Arsenal idol Thierry Henry insists the Gunners can still win the Premier League next season - despite another Emirates exodus.
But the most prolific striker in the club's history admits he is talking with his heart rather than his head when he urges disgruntled supporters to keep the faith.
It is two years since the man voted the greatest Arsenal player of all time left the club for Barcelona.
But the pain he feels at their failure to win a trophy since 2005 remains as intense as ever.
Now Henry is praying manager Arsene Wenger can end that long wait despite battling just to hang on to his top stars.
Arsenal have already lost striker Emmanuel Adebayor to Manchester City for £25million and defender Kolo Toure is set to follow him to Eastlands any day now.
But Henry insisted: "I know the way Arsene Wenger thinks and he will not go into the new season with ambitions to finish in the top four again.
"His only target will be to win the Premier League.
"And despite all that has happened at Arsenal this year, I still believe they have enough quality to do that. It is difficult for me to talk about Arsenal. Whenever I do, it is always with my heart, not my head.
"They are going to miss Adebayor for sure. He is a good player and he scored some important goals for the team.
"So it is going to be a difficult task for Arsenal this time and it is vital that everyone keeps the faith.
"The reason I say that is because the boss still has great faith in his players and if there is one man who Arsenal can trust to do the right thing, it's Arsene Wenger.
"He is the man who has put Arsenal on to the European map. Nobody else could have achieved what he has done there.
"The fans should remember that and give him more credit. Some people gave him a hard time last season and he didn't deserve that.
"I know how those supporters feel. Like them, I am Arsenal through and through and we all suffer when the team doesn't win anything.
"Everyone wants immediate success and after four seasons without a trophy, Arsenal supporters have become impatient.
"All I can say to them right now is to have faith in Arsene and know that the first trophy in five years will be more enjoyable than ever."
Henry, 31, scored a club-record 226 goals in 370 games for Arsenal, winning the Premier League twice and FA Cup three times.
He was voted Footballer of the Year three times and the PFA's Player of the Year twice as well as finishing top scorer in the Premier League in four of his eight seasons at Arsenal.
But things have gone steadily downhill for Arsenal since Henry left for Barcelona in a £16m deal in 2007.
There has been an alarming trickle of top talent moving away from The Emirates since then.
Henry said: "It is more difficult to achieve success without money, but it's not impossible with the right attitude.
"Just look at Barcelona. We won the treble this year and proved you can succeed by developing your own players and blending them with one or two expensive signings.
"Iniesta, Xavi, Messi, Puyol, Pique and Valdes all came through the system at Barcelona.
"Arsenal are trying to do the same thing and are very close to achieving their ambitions.
"Yes, they are still a very young team. But they are not inexperienced.
"They have been playing together for quite a while and are capable of anything.
"They played Manchester United off the park in the Premier League at The Emirates last season but it all went wrong when they met again in the Champions League.
"But at least they have shown what they can do. With the players they already have at the club, I can still see them winning the league."
Yet Henry admitted it will be tougher than ever now Manchester City have burst on to the scene in an unprecedented transfer blitz funded by their billionaire Arab owners.
Henry added: "Manchester City fans are buzzing right now and why not? Surely they are allowed to be happy.
"It is their turn and nobody can be bitter about that or resent them for their good fortune.
"Let's just see what they can do."
Henry's biggest concern, though, is recovering from the knee injury which hampered him during last season's Champions League final and help Barca blunt the challenge of Cristiano Ronaldo-inspired Real Madrid.
Henry confessed: "I pushed myself so hard to play in the Champ-ions League final.
"The doctors told me I should rest for two months after the initial injury but I was back after two weeks.
"I was virtually playing on one leg against Manchester United in the final but was so desperate just to be a part of the team.
"Now I am being a bit more cautious. I'm working hard in training and will go with the team on the tour of the United States, but I am not kicking a ball yet.
"Hopefully I will be OK for the start of the season but the most important thing is to make sure the knee is fully recovered."
Source: The sun
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