The 93rd minute of this match perfectly encapsulated what the previous 92 had been about.

In those dramatic final moments, Fabianski performed a minor miracle in keeping out Christophe Berra’s rasping low drive, before bowling the ball half the length of the pitch to setup Marouane Chamakh to coolly slot home the killer second goal.

It was typical of Wolves’ efforts up to that point; an endless abundance of spirit and no short amount of quality, but ultimately not quite enough to breakthrough.

We can talk about bad luck, bad decisions and bad Arsenal all we want, but it won’t change the fact we got nothing. Again.

And despite all of the above, I feel we were very much architects of our own downfall. A sluggish start saw us a goal down inside a minute and by the time we eventually got a foothold in the match, Arshavin had already wasted copious opportunities to end the contest.

Mick’s starting eleven also had me baffled. Dropping Hunt, bringing Mancienne in and moving Edwards out of the advanced midfield role he’s filled so effectively was a strange decision.

We also had Jarvis tucked inside for some reason, taking away the width that has been our greatest attacking weapon in recent weeks. Couldn’t understand that.

Still, once Edwards had limped off, Hunt restored better shape and balance to the side; enjoying his most effective game in a gold shirt. In fact, it was his introduction that seemed to spark life into our performance.

We dominated the remainder of the first half and only quick-feet and a superb adjustment from Fabianski prevented Hunt from heading in a deflected cross that dropped just under the bar.

Arsenal came close to killing the game off in the second half with only the post and a superb goal-line clearance from Henry keeping the score down to one. Had they done so, it would have been significantly against the run of play, as Wolves had dominated the ball throughout.

I thought Milijas in particular was different class. He won the battle of the midfield-maestros with Fabregas and constantly picked out incisive passes to move us forward. In the kind of form he’s in at the moment, he looks as good as anyone and I don’t just mean at Wolves.

At the back, I’d like to give a special mention to Berra, who I thought was absolutely superb. I’ve heard a lot of negativity directed towards the Scot, but the improvement in his game has been huge. He certainly deserves more credit than he’s getting and I think the impact he has on games is taken for granted.

Doyle again worked tirelessly, but when the moment finally came to reward his industry with a deserved goal, his shot whistled agonisingly passed the far post. I don’t want to be critical of our superhuman lone forward, but from that position he needs to be tucking those chances away. The margins between defeat and precious points are too thin to waste such openings.

And whilst we’re talking about thin margins, surely Fabregas should have been dismissed. Not only was his mistimed, studs-up challenge on Ward worthy of a straight red, his conduct throughout was nothing short of a disgrace. Kicking the ball away, demanding players get booked and generally whining to the officials were all actions that warranted yellow cards, but for some reason, the referee turned a blind eye. Respect campaign? You’re having a laugh.

Last season, Fabregas came down to Molineux, bossed the game and looked every bit a world class midfielder. Last night, he was a disgrace and the fact he ended up on the winning side makes his petulance even harder to swallow.

Moving on from the cruel nature of the last two defeats will be hard, but with a run of seven games up to Christmas that are all winnable, we must do so.

This is a make or break period.

And we can’t afford anymore ‘played well, but lost’ headlines.

Following Saturday’s last minute heartbreaker at Old Trafford, Wolves have precious little time to recover as Arsenal head for Molineux in tomorrow’s midweek kick-off.

The Gunners also come into the game on the back of a defeat, having lost 1-0 to Newcastle at the Emirates on Sunday. They’ll be smarting from that result and will see this as an excellent opportunity to get back on track quickly.

Their away form has been mixed so far, having won two, drawn two and lost one on the road this season, although their only defeat did come at Stamford Bridge.

A few questions have been asked of Arsene Wenger’s team defensively and with Laurent Koscielny suspended and Thomas Vermaelen still out injured, Wolves will feel they have every chance of causing Arsenal problems at the back.

Going forward, they remain as devastating as ever and with Wolves still yet to keep a clean sheet this season, they’ll be confident of finding the net themselves.

I just wonder whether Mick McCarthy will think about one or two changes to the side that came up agonisingly short against Man United at the weekend? I suspect he’ll maintain the 4-5-1 system that has served us well recently, which will probably mean the likes of SEB and Fletcher remaining on the bench.

Mancienne, van Damme and even Elokobi might be considered for a start, but the same eleven from Saturday remains the most likely bet. That would mean a team of:

Hahnemann

Foley
Berra
Stearman
Ward

Hunt
Henry
Milijas
Edwards
Jarvis

Doyle

Prediction League

A lot of people said we’d lose against United, but only person got the score spot on. Well done to AikiWolves.

Needless to say, having predicted 1-1, I was even more gutted than most to see Park score that late winner, thus bringing to an end my good run of form. Still, I’m still out in front on the overall table.

I’m not feeling in confident mood about tomorrow. Saturday is bound to have taken a lot out of us and you need to be at your sharpest for 90 minutes (plus any injury time) to get anything. Could be a long night. I reckon 3-1 Arsenal.

