What difference would Mark van Bommel have made for Arsenal at Wembley? Or what about William Gallas or Sol Campbell?
The meltdown at Newcastle United was no one-off - as Birmingham City proved on Sunday. It was staring Arsene Wenger in the face, but he seems to be too wrapped up in his 'footballing philosophy' to acknowledge it. No matter how talented the Gunners youth production line becomes, winning is passed on from one generation to the next.
Blues hero Ben Foster summed it up discussing why he didn't make it at Manchester United:
"I enjoy football, and I want to win. But at United it is at a different level. It is the end of the world if you draw. I just thought it was too much, it gets out of hand and it is ridiculous. They have had 20-odd years of winning and people like Gary Neville it's in their DNA. Even in training you'd see tackles flying and little scuffles. It's very intense."
Wenger's Gunners are now entering year six without winning a thing. Sunday was their best chance - and they blew it. The moment they needed leadership and a big hoof into Row Z, Laurent Koscielny and Wojciech Szczesny came together to hand Birmingham their winner on a plate.
The sad thing was that it was always coming. The warning signs should have been seen at Newcastle. Wenger's team simply melted away. 4-4? Do me a favour, it should have been 7-4. The Toon were queuing up to test Szczesny in the end.
Holland captain. Bayern Munich captain. Van Bommel was available - and would have jumped at the chance of moving to North London. Instead, he's playing in AC Milan's midfield. Oh yeah, and they're now leading Serie A.
Forget the significance of Sunday. What difference could Van Bommel have made in Cesc Fabregas' future? The Barcelona rumours are already in full swing for Cesc and after the Jon Harper controversy, it appears the shackles of diplomacy are off as far as Sandro Rosell, Barca's president, is concerned.
With the Carling Cup in the trophy cabinet and a winner like Van Bommel in the dressing room, Wenger would have had a better chance of convincing Cesc to shut down all talk of returning home. Now the speculation will only increase.
And if Wenger appears a bit more frazzled on the touchline in the closing weeks of the season, it won't just be the thought of another summer fighting off Barca that will be giving him sleepless nights.
Pat Rice is talking about giving it away. He's been on the Gunners bench since Wenger's arrival and his retirement will leave a big hole to fill. Then there's pressure from Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich, who is promising Gunners chief scout Steve Rowley a bigger job at Stamford Bridge.
Losing both Rice and Rowley - plus the latter's scouting network - will be body blows for Wenger, who also will need to manage a preseason programme disrupted by a first overseas tour. More change, more difficulties and potentially something he will have to cope with without two of his long-time allies.
Then there's the threat next season of Abramovich's new spending spree, Tottenham's continued improvement and the inevitable progress of Manchester City.
This could have been the season for Arsenal to stake their claim in the Premier League's new power shift. But a lack of bottle in the transfer market and a devotion to an over-rated 'footballing philosophy' has blown it.
