Arsene Wenger believes the return of Cesc Fabregas in Arsenal's 4-0 Champions League rout of FC Twente on Wednesday signals the real start of his side's season.
Fabregas was badly missed during Arsenal's first three matches as the Spanish midfielder recovered from a hamstring injury.
The Gunners laboured to a pair of unconvincing victories before slumping to a dismal defeat at Fulham on Saturday, but it took just 66 minutes of Fabregas's elegant influence at the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday to restore Wenger's belief that Arsenal can flourish this year.
With Fabregas pulling the strings in his first competitive appearance since Spain's Euro 2008 final triumph in June, Arsenal were transformed and Steve McClaren's Twente had no answer to their unmatched movement and penetration.
Goals from Samir Nasri, William Gallas, Theo Walcott and Nicklas Bendtner sealed a 6-0 aggregate win in the third qualifying round and booked Arsenal's place in the group stages.
"He brings calm and confidence to the side," said Wenger. "Overall we had a good balance with him in the side."
Fabregas is close to the finished article and his new team-mate Nasri already looks like becoming another gem in Wenger's midfield with his early season form.
The French winger, who came off with a stomach bug after being sick at half-time, has had no trouble settling in since his pre-season move from Marseille and broke the deadlock with a fine finish in the 27th minute.
McClaren admitted Twente caught the backlash from Arsenal's loss at the weekend. "I was here on Tuesday and they were talking about a crisis at Arsenal," he said.
"Someone said it was the best time to play them after they lost to Fulham but it was the worst time.
"Fabregas is a big player. He makes Arsenal tick. Once you see him on the teamsheet it's going to be hard. We played with belief and competed with them in the first leg. We didn't do that here."