Friday, June 14, 2019

Arsenal All-Time team for English Players

Steve Bould, Tony Adams, Nigel Winterburn and Lee Dixon 
Please also see my All-Time World Cup Team Index.

Arsenal
Arsenal All-Time Team Under Arsene Wenger
Arsenal All-Time Team for Foreign Players
Arsenal All-Time Team from the British Isles(Excluding England)
England
United Kingdom 1970
United Kingdom 1982
England 1974



This is my selection of a 25 member all-time team for the club.  The number 25 was chosen because it is the official squad size for the Champions' League.


Arsenal was the first club from the South of England to join The Football League, in 1893. They entered the First Division in 1904, and have since accumulated the second most points. Relegated only once, in 1913, they continue the longest streak in the top division. In the 1930s, Arsenal won five League Championships and two FA Cups, and another FA Cup and two Championships after the war. In 1970–71, they won their first League and FA Cup Double. Between 1989 and 2005, they won five League titles and five FA Cups, including two more Doubles. They completed the 20th century with the highest average league position.
Tony Adams and Sol Campbel 2002 FA Cup
 Team
GK: David Seaman 
The peak of Seaman's career was during his period as Arsenal and England goalkeeper in the 1990s and early 2000s. At Arsenal, he won three league championships (1991, 1998, 2002), four FA Cups (1993, 1998, 2002, 2003), the League Cup in 1993 and the European Cup Winners Cup in 1994.  He also played in the 1998 and 2002 World Cups, and Euro 96 and Euro 2000, and is England's second-most capped goalkeeper with 75 caps.
David Season
GK: Jimmy Ashcroft 
Ashcroft began his career with several local sides and signed as a professional for the Gunners in 1900. In 1901–02, he kept six clean sheets in a row (a club record). He also won three caps for England, playing in all three of England's British Home Championship matches of 1906 (England won twice and lost once, sharing the 1905–06 championship with Scotland). Ashcroft thus was Arsenal's first England international.

GK: Jimmy Rimmer 
Rimmer is considered to be the greatest Aston Villa goalkeeper. He won two European Cup medals: 1968 with Manchester United and 1982 with Aston Villa.  He was Alex Stepney's understudy in the 1968 Final.  In 1982, he only played 9 minutes before getting an injury. He played 3 seasons with Arsenal, where he was their player of the year in 1975. He was capped once in 1976.

RB: Lee Dixon 
Lee Dixon played as a right-back for Arsenal, Burnley, Bury, Chester City and Stoke City.  He was a part of Arsenal's famous back four along with Tony Adams, Steve Bould and Nigel Winterburn under manager George Graham. Dixon is also one of the only players in English football history to have won a league title in three different decades with the same club.  However, he was limited to 22 caps for England between 1990 and 1999.

RB/DM: Peter Storey 
Peter Storey spent 15 years at Arsenal , winning the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup in 1970, the First Division title in 1970–71, and the FA Cup in 1971. He also was a losing finalist in the 1968 and 1969 League Cup and the 1972 FA Cup Final. He also won 19 caps for England between April 1971 and June 1973. He played in the Home Championships. He was transferred to Fulham in March 1977 before announcing his retirement eight months later.

CB: Martin Keown 
Martin Keown's career lasted from 1984 to 2005. He made over 400 appearances for Arsenal and won 10 honours. He also played for Brighton, Aston Villa, Everton, Leicester City and Reading. He won 43 caps for England between 1992 and 2002, gradually forming a respected defensive partnership with Arsenal teammate Tony Adams at both club and international level. Keown represented England at four major international football finals including the 1998 and 2002 World Cups.
Martin Keown 
CB: Steve Bould
Steve Bould began his career with Stoke City.  At Arsenal,  he formed a formidable back line with Tony Adams, Nigel Winterburn and Lee Dixon undert manager George Graham.  He ended up with nine major honours to his name. He left the Gunners in 1999 and ended his playing career with Sunderland. Bould won only two caps for England, and didn't make his first full international appearance until the age of 31.


CB: Tony Adams 
Tony Adams is a club legend and one club man with Arsenal who became the club captain at the age of 21.  A stature of him is erected at the Emirates Stadium. He formed the legendary backline with Lee Dixon, Nigel Winterburn and Steve Bould with club.  He was a fixture for England from 1987 to 2000.  For England, he had 66 caps and served as its captain at one point. He played in the World Cup Finals in 1998 and went to three European Championship.

