On Monday Arsenal defeated their staunch northwest rivals Blackburn Rovers 2-0 to take a 5-point lead in the title race. That's the sort of success that takes a Gooner's breath away and allows the first twinge of unbridled hope to burst through the crusty protective layer of cynicism that has characterized many of my reports thus far. Still, a twinge is only a twinge, and while I experienced elation after Adebayor's goal, I almost immediately looked ahead to the prospect of real disappointment should we lose the title to Manchester Fucking United...

The African Cup of Nations final between Egypt and Cameroon was not nearly as sexy as the third-place game, which host nation Ghana came from behind to win 4-2 over Ivory Coast. Still, the battle between North African power and West African power offered a clash of styles and philosophies that was dramatic in itself. Egypt had been, leading up to the final, the best team in the tournament and had hammered Cameroon 4-2 in their opening group round match. Cameroon, on the flip side, had meandered their way to the final by stifling their opponents and relying on the threatening presence of tournament lead goal-scorer Samuel Eto'o to open up opportunities for his overlapping midfield. Could the Indomitable Lions reverse their fortune and African history to prevail against the determined defending champions?

Okay, okay, okay, so I got the prediction for the final wrong-opposite even-but I wasn't the only one. Who didn't want to see the West African carnivale that would have unfolded had Ivory Coast faced off with Ghana in Accra? But I guess we were looking into the future through murky heart-fogged lenses, because Cameroon won a grinding physical battle with Ghana and then Egypt lit up Ivory Coast with a lethal counter-attack.