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Arsenal celebrated the 2004 title at White Hart Lane
'The Invincibles' go 49 games unbeaten
Played 49, Won 36, Drawn 13, Lost None. The Arsenal squad which
set a new unbeaten league record between May 2003 and October 2004
will live long in the memory and forever in the history books.
The Gunners' historic run actually began amid the ruins of a failed
Premiership bid. Arsenal shook off the disappointment of a home
defeat against Leeds which handed Manchester United the title to
thrash Southampton 6-1 at Highbury on May 7, 2003. No one had an
inkling about what would follow.
Arsenal started the 2003/04 campaign in style with four straight
wins but almost came unstuck at Old Trafford in game No 8 of their
run. Ruud van Nistelrooy's late penalty cannoned off the crossbar
and Arsenal escaped with a 0-0 draw. It was the closest shave of
the entire 49-game sequence.
For the most part Arsenal brushed aside all-comers home and away.
There were memorable wins at Elland Road, Stamford Bridge and Anfield,
plus some great goals along the way. Robert Pires' winner at Liverpool
in October 2003 was one of the best, while Thierry Henry produced
classic after classic.
Arsène Wenger had built a team to compare with any side
in Europe. With Sol Campbell and Kolo Toure at the back, Patrick
Vieira and Pires in midfield and Henry partnering Dennis Bergkamp
up front, Arsenal had too much steel and too much style for their
Premiership rivals.
They had bags of character too. After being dumped out of the FA
Cup and Champions League in the space of a few days, Arsenal bounced
back from a 2-1 half-time deficit against Liverpool at Highbury
in April 2004 to win 4-2 and stay on course for the title.
Later that month Arsenal clinched the Premiership with a 2-2 draw
at Tottenham. Success rarely tasted sweeter but there was still
history to be made: Arsenal duly avoided defeat against Birmingham,
Portsmouth, Fulham and Leicester to complete the first unbeaten
league campaign since Preston's in the 19th century.
Nottingham Forest's record of 42 games unbeaten had stood for 26
years. Arsenal matched it on August 22, 2004 but so nearly blew
their chance, digging deep to turn a 3-1 deficit into a resounding
5-3 victory.
Three days later Henry, Cesc Fabregas and Jose Antonio Reyes were
on target as Arsenal wrote themselves into the history books by
beating Blackburn at Highbury. Wenger's team extended their record
to 49 games, scoring freely and playing some of the finest football
the English game has seen.
The run ended in controversy at Old Trafford as a harshly-awarded
penalty spurred Manchester United to a 2-0 win in October 2004.
But that defeat did nothing to dim Arsenal's achievement. Wenger's
'Invincibles' will never be forgotten. |