If you’re going to the game, get right behind the lads. They’ll need our support tomorrow and if we can maintain the level of recent performances, we’ve got a chance.

Up The Wolves.

Football doesn’t get much crueler than that.

I don’t normally like to prattle on about the injustices we suffer, but today it just seemed like the Premier League was out to get Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Let’s start with the sending off. You might disagree with this point, but I think Karl Henry was silly to lunge into a tackle he really didn’t need to make. I’m being highly critical there, but when you’re playing a top side, you’re judgment has to be spot on for the whole ninety minutes. That being said, the decision to send him off was just plain silly.

Was it a foul? Possibly. He certainly went through the man, even if he did get some of the ball.

Was it a yellow card? Well, if you give the foul, potentially you might think it was worthy of a caution.

Was it a red card offence? Not in a million years.

For me, the referee has simply reacted to the unnecessary furor created by the Arsenal players, who surrounded the man in black, screamed wildly and wagged a few fingers to ensure the situation escalated sufficiently. All the top sides do it.

I would imagine Wolves will appeal the decision, but it won’t be rescinded. I’m certain of that.

Credit to Wolves for battling on with a man less and coming within a whisker of picking up what would have been a glorious point. They deserved to hang on.

I see a lot of people are pointing the finger of blame at Keogh for that audacious attempt at a lob from the halfway line with the clock ticking down. With a hindsight (what a wonderful thing that is) it was a crazy thing to do, but it seems a bit harsh to me to condemn him personally for costing us the point. A lot happened afterward.

Why was Zubar left isolated at the back post with Bendtner. Surely one of our center backs should have been in the vicinity? Or maybe now I’m the one being over critical?

Whoever you choose to blame, the one thing we can all agree on is the pain of this cruel defeat.

Console yourself with the fact there’s always someone worse off, hey Burnley?

What the Papers Say

The hosts dominated the game but were frustrated by their own inability in front of goal and Wolves’ commitment. Even after Karl Henry’s dismissal for a lunge on Tomas Rosicky, Wolves battled hard but have nothing to show for it.

The BBC

The longer Wolves held firm, the more adventurous they became and the greater the sense of frustration swirling around the Emirates.

The Telegraph

The question on the lips of all those in Old Gold was whether Karl Henry, the captain, would have been sent off had his team been playing against any other opposition. There can appear a sensitivity about Arsenal, which is fuelled by the persecution complex of the manager Arsène Wenger and, once Henry had cut through the back of Tomas Rosicky to leave him writhing and the home fans howling in the 66th minute, there was an inevitability about the card’s colour.

The Guardian

On the face of it, we’ve got about as much chance of beating Arsenal on Saturday as I’ve got of boning Jo Guest, one of their ‘famous’ fans.

They’ve barely lost in the league down there since they moved from Highbury, and put it like this…If we did come away with three points at 5pm, I’d be coming away in my pants, just like those halcyon teenage days in my bedroom.

To be truthful, I know more about Jo Guest than I do Arsene Wenger’s team at present, and a win in Islington would surprise as much as when I saw the glamour model in the papers recently. Boy she’s changed.

Trying to tell you their formation would be fruitless on my part, or who will play where. Doubtless they will be like Maradona’s pet dog: Foreign, spritely, and great to watch on the attack.

Until the month of March, we’d have all predicted defeat at the Emirates, particularly considering their crushing 4-1 win at Molineux before Christmas.

And after their remarkable fight-back against Barcelona this week, what has changed?

Well, quite a lot I’d argue.

For a starter, Fabregas, Arshavin and Gallas are looking decidedly unfit as the weekend approaches, while their goalkeeper Almunia has never instilled me with much confidence, despite his heroics against Barca.

And then there is the most important factor of all…Our absorbing four game unbeaten run, which has offered more hope and cause for optimism than at any other time this season.

The closer this game gets, the more optimistic we should all be.

If our win at West Ham was a beautiful big sponge cake to feast over, our belligerent, battling draw against Everton must have tasted like the icing, as we topped off one of the best weeks we could have imagined.

The ingredients seem to be coming together now, and the recipe is what we’ve all wanted, so what’s to stop us from doing what has been considered unthinkable for so long?

Arsenal won’t relish playing us at the moment surely, despite the obvious gulf in class.

Barring any training ground injuries, we’ll name the same team for the third consecutive game, and if we show the same fight and spirit as we have done of late, then a point isn’t out of the question.

And if we lose, then so what? It’s been a home banker since August!

Theo Walcott’s renaissance is a worry and much of the play will surely rain down on our left-side, while Bendtner’s form at Blues still lives in the memory, and that was before he was any good!

I’m going for a 1-1 draw. Why not? We beat these lot 5-1 a few years ago. Jim McCalliog, Hibbitt, Wagstaffe and a Dougan brace. We beat them all the time back then.

I’ll settle for one off Craddock’s arse on Saturday.