Arsene Wenger’s 10 Most Significant, Yet Forgotten Wins – Part 1

October is a very eventful month for Arsenal supporters worldwide. It’s the month when Arsene Wenger was appointed as the manager, when he had his debut game as manager, and it’s when his birthday is falling on too. Although he was welcomed with a dozen question marks and a couple of lambasts, he left creating a legacy only a very few managers were able to achieve. Not only for Arsenal but also known for shaping the modern game in English football. As Pep Guardiola once said – ‘it [the Premier League] is what it is because of what he has done, his vision.’

A French manager greeted with “Arsène who?” by the media, he spent 22 years in the country facing the hostility from the arrogant and hostile English media. Caught in the middle of uncertainty, alienation and negativity, he paid no attention to any of it and continued to reach new heights as each season progressed.

He is also responsible for millions of overseas fans supporting Arsenal not only because of the titles he won but also for his ethics, philosophy, principles, values and the beautiful football his squad displayed over 2 decades. In a recent poll conducted by Arsenal Kerala Supporters Club, to find since when they started following Arsenal, nearly half of them responded by saying ‘After 2005’, a quarter of them also started following after 2010. This volume of supporters generated during our barren spell without trophies and only with misery in terms of quantifiable achievements is the certified proof of how it was Arsene’s Wenger ball, not merely titles that inspired them to support Arsenal.

Over the years we have had a lot of eventful victories, enough to celebrate until our last breath, and we often share the highlights on our social media channels. But in this piece, I aim to cover some forgotten significant wins post our move to the Emirates Stadium aka Ashburton Grove. This is only the beginning (Part 1) and I hope to write a few more articles on the same topic in the coming months.

1) Arsenal 3-0 Liverpool – EPL 2006/07

It was a clinical win against one of the top sides in Europe. We were below our best in the first half as the visitors passed the ball more purposefully. But a more determinant Gunners in the second half had the breakthrough with some breathtaking counter-attacking football. In the same season, we also hit Liverpool with a six when Baptista grabs four and wins it 6-3. It was after 7 decades that Liverpool conceded 6 goals at home. Although it was a very spectacular win, this particular premier league win is less talked about and deserve more attention. This time it was Kolo Toure who drives us to win with a commanding contribution defensively and a striker like finish for the second that pushed us into top gear (Can you even dream of any current defenders scoring such a goal?). The build-up by Hleb and Fabregas was beautiful for the first goal scored by Flamini.

The way we overcome a tough first half by completely dominating a top side was the key highlight of this victory. 

2) Bolton 2-3 Arsenal – EPL 2007/08

Young squad, star striker Thierry Henry left, against all the odds lead the table for most of the weeks, revived hopes of another miracle after ‘The Invincibles’, all shattered by the shock of the Eduardo injury. This comeback victory with 10 men is still fresh in the memory of all Gooners, but I included it on purpose to highlight the magnitude of this win which is beyond the red card. We couldn’t win any of the 5 matches before this (4 Draws and 1 Loss), the loss come against our London title rivals Chelsea. The pressure was piling up, on top of that a tough away match, a rainy evening, wet pitch.. and so on. At 2-0 down and with 10 men in the rain, it felt like another miserable journey. But the drama unfolded, a squad that couldn’t even win easy previous games is displaying some determination to win it back, played with flair and purpose. I don’t know from where we amassed the morale boost, but I wished it could have come a few weeks earlier.

Wenger’s youthful, exuberant players showed everyone what are they capable of doing at their best. Is this the greatest come back to win with 10 men in EPL?

3) Arsenal 2-1 Manutd – EPL 2008/09

What’s so special about a random EPL win against Manutd at home? Usually, it is just a big win, but for this, it’s more than that. In terms of the form, squad size, quality and average squad age Arsenal were far inferior to the current EPL and UCL champs. This game reminded English football that an inexperienced squad, in its youthful form, can equally cause excitement and awe. The Guardian rightfully described the win as “Under-strength Arsenal stunned Manchester United to catapult themselves back into title contention”. Nicklas Bendtner was the only first-team striker available. This was the match that introduced Samir Nasri to the EPL by showing what was he capable of and the fluidity of football the Cesc-Nasri duo can bring. If the first goal was down to individual brilliance, the second goal was a typical ‘Wenger Ball’ goal. The build-up to the goal had 15 passes in the final third, and a beautiful diagonal pass to Nasri by Cesc, Nasri smashed the ball into the net (Reminded me of Robert Pires finishes). 

While the significance of the victory got eroded because of our poor display later in the season, there is no doubt whatsoever that this Arsenal squad is the legitimate heir to Wenger’s fearful teams of the past.

4) Chelsea 1-2 Arsenal – EPL 2008/09

The story is almost similar to the above match but with a different hero and away from home. RVP, who was struggling before this game with poor form struck twice in three minutes to stun and silence the Bridge. How often you have seen an out of form striker scoring twice against a top side in their yard? Arsene Wenger was under heavy criticism for his ‘unfair’ loyalty towards RVP who was struggling to establish a strong presence. But as always, his ability to judge the strength of a player is very much underappreciated. RVP from the edge of the box thrashed the ball past Cech with his weaker right foot for the first goal, followed by a very intelligent finish into the far corner by the dutchman.

A big win twice in a month against the odds, and only the second home defeat for Chelsea in 4 years, this win deserve far more recognition from us.

5) Everton 1-6 Arsenal – EPL 2009/10

Kicking off a promising campaign by equalling the biggest opening-day victory in Premier League history, that too against a side finished right below us the previous season, well, that’s the Arsenal we used to see and we always wanted. Surprisingly we sold Emmanuel Adebayor and Kolo Touré to the newest rich party in EPL. Despite only reinvesting a quarter of the money from transfer outgoings, Wenger had the trust in his squad to deliver big and the first game result just proved his judgement was right, and also the subsequent games. It’s not like Everton were woeful, but we were too good and resulted in a perfect ‘Arsene Wenger’ win.

The display was scintillating with long-range goals, a surprise debutant goal by a CB, Fabregas proving why he is the best midfielder in the league, and it could not get better when Eduardo, returning from a long absence hammered toffees with the 6th nail in their coffin.

6) Liverpool 1-2 Arsenal – EPL 2009/10

Another Merseyside team and a great win at Anfield after 6 years in EPL! This is one of my personal favourites as well. I know you all remember Arsenal 4-4 Liverpool scoreline of the previous season, but this one is underappreciated. Andrey Arshavin was Liverpool’s tormentor again with a double as we cemented our place as the title contenders chasing Chelsea and Manutd. After a poor first half, I saw a very angry Arsene Wenger throwing his frustration at the players. The halftime firing by the boss surely worked as we were able to turn around it quickly in our favour with a re-ignited performance in the second half.

“The boss screamed,” said Fabregas, “He was really disappointed with us in the first half. I’ve never seen him like that before. He said we didn’t deserve to wear the Arsenal shirt and he was right because we really weren’t good, we weren’t up for it. But that gave us a boost and the second half was one of the best second halves we have played this season.” Well, that’s so weird coming from Arsene Wenger, wish it happened more often during his final years at Arsenal. After losing poorly to Chelsea a few weeks back and this win helped us to close the gap with them.

https://twitter.com/arsenal/status/1073253323946512386?lang=en

7) Arsenal 1-0 Liverpool – EPL 2009/10

Same opponent, Same Story, Same Result, Same Effect! We just faced Manutd and Chelsea in the tournament before this game and lost both games. A win against the Kop would put us back on the title map and we did it. A test of mental fortitude when Fatigue, Morale, Motivation… everything down, but still we came back strongly to secure a win. It was not a very impressive Wenger style win, but we showed persistence and conviction to fetch us the results over the fluid display. The result was significant considering that we won 6 out of the next 7 games. 

The goal came from an unlikely source – Diaby, and that too a header which is not our forte against big sides. It’s more significant when you see Liverpool was unbeaten in the last 7 matches before this game, conceding only two! 

8) Mancity 0-3 Arsenal – EPL 2010/11

Mancity with new investments has shown some glimpses of a title-winning side by then. We started the season with mixed emotions, some great wins, and some horrible defeats (2-3 loss at home both to WBA and Spurs, Seriously?) This game was tipped as a test of both sides’ credentials as a title contender. But this was one of the most relaxing tough away win I have witnessed. The match was celebrated by the supporters by giving Wenger credit that you do not necessarily need to spend heavily to succeed.

The win took us to second in the table. 

9) Arsenal 3-1 Chelsea – EPL 2010/11

We have been mocked very often with the tag ‘BOYS’ and any heavyweight encounters were considered as BOYS v MEN. I remember after this victory my Gooner friend flooded Facebook with posts against this mockery. An emphatic and stylish win against a title rival after the setback at Old Trafford boosted our Premier League title hopes. I really loved how Johan Djourou kept Drogba at bay, and other brilliant game plans by Wenger to limit their star players, including Ashley Cole.

This commanding victory was well applauded by the pundits and rated us as a genuine title contender over depicting us as ‘Work in Progress.

10) Arsenal 1-0 Manutd – EPL 2010/11

Irrespective of the rivalry, this was a match that could have been the final to determine the winners, but our poor display in the second half of the season kicked us out of the title race. Fergie at one point said “The title race is between us and Arsenal”, even when that hope failed, we could have easily ensured 2nd spot, but eventually finishing 4th below Mancity. However, I decided to mention this match because of two reasons: The absence of Fabregas, and Ramsey – Wilshere combo. Do you remember us hoping this duo will become the next Xavi and Iniesta? This game showed some glimpses of what both of them were capable of in the absence of Cesc. We dominated the game against this strong Manutd side who went on to become the champions and UCL runners up. 

Only if we had shown some consistency in the latter half of the season, the title could have been easily ours!