In the end, it wasn't Theo Walcott's sumptuous finish that so evidently demonstrated the rampant belief coursing through an ambitious and hungry young Arsenal side against Villarreal. It wasn't Emmanuel Eboue's endeavour from right back and it wasn't even Alex Song's commendably commanding display in midfield.
No. The enduring image of the night was that of Robin van Persie in the mixed zone following an impressive and perhaps defining performance from Arsenal. The Dutch master laughing and joking, confident in his side's destiny and infused with the belief in a bright future, a glorious future even.
Relaxed, gregarious but steely in his determination, this was a footballer, one of Europe's finest, who declared: "I want to win it, I really want to win it, and for me it shows a lot that we are in this position now. I want to compete with the best and now we are here."
The not so subtle subtext being, of course, that Arsenal are back.
And back they are - one defeat in 25 games, an FA Cup semi-final and Champions League semi-final to look forward to, fourth place in the bag.
But back in November, following a fifth league defeat of the season at the hands of Manchester City, such a scenario looked scarcely possible. Strong questions were being asked of Arsene Wenger for the first time in his reign. Pundits, columnists and even Arsenal fans who should have known much better were ridiculously wondering whether he should vacate his job in North London.
But concerns of a less hysteric nature were certainly justified.
This reporter, admittedly, has been sceptical about Arsenal's league prospects during the season (but never even coming close to questioning Wenger's position, it must be noted), and with good reason too. The failure to replace Mathieu Flamini and Alexander Hleb no doubt played a huge role in Arsenal dropping out of the title race in the first half of the season and only the eventual arrival of Andrei Arshavin really addressed their shortcomings in The Premier League.
It will not have escaped Wenger, a noted economist, that the Russian has provided the much-need stimulus to stave off a recession in Arsenal's fortunes in the league, but the green shoots of recovery - the rebirth of belief - came in December, and for that the credit must go directly to the manager.
When all those around him were declaring that his empire was crumbling, the Frenchman's belief in his players never wavered and they have repaid him handsomely. Some, like Eboue and Song, with recent performances that have hinted at a long career at the club.
But just as many were far too quick to condemn Wenger while results were not forthcoming, it is important not to get carried away by recent performances too.
Let's not forget, for example, that Arsenal were the lottery of penalties away from losing to Roma in the previous round of the Champions League, a generous referee's decision and the width of a post away from losing against Wigan in the league last weekend.
Despite what you may read in some enthralled newspaper columns, this crop of young players are not yet the new Invincibles. In a few weeks they could be out of both cup competitions and Wenger could face a legion of critics lining up to bury him again.
Sterner tests are to follow with Manchester United the opponents at least three times in what remains of the season, Chelsea potentially three times and Liverpool once. These are the games that will reveal whether Song, Eboue, Denilson, Walcott et all are the heirs to Vieira, Gilberto, Pires and Henry.
It remains the suspicion of this observer that they are not, but when watching this youthful side make one of Spain's premier teams look distinctly lethargic on Wednesday night, it was impossible not to be seduced by the belief that this squad of Arsenal players are perhaps capable of fulfilling the destiny that Wenger has proposed for them, time and time again, to the snorting ridicule of some in the media and stands.
Whether they are capable of taking another huge leap forward, whether for instance they could match Barcelona in a Champions League final, remains to be seen. But one thing is certain after watching Van Persie saunter through the media area; under Wenger, they believe they can.