William Goldman, the great screenwriter (he wrote Butch and Sundance among several classics), famously said of the film industry, “Nobody knows anything”. Well, the same dictum definitely applies to football and probably to the whole of life. Nobody knows anything – not for sure – and that obviously includes this author. Consequently, an instant apology is due to Arsene Wenger.
An Instant Apology to Arsene Wenger, the Second Emperor of Arsenal
Like seemingly the rest of the football world, I thought that Wenger had lost his mojo permanently. In a preview piece for the FA Cup Final, it was asserted that such had been Arsenal’s decade-long lack of competitiveness in both the Premier League and the Champions League that he had effectively forfeited his previous crown as the Second Emperor of Arsenal (after the immortal Herbert Chapman). It was maintained that he had instead become an Emperor with No Clothes, with nobody at Arsenal to tell him that he was now stark naked. Well, today 40,000 Arsenal fans at Wembley, and millions more around the world, were happy to tell him that, in the FA Cup at least, he remained a fully-clothed potentate and a truly great manager – indeed, now the greatest in the history of the competition, having won it a magnificent seven times. That, along with the Invincibles, will be his legacy, whatever happens next at Arsenal (and whatever happens, it is sure to be a summer of momentous change in one form or another).
I am more than happy to eat humble pie and hope many other football writers will do the same. What was most remarkable about today was that Arsenal showed what the club have always been most famous for, predating Wenger’s arrival at the club, and that was sheer fighting spirit. That had defined the teams of Chapman, Allison, Mee and Graham. Whatever the stylistic deficiencies, Arsenal teams, or at least the best of them, were never second to anyone in will to win. And that was evident again today, for what felt like the first time in an aeon.
To put it in more immediate historical context, this felt like the biggest Arsenal victory since the Invincibles season of 2003-04 – the biggest win in 13 long years. Arsenal may have won the FA Cup three other times since then, but today’s victory was the first truly deserved win over a fellow footballing heavyweight. They got lucky in 2005 against Manchester United, scrambled a victory from two goals down against Hull City in 2014 and beat an Aston Villa side 4-0 in 2015 that would be relegated the following season.
Today was a victory against a truly impressive team, and Chelsea fans were right to remind the Arsenal fans that they are “Campeone”. Nevertheless, Arsenal ultimately outplayed, outfought and finally defeated the Premier League champions, who have been their nemesis for much of the last decade. Remarkably, after conceding a late equaliser against ten men, Arsenal somehow summoned up the strength to fight back immediately, with Olivier Giroud gloriously setting Aaron Ramsey up for the winner (as in 2014).
Rob Holding totally justified his nickname of “Burnley Cannavaro”. Arsenal fans feared the loss of Koscielny, but on today’s evidence Holding is the best centre-back at the club and potentially the future, long-term captain that Arsenal have sought for years. But all the Arsenal players were superb, from Danny Welbeck, who tirelessly harried the Chelsea back-line that has been so pristine all season, to Granit Xhaka, who is finally, belatedly showing why Wenger bought him, to the Big Friendly German, Per Mertesacker, who was as immense as Holding, especially on his comeback from a year out through injury. This victory, in which he was pivotal, will ultimately be his own enduring legacy, even more than the World Cup win when he was jettisoned by Germany en route to the final.
It is one win and the issues with both the Premier League and the Champions League persist; indeed, they have been intensified by this season’s failure to qualify for Europe’s elite competition. But it was a great win and should be celebrated as such. A great victory can only be achieved against a great opponent, and Chelsea are undeniably a great opponent, having won the Premier League twice in three years.
Today, astonishingly, Arsenal bested them, in the process allowing Arsene Wenger to establish another unique niche in footballing history, and reminding me, for one, that that I know nothing.
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