is always genuinely convinced that it wasn't his fault. You might say that's a problem and, to a certain degree, it can be. But you can also view it as this guy has a remarkable ability to come back after setbacks."
Bendtner's goals against Orient took his tally for the season to nine and, after struggling for some time to shake off niggling injuries, he believes that he is at the peak of his fitness and set fair to make an impression over the defining months ahead. After the Barcelona tie, Arsenal travel to Manchester United for an FA Cup quarter-final on Saturday week, but Wenger has made it plain that the Premier League is the priority.
"I believe that I am getting back to where I belong, although there are still improvements to be made," Bendtner said. "I have been on a steadily improving curve over the past few weeks where I have been getting minutes and I feel that I am back now. I am roaring to go out and prove my worth. All it takes is match practice to add the final touch, preferably in my favourite position. I play where the manager wants me to but I will not deny that I perceive myself as a central striker."
Source: David Hytner, The Guardian on 3 Mar 11
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