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THANK GOD for Rambo. Aaron Ramsey drew first blood for Arsenal right at the death. Arsene Wenger must have breathed a huge sigh of relief as his three subs combined to produce the most unlikely winner and take Arsenal top of Group F... all when their Champions League future had looked less than bright. Johan Djourou hoofed the ball forward, Gervinho tried to bring it down but only succeeded in knocking it into Ramsey's path. The 20-year-old Wales skipper � nicknamed Rambo � who had been on the pitch for only 12 minutes rushed in unmarked and fired home. Really, Wenger could not have scripted it any better against the side bossed by his fellow Frenchman Didier Deschamps.Just seconds earlier, keeper Steve Mandanda had saved Robin van Persie's effort and it looked a goalless night for all the world. The 1,400 travelling Arsenal fans had nothing to shout about for 91 minutes and then, suddenly, all their frustration and angst was lifted with a single swing of the Welshman's boot. But do not let this win � as great a result as it is in the context of Arsenal's season so far � mask the frailties of Wenger's side. It is all a matter of commonsense really. Arsenal fans know that this is what happens when you replace your best players with lesser ones: You are no longer a very good team. One staunch Arsenal fan told me before the game, "These days I find Arsenal play a lot better if I tank myself up just before the game." As painful as it is for Gooners to admit, Arsenal are no longer the beautiful team they were for years. It was a good thing they were facing a Marseille team even lower on confidence than they are. Otherwise the French would have run away with the game and the points. Deschamps' side had won only once in 10 French League matches � an awful start to the domestic season which is very similar to Arsenal's. But they still led Group F with two wins in their first two games. Now, however, Arsenal could be virtually through to the knockout stages if they beat the French side at the Emirates in two weeks' time. Don't let it be said that the new signings need time to bed in. For the first 67 minutes, Mikel Arteta was the only recent arrival among Arsenal's front six. Alex Song, Theo Walcott, Tomas Rosicky, Andrey Arshavin and Van Persie joined the Spaniard in the Gunners' creative engine room � and produced nothing. For years now Wenger's alibi has been good football, fourth spot and coming out of the group stage in the Champions League. Well, two out of three ain't bad � provided the Gunners do make it through and, of course, manage to get into the top four yet again. This win will do wonders for morale particularly because of the manner in which it was achieved. Wenger rightly said that confidence takes a moment to disappear and a lot longer to regain. But miraculous results like last night's can go a long way to restore a battered team's faith in themselves. Arsenal started really badly as Song gave the ball away to Loic Remy and was booked when he brought down the Marseille star just outside the box � all with less than four minutes on the clock. And the visitors were lucky not to concede a penalty as Carl Jenkinson stupidly handled Jeremy Morel's cross after 13 minutes. It was as blatant as it was unnecessary and the hapless Arsenal right-back was mighty lucky Slovenian ref Damir Skomina missed it. Andre Santos was next into the book for an off-the-ball charge on Mathieu Valbuena. Arsenal's only real chance of the first half came when Souleymane Diawarra cleared Van Persie's looping header from a 21st-minute corner off the Marseille line. The French threatened again as Remy chased a lost cause, sold Per Mertesacker a sublime dummy and got past Jenkinson. But, thankfully, the former Charlton defender did enough to make the hitman fire just wide. Laurent Koscielny � having one of his better games for Arsenal � then put in a vital tackle to deny Remy. And, with 35 minutes gone, Lucho Gonzalez nipped ahead of Mertesacker but toe-poked his effort wide. Santos was lucky to escape a red card as he cynically brought down Valbuena but ref Skomina spared him a second booking. The game continued in much the same vein after the break with Van Persie rarely getting involved as he was starved of any real service. Just after the hour, however, Song slid the ball across to the Dutchman who turned Morel, but his first-time shot went straight at Mandanda. That was the first save the Marseille keeper had been forced to make in the whole game. Moments later, Mertesacker almost turned Andre Ayew's cross into his own net but Gunners' keeper Wojciech Szczesny was alert enough to rescue the situation. As time ticked away, Gervinho threaded Van Persie through but Mandanda's save looked to have made sure it all finished goalless. Seconds later, however, Ramsey struck and Arsenal went home as the masters of their own destiny.