CB: Sol Campbell 
Sol Campbell was one of the greatest English defenders. He was a member of Arsenal's "Invincibles" that went undefeated in 2003-2004 season.  At the club level, he spent 9 seasons for Tottenham Hotspurs and served as its captain before moving to its rival Arsenal on a free transfer that sparked a controversy.  He later played for Portsmouth. For England, he earned 73 caps in 11 years.  He went to three World Cup Finals: 1998, 2002 and 2006.

LB: Eddie Hapgood 
Eddie Hapgood captained both Arsenal and England during the 1930s. He was one of first star players in England.  His image was used for advertisement which was a pioneer at his time. He started his Arsenal career in 1927 and ended in 1944.  Internationally, he had 30 caps between 1933 and 1939 with 21 times as its captain.  He captained England during the famous "the Battle of Highbury" against World Cup winner Italy in 1934. The war cut short his career.
Eddie Hapgood 
LB: Ashley Cole 
Ashley Cole was considered one of the finest leftbacks of his generation.  He was voted the England Player of the Year in 2010. He played in 3 World Cup Finals.  He played 107 caps between 2001 and 2014.  He is also England's most-capped full-back in history.  He played with Arsenal, but moved to its rival Chelsea in 2006.  In 2014, he moved to AS Roma.  He won the Champions' League in 2012 with Chelsea.  He is playing in the MLS since 2016.

CM: Ray Parlour 
Ray Parlour spent his career playing for Arsenal, Middlesbrough and Hull City. He was a legend with Arsenal between 1992 and 2004. During his Arsenal career, he was nicknamed "The Romford Pelé"; although the nickname was given with an ironic sense of humour, on account of his solid performance but unglamorous image. He has been described as an "unsung hero".  He was capped 10 times for England between 1999 and 2000.

CM: Brian Talbot 
Talbot began his career with Ipswich Town in 1971.  He made 227 appearances for Ipswich, and won the 1977–78 FA Cup. In 2013, Talbot was inducted into the Ipswich Town F.C. Hall of Fame. In 1979, Talbot moved to Arsenal, winning that year's FA Cup. He was the first player for more than 100 years to win the FA Cup with two different teams in consecutive seasons. From 1977 to 1980, he was capped 6 times.

CM/RM: Alan Ball 
Alan Ball was the youngest member of England's World Cup winning team in 1966. He also played in the 1970 World Cup.  He started his career with Blackpool in 1962.  He also played with Everton, Arsenal, Southampton and various clubs in North America and Hong Kong.  He played 72 times for England and was a key player at the World Cup finals in 1966 and 1970.  He missed the ill-fated World Qualifying match vs Poland in 1973 due a suspension.
Alan Ball
LW/RW: George Armstrong 
George Armstrong made his Arsenal debut in 1962 at the age of 17 and went on to make 621 appearances – which was then an all-time club record – before he left Highbury in 1977.  He was a part of the Double team in 1971.  He spent a season each with Leicester City and Stockport County.  He then, became a player-coach at Mjoiner in Norway.  He mainly played on the left, but also on the right wing.  He was an uncapped player.


RW: Danny Clapton
Clapton first started out as an amateur with Leytonstone before joining Arsenal in 1953, helping Arsenal to third place in 1958-59, their highest league position in six years.  He was sold to Luton Town in September 1962. He earned a single cap for England against Wales in 1958. Arsenal played a friendly match later that day against Juventus at Highbury, and Clapton played in that match as well. 

LW: Cliff Bastin 
Cliff Bastin was one of the best player on the Arsenal team that dominated football in the 1930's.  He played for them between 1929 and 1947. Arsenal won 5 league titles in the decade and 2 FA Cups. He was the Arsenal all-time leading scorer from 1939 to 1997. He also played for Exeter City, where he started his career in 1928. He played 21 times scoring 12 goals for England between 1931 and 1938. In 2009, he was inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame.
Cliff Bastin
AM/RM: Paul Merson
From 1985 to 1997, Merson played for Arsenal. He was a key player in the club's success under manager George Graham, winning the league twice, the FA Cup, the Football League Cup, and the European Cup Winners' Cup.  He also played successfully with Middlesbrough, Aston Villa, Portsmouth and Walsall. He was capped 21 times for England and represented the nation at 1992 European Championship and the 1998 World Cup.

