The smiles looked a bit sheepish, the trophy hoist half-heartedly as the ticker tape cascaded after Arsenal captured the Barclays Asia Trophy with a 3-1 win over Everton on Saturday. And rightly so. Despite the best intentions of the Premier League and the tournament's hosts, this is not a prestigious award. Not a lot can be gleaned from winning it.
Everton provided good Premier League opposition -- Gerard Deulofeu's pace intermittently terrified the defence, while Ross Barkely's scorching drive beat the otherwise impressive Petr Cech on his debut -- but a scan of Arsenal's muted celebrations told you everything you needed to know about the magnitude of the occasion.
Theo Walcott was still right to enjoy his well-taken goal, consolidating after his opening effort in the FA Cup final and showing an intent to pick up where he left off. However, when the season starts for real, it is not difficult to imagine that the sluggish Seamus Coleman will be rather more attuned to the threat of the players around him.
The point is that a nice finish in a stylish win in an ultimately meaningless game should not be allowed to obscure deeper truths, one of which being the fact that Arsenal still need to sign a top-level striker if they harbour real aspirations of doing something in the Premier League this season. They may well get their hands on one, but it could require some patience.
Last season's established front three was dispensed with, as Jese played up front, supported by a trio of Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and Martin Odegaard in a 4-2-3-1 formation. Clearly the Conservative government in Britain is not alone in agitating to rethink the BBC.
With Isco and James Rodriguez said to be likely starters under Benitez, it has been rumoured that Ronaldo will continue his natural evolution and become a pure penalty-box predator as a centre-forward at the apex of Benitez's favoured formation. If that scenario were to be played out, a certain Karim Benzema might just become expendable.
The Frenchman has been a key player in the Madrid XI for some years now, but as the sales of Xabi Alonso, Angel Di Maria, Mesut Ozil and, stretching even further back, Claude Makelele have shown, that does not preclude president Florentino Perez from suddenly deeming that a player's services are no longer required. The ruthless pursuit of improvement, so often flawed in its execution, has had many undeserving casualties.
The rumours have generated momentum, and seeing Benzema's name splashed over the back pages in conjunction with Arsenal's, as it was this week, is enough to get any supporter a little excited. That is the lure of the transfer window and why it has become an industry unto itself, selling hopes and dreams to millions every day. But if Arsenal do sign Benzema, it won't, to borrow the tabloid vernacular, be the result of a big "swoop," a bold £40 million bid out of nowhere with Arsene Wenger hounding Perez and bombarding him with phone calls. Certain conditions will have to be met first for it to be even remotely viable.
Before Benzema would consider a move to Arsenal, you suspect Real Madrid would have to first decide that they no longer want him, either due to tactical considerations or, in the case of the purchases of Ozil from Madrid and Alexis Sanchez from Barcelona, if the European superpower need to raise money and free up space in the squad to facilitate another superstar arrival. For Arsenal, it's all about waiting for the opportunity to present itself, if it ever does.
That's surely why Wenger hasn't rushed to do his business despite leaving a good portion of fans restless, wondering why he didn't work harder to sign a player like Jackson Martinez, who last week completed his move to Atletico Madrid. In the summer transfer market, it is sometimes the case that good things come to those who wait. It might look foolish if the opportunity never arrives, but there is an inherent risk in rushing in, too.
It is why Wenger spoke in such generalities when invited to discuss the possible purchase of Benzema earlier this week: "If I find an exceptional player to strengthen, I will do it. It depends what's on the market. It's not easy, there are a lot of teams out there in Europe competing for the same player. We don't rule it out and we don't guarantee we will sign."
The reason for his reticence is clear. The past two summers have taught Wenger that if you wait for the cards to fall in the high-stakes European transfer game, you might just pick up an ace. And Real Madrid haven't played their hand yet.
