Experience paved the way for Arsenal, but concerns persist

"We rotate a little bit but for me these decisions are the same because all the players have the same qualities." -Arsene Wenger before Wednesday's match.

Arsenal returned to winning ways after a gritty performance against North London rivals Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday at White Hart Lane. The unlikely hero on the day was the forgotten Mathieu Flamini, who got a brace to send the gunners to the fourth round where they will play Sheffield Wednesday in late October.

While Arsenal relied on moments such as Mathieu Flamini's quick reaction to score the first goal after Micheal Vorm spilled a shot from Oxlade Chamberlain, and the 20 yard shot in the bottom corner that settled the tie with 13 minutes to go, notable concerns still persist with the Arsenal team.

Arsene Wenger claimed that the qualities of his players are the same, but it has been obvious that on the evidence of certain display, some players are not at par with those that feature regularly.

While it is hard to be too critical after securing a hard fought win over what is Arsenal's local rivals, you cannot help but wonder what has happened to the likes of Mathieu Debuchy. The French international has been a complete shadow of the player Arsenal signed a year ago, as the ligament and shoulder injuries he picked up last season seem to have made him to lose every sense of positional ability he once possessed. He had complained during the last international break that he considered his future in the summer after Arsene Wenger opted for Hector Bellerin over him in the Community Shield win over Chelsea in August. But on the evidence of his three starts this season against West Ham, Dinamo Zagreb and Tottenham Hotspur, he has a long way to go to displace Bellerin as Arsenal's first choice right back. It is no surprise that Tottenham's first goal came after he failed to stay tight to Nacer Chadli, while in the Champions League against Dinamo Zagreb, he was too infield, thereby leaving huge space on the right. With the games coming thick and fast, he would have to rediscover his form for Wenger’s rotation not to diminish the quality of what his players can offer.

It was also evident that the game passed by Aaron Ramsey. The Welshman was played in the playmaker's role behind Oliver Giroud, but he was largely anonymous on the day. And it clearly shows that when Arsenal have had to deal with a side that press high up the field, the ability to retain possession is key, and players such as Aaron Ramsey have shown that he does not have the nous to retain possession, which is why Mesut Ozil is important to Arsenal's ability to retain possession in any match. Arsenal's inability to keep the ball was reflected in the possession stats which stood at 47% after the game. That the team had no outlet when they were pressed back only shows where the team is lacking. That ability to relieve the pressure from a high press is solely lacking from the Arsenal team.

The performance of Oliver Giroud did little to reassure the Arsenal faithful that he would regain his mojo soonest. If anything he continues to under whelm. Even though he was unlucky not to score after Vorm made a save.

While Arsenal has only played eight games this season, six in the league, one each in the Champions League, League Cup and Community Shield, what is obvious is that they have still not found their feet in the early weeks of the season. Alexis Sanchez could really do with a goal, as he has spurned some chances he would have put away last season, and concerns whether Mikel Arteta can cope with the high tempo game of certain opponents when Arsenal play without a double pivot in midfield remains. This is especially so, with the current injury to Francis Coquelin.

Yet, for all of the games Arsenal have played this season, there have been at least one chance or two to score. And the issue of scoring persists. There have been nine goals scored by Arsenal this season two each for Theo Walcott, Oliver Giroud and Mathieu Flamini, while Oxlade Chamberlain accounts for the other, with two own goals. But when the ratio of conversion of chances is considered, therein lies the problem. With a trip to the free scoring Leicester City coming up this weekend, one of Walcott and Giroud will have to discover their scoring boot one way or the other.