Throw away your plastic clappers – there is no need for an artificial atmosphere at Arsenal these days. This is the Emirates and the sound you can hear is that of the Premier League leaders hitting the front, firmly now, as title favourites. At the end of an absorbing and dramatic win against Manchester United it was only the bitter chill that reminded you this was January and not April or May.
There was the sight of exhausted bodies strewn on the turf. After Eddie Nkietah and Oleksandr Zinchenko collapsed, Bukayo Saka wheeled away and roared, as Martin Odegaard and Granit Xhaka lapped the pitch.