AM/CM: David Rocastle 
David Roscastle's best club career was spent with Arsenal where he won two league titles.  He was sold to Leeds United for a club record in 1992, but he never settled with the club due to injuries and other reasons. He was capped 14 times for England. England never lost a single match in any of the games he played. Despite for being a good footballer, surpisingly, he was left out of all major tournaments during his international career. He died at the age of 33 from a form of cancer.
David Rocastle
FW/AM: David Jack
David Jack scored 267 goals from 521 appearances in the Football League playing for Plymouth Argyle, Bolton Wanderers and Arsenal. He was the first footballer to be transferred for a fee in excess of £10,000 when he joined Arsenal in 1928.  The fees was almost doubled the previous record. He also was the first to score at Wembley – in the 1923 FA Cup Final while with Bolten Wanderes.  He was capped nine times for England.

ST/FW/RW: John Radford 
John Radford spent most of his career at Arsenal. He became Arsenal's youngest ever hat-trick scorer, against Wolves on 2 January 1965, at the age of 17 years and 315 days, a record that remains to this day. In 1969-70 he again scored nineteen goals, and helped Arsenal win the 1970 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, their first trophy in seventeen years. He was capped twice by England. He is Arsenal's fourth highest goal scorer of all time.

FW/ST: Charlie George 
Charlie George began his career with Arsenal in 1968.  He was the hero of the 1971 FA Cup Final.  He scored 111th minute winner against Liverpool.  That season, Arsenal also won the league, making it a "League/FA Cup Double".  The goal gave Arsenal their first ever Double in history. He later played with Derby County between 1975 and 1978.  He also played for Southampton before going overseas.  His career after England took him to clubs in Australia, the United States, Hong Kong and Scotland.  
Charlie George
CF: Ted Drake
As a player, Ted Drake first played for Southampton between 1931 and 1934 but made his name playing for Arsenal between 1934 and 1945. He won two league titles and an FA Cups.  He earned five caps for England scoring 6 times. He is Arsenal's joint fifth highest goalscorer of all time. He also holds the record for the most goals scored in a top flight game in English football, with seven against Aston Villa in 1935. 


ST: Alan Smith 
Alan Smith spent five seasons at Leicester, scoring 84 goals in 217 appearances before transferring to Arsenal in 1987.  He was Arsenal's top scorer for four consecutive seasons, and the top scorer in the First Division in the 1988–89 season with 23 goals.  In 1989, he scored the first goal in the historical league title clinching game against Liverpool.  In 1994, he scored the only and the winning goal at the Cup Winners' Cup Final.

ST: Ian Wright 
Ian Wright was a legendary striker with Arsenal.  Before joining Arsenal, he was a hero with Crystal Palace.  At the time of writing, he was their highest goal scorer since the War.  In 1991, he joined Arsenal.  He spent 7 seasons with them, winning all three domestic trophies and the Cup Winners' Cup in 1994.  Despite being a top scorer in the domestic league (he scored over 20 goals every season from 1991 to 1998), he only played 33 times for England and was never selected for any of the major tournaments.
Ian Wright

Honorable Mention
Frank Moss, John Lukic, George Swindin, Aaron Ramsdale, Percy Sands, Peter Simpson, Herbie Roberts, Bob McNab, Sammy Nelson, Kenny Sansom, Nigel Winterburn, Ben White, Viv Anderson, Tom Parker, Steve Williams, Joe Hulme, Graham Rix, Bukayo Saka, Joe Baker, Michael Thomas,  George Eastham, Malcolm Macdonald, Theo Walcott, Cliff Holton, Jack Lambert,  David Platt, Andy Ducat, George Eastham, Tony Woodcock, Paul Davis, Alan Sunderland, Andy Ducat.

Squad Explanation, 
-- I reviewed this team on August, 2024.
-- Tony Adams, Ian Wright, David Seaman, Lee Dixon, Sol Campbell, Eddie Hapgood, Ashely Cole, David Rocastle, