Tribute To The Arsenal

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As the saying goes, ?All good things must come to an end? and so it was last Sunday at Old Trafford when Arsenal?s magnificent 49-match unbeaten run in the Barclays English Premiership was brought to an end by none other than their sworn enemies Manchester United.

The game was hyped as the game of the season for so many reasons. The two sides are the most successful in the history of the Premiership and between them they have won all but one premiership title with United having 8 and Arsenal 3. The two managers are known for their mind games and the passion they bring to the game. Last year?s corresponding fixture had ended in a fracas after Arsenal Players had taunted Van Nistelrooy after he missed a last minute penalty. Four Arsenal Players were banned and the FA hit the club with fines. Then there was the unbeaten run that United were desperate to end at the third time of asking. This was underlined by the fact that United needed a win to keep them in with a realistic chance in the title race. This is because Arsenal were threatening to break away at the top of the table and a win at Old Trafford would have seen them go 14 points clear of United, so this was a game United could not afford to lose.

The match lived up to its billing and the controversy trailing in its wake is hardly surprising. The press is awash with issues surrounding the game and the last has not yet been heard of it. Arsene Wenger has bared his mind on what he thinks of the standard of refereeing and Ruud Van Nistelrooy is facing an FA inquiry over his cynical tackle on Ashley Cole. In the midst of all this Brouhaha people seem to have forgotten the enormity of Arsenal?s achievement. The attention was so focused on the 50th game that the 49 before it now seem like a distant memory. This great achievement must go into the history books with the bang it deserves.

When Leeds United beat Arsenal 3-2 in Highbury in May 2003, effectively handing the title to Manchester United, not even Nostradamus could have convinced the average Arsenal fan of the good times to come. Arsenal surrendered the title to their bitter rivals after leading the table for so long, playing a wonderful brand of football so much so that after beating Leeds 4-1 at Elland Road in October, Arsene Wenger predicted that his team could go the entire season unbeaten. Confidence had never been higher. Such was the gloom around Highbury after surrendering the title that the FA cup was regarded as a mere consolation. The mood was not lifted by Arsenal?s lack of activity in the transfer window. The only new comer to the Highbury dressing room was German goalkeeper Jens Lehman coming in to replace the veteran David Seaman. This was in sharp contrast to their main rivals for the title notably united and Big-spending Chelsea buoyed by the Billions of Roman Abrahmovic. There was even talk of a power shift in London with Chelsea becoming the team to beat. This was all before a ball was kicked. Thierry Henry committed himself to the club for 3 more years, which was the only piece of good news for the club during the summer of 2003.





Like true Gladiators, the Gunners put all their troubles behind them, including a penalty shoot out defeat in the community shield by United. They produced result after result and started perfecting their wonderful brand of attacking football that was to be dubbed Wengerball by Arsenal fans. This Arsenal team already used to breaking records (Longest unbeaten run in the Premiership of 30 games, the only side to score in every game in a season 2002-2003, the only team not to lose away 2002-2003) started putting together their unbeaten run. Cynics always pointed to the next match as the one they would eventually lose only for them to have to eat their words after another victory for Arsenal.

There were so many memorable games in that season especially the classics at Anfield and at Highbury against Liverpool, when against all odds victory was achieved. The Gunners were also to get to the latter stages of the League Cup, The FA Cup and the Champions League. Their game was acclaimed the world over. In the January transfer window the club signed the young Spanish starlet Jose Antonio Reyes from Seville. The turning point of the season according to Mr. Wenger was the incident at Old Trafford, but it was the match against Liverpool at Highbury that really brought out the character of the team. Having been knocked out of the FA cup and the champion?s league in the same week, Arsenal?s remaining hope of trophy was being threatened at half time with Liverpool  leading 2-1. A terrific Hat-trick by Thierry Henry secured all three points and there was no stopping Arsenal.  The likes of Henry, Pires, Toure, Campbell, Cole, Viera, Edu, Ljunberg, Lauren and Gilberto all became legends in Highbury folklore. They went on to win back the title at White Hart Lane undefeated. The first side to do so since Preston North End did it in 1889 when Queen Victoria was monarch and the season was made up of 22 games compared to 38 played in the modern game. This earned them the nickname of ?IMMORTALS? and the sponsors of the league commissioned a special trophy to commemorate the achievement.

Arsenal continued the new season from exactly where they left last season, playing football like it has never been seen in England. They eventually broke and extended Nottingham Forest?s long-standing record of 44 matches without defeat in the top flight. The record had stood for close to three decades. The new record now stands at 49 matches and will take some beating. By any stretch of imagination, it is no mean feat to go 49 games unbeaten. Even Arsenal?s critics have admitted that much. Arsenal achieved their record while playing fantastic football and perfecting the art of Goal scoring. Indeed they were applauded many times on away grounds because of the quality of their game. Gooners forgot how it was like to lose a league match and their German Goalkeeper played 49 games before tasting defeat. Commentators ran out of words to describe their exploits. Martin Tyler, the foremost commentator put it succinctly when he said that in all his years in the game he had never seen a team quite like Arsenal ?It is a pleasure and an Honour watching this Arsenal team play, I always enjoy doing their games, their football is so easy on the eye, its the stuff of legend?.


Congratulations Dear reader, for you are part of a privileged generation, watching some of the best ever exponents of the beautiful game... Arsenal FC.

Long after we are gone, generations yet unborn will marvel at these achievements, and they are not finished, not yet. They are still top of the league and still in top form. The team spirit at Highbury is second to none. With the ability and desire in the team, only a fool will begin to think that it?s over. In his reaction to the controversial defeat at Old Trafford, Le Boss was quoted as saying ?we will just have to go on another unbeaten run....?. This time even the most unrepentant cynic will think twice before condemning and accusing him of   boasting, after all he has done it before!!!