Daily Bits and Bobs

Pressure growing on FA & PL. Can you pick a favourite Arsenal victory?

Posted on by rico

 

Yesterday the French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe announced that big sporting events cannot return until September at the earliest which means their season is over. According to a report in the Guardian, the Ligue de Football Professionnel are yet to decide how promotion and relegation are decided. Bearing in mind the death rate in France has seen a greater reduction in lost lives through Coronavirus than here in England, I wonder what impact this decision will have on the FA and PL. Presently the waters appear to be quite muddied as far as English football goes, certainly from what is reported in the newspapers.

Most other large event organisers seem to be applying common sense and simply cancelling. Football in England however, seems to be desperate to restart although as other countries end their season, I think the pressure to cancel the English campaign will increase greatly.

The headline. I don’t mean choosing Arsenal’s best victory throughout time as there’d be far too many to choose from but FA Cup Final success stories.

 

I know, there is one missing. Our most recent 2-1 defeat of Chelsea which is up there with some of my favourites, although not my number one choice. It was the victory which ensured we’d become the club with the most FA Cup trophies in the country.

 

I’ll always remember it because in the centre of defence we had the big fella Per Mertesacker who’d barely kicked a ball all season because of injury and beside him was Rob Holding, still a rookie really having joined us from Bolton the previous summer, and with David Ospina between the sticks, I doubt many Arsenal fans fancied our chances against a Chelsea team high in confidence having just won the Premier League at a canter.

Our domestic campaign had been a dismal and for the first time under Arsene Wenger, we didn’t finish in the top four so Europa League football awaited us the following season. Our Champions League campaign faired badly too having been knocked out by Bayern Munich with a 10-2 scoreline over the two legs.

I wish Arsene Wenger had walked away from Arsenal after that victorious final, or certainly a few days later because perhaps then he’d have been remembered for his ability to lift his players for one last big performance and a trophy to go with it. An FA Cup trophy which every fan loves to see their club win.

Every single player ‘turned up’ at Wembley and throughout the match it was easy to see that Chelsea thought they had the trophy in the bag. They were the ones who appeared to think they only had to walk onto the pitch to win. Toothless Arsenal would bottle the big occasion but how wrong they were. Arsene Wenger’s team played the better football and the attitude was spot on. Rob Holding was superb, just as he’d been in the semifinal against Man City too, and old man alongside him, was outstanding. Mesut Ozil was the player we long to see now yet seldom do. Not at any stage did Chelsea look like League Champions because Arsenal didn’t let them. So much so, anyone watching without knowing which club had lifted the League Trophy, I’m sure they’d have though it was the team in red and white.

So yes, that 2017 final is amongst some of my favourites, as is the 3-2 over Man Utd at the old Wembley, the 1998 defeat of Newcastle Utd, the 1971 Charlie George Final and the 2005 final too purely because I really didn’t like Scholes as a player. Picking a favourite is tough and I can’t.

Can you?

Stay safe guys and stay healthy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

rico

38 thoughts on “Pressure growing on FA & PL. Can you pick a favourite Arsenal victory?”

  1. RA says:

    Good morning, Rico,

    What a lovely Post – but like you I cannot make up my mind which was the best FA Cup Final from my perspective – so like an ‘ear worm’ from a piece of music that won’t go away, I will be thinking about this all day. 😳

    [Just watched the BBC showing VE Day in Europe, and it was very moving seeing Londoners and others all around the world, too, celebrating the end of WW2. I wish there was a time machine to enable me to go back in time to 8th May 1945, and talk to them, to dance with them, and to join in with their joy. 👍

  2. RA says:

    Scott,

    You make a very valid point about the corona virus deaths.

    Australia, which I love, is a massive country and with a relatively small population has a very small number of deaths.

    The UK, which I also love, is made up of a small bunch of islands, with a huge population of 67 million people, so the cities, especially London have very built up areas and covid19 can spread very easily, hence the huge number of terrible deaths. Very sad.

  3. RA says:

    Morning Le Coq, 😜

    I loved your comment at 7 p.m. yesterday — that VCC, eh? — If Terry had been around he would have spent the day chatting up the coat rack!!🙄

  4. rico says:

    Morning Ra, all.

    I think there are so many with different meaning to them. The last because, well we were very good. The comeback against Hull, the Ramsey goal, Cazorla free kick. The ‘it’s only Ray Parlour’… The list is endless.

  5. Sue says:

    1971 Rico?! I wasn’t even born 😜

    I loved our comeback against Hull… I remember stropping off at 0-2… and missing Cazorla’s free kick.. I just knew we’d go on to win (after I’d calmed down of course!)

    Nice post, btw, Rico…. I’ll be in deep contemplation all day long now hahaha!

  6. rico says:

    Guys, I know some of you have history together from another website and that’s great but if you want to share stuff between each other, if you don’t already have the email address of each, I am more than happy to pass them on if you’d like.

    Basically, keep AA stuff on AA please.

  7. VCC says:

    yet another fine post rico…..keeping us entertained during these difficult times, well done and thank you.

    I think my favourite has to be the 3-2 win over ManUre.

    I was at the game, and the excitement at the end was fantastic. Having lead by 2 goals we were pegged back to level . Then up popped Alan Sunderland to get the winner late in the game, YES YES YES. Appy Dayz…..

    It was made super sweet as the Manc supporters had started to walk away thinking defeat was inevitable, only to come back when they had drawn level.

    The scenes from their reappearance were awful. There were many up the Arsenal end of old Wembley.

    They acted like animals, carrying out things I cannot put in a family blog. I’ve hated them ever since.

  9. rico says:

    Ha ha, thanks Sue.

    I’m sure you’ve watched the 1971 final many times as I have and it was that Charlie George moment that turned me into an Arsenal fan. His story to becoming a player is great.

  11. Cicero says:

    Good morning Rico and all.

    My two all time favourite games, both of which I watched live in the grounds were the 1971 final League game of the season 0 – 1 away to Spurs, followed only four days later by the 2 – 1 win over Liverpool at Wembley to win the FA Cup and complete the double. All other games fade into insignificance in comparison….at least in my mind.

  12. potter says:

    71 as the albatross of the double was lifted from my shoulders as all the Tottenham supporting sychophants finally had to shut up , those I had been to school with and still played football with that had not shut up since 61..
    Like Cicero ,I saw Kennedy’s header from the shelf with 3 of them ( sweet ) they didn’t have a lot to say on the way home although I was glad of their presence on the High road as Arsenal supporters were getting “sorted” on the way past Bruce Grove station .
    Then the trip to Finchley road on to Preston Road ,stop at the pub on the way to Wembley park and ” Oh happy day ” I screamed at Wilson to get back on his line as Heighway beat him on the near post and like everyone in the stadium thought Stroller had squeezed the equaliser . Then as the Arsenal end began to totally outsing the other lot up stepped Charlie and Tick Tock lifted the cup.
    The double our first of three putting the seven sisters well and truly in their place.will always be the sweetest for me although I have enjoyed many occasions at Wembley ,Cardiff and a bar in Rhodes where having been to the original match I was on holiday for Andy Linighans header with my son in 93 ( the other double ). I had to apologise to the bar owner at the end there were just the two of us in a bar full of Northern ( mainly Yorkshire )people that left on the final whistle . He would have done a fortune had the result gone the other way but you can only drink so many beers and my son on coke ( the drink ) couldn’t make up for his lost takings .

  13. Aussie Geoff says:

    Hi Rico and All too many games to pick just one, but I still like watching Giroud’s scorpion goal

  14. ScottfromOz says:

    Morning all.
    ‘79 for me.
    My earliest memory of the Arsenal.
    Glenquarie United Soccer club, The Gunners began in 1977.
    The president sent the Arsenal a letter asking permission to use The Gunners as our nickname and badge.
    Proper red and white kits.
    1979 was our first season at our new ground, Bensley Rd-we uses a local high school until the permanent ground was sourced.
    We laid the turf, our parents built the canteen etc etc etc
    I was 9, The “clubhouse” was an old fibro house on the property where we went to watch the game.
    FA cup finals were the only games we saw live here in Oz, so for us Aussies, it was Probably more important than the League.
    The dads would throw down beers, the kids would sleep and get woken up to watch the game.
    I still remember it-not quite like it was yesterday, but still…..
    That’s the one for me 🙂
    Oh and Brett Emerton was a Gunner!!!
    An Aussie Gunner, at least.

  15. rico says:

    Morning Cicero, Geoff.

    1971 seems to be popular. 98 was another good one imo. Beating Shearer Newcastle was rather satisfying. Lol

  16. Cicero says:

    !971 was particularly sweet for me, from childhood a rivalry existed in my extended family between Arsenal and Spurs. I intensely disliked Leeds United but despised Liverpool absolutely…and still do to this day.

  21. Cicero says:

    Potter, football was still a fan based game with tribal rivalries in 1971.

    Getting to the ground early to bag your favourite spot, meeting your mates, even crowding together on cold or wet days, usually both on uncovered terraces, the singing, the chanting.

    All part of football life’s rich tapestry.

  24. Sue says:

    Scott.. they’re a different breed!! 🤪
    I’m not sure if you saw it, but on the last post I asked you if Wentworth is on in Australia? And before you say it yes I do watch that crap 😂

  26. Sue says:

    Speaking of the FA cup, Rico… Reloaded is on tonight, our 4-0 over Villa… if I can tear myself away from Ozark, I’ll be tuning in 😀

  27. rico says:

    I’ve moved to Killing Eve Sue, didn’t watch it the first time around. I’ve seen the Villa final so many times. Lol

  29. Joaquim Moreira says:

    1971 beat Liverpool – Charlie George yes!!!
    1979 beat MU after the 2-2, ball in the central circle and then the 3-2. Brady was a monster on the pitch!

  33. ScottfromOz says:

    Sorry Sue,
    I have never watched the show to be honest, so I don’t know 🙂
    I’ll see WIR I can find out.
    Rico, I’ve had a hard life so look older than I am Lol

  38. rico says:

    I didn’t know that Potter, I’ll look out for some familiar spots. The beautiful church will be easy to see if it’s filmed.

    Ha ha Scott.

    New post up now

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