Even before the injury to Essien, i feel we have lost that dominance we once possessed. I would have to say that against a few teams this season we haven't looked the part.. Last night against Arsenal it was evident that we lacked speed in our passing game. What do we put it down to? Players age? maybe, Players constantly getting swapped, probably. But, is it a bad thing? i am not so sure.. Speed may get you passing the ball a lot quicker, but if you don't know what to do with the final pass, its pretty much worthless. Although Ballack cops alot of flack sometimes, i think he is more important than we think. Our defense last night showed how well our players can scramble and how much they are willing to put there bodies on the line to stop the ball from going in. But do we want this?? Come Champions league Semi finals in May and god willing we make it there, Do we really want a midfield that can't keep up with the likes of Barcelona and co? Do we want to see our players scrambling in defense to stop the never ending waves of attack from Barcelona?? I think if we don't stop them in the midfield, we don't stand a chance. So, does our aging midfield stand a chance come May? Do we have the team to get us that elusive Champions League crown? I hope so, but it will be hard.. Your views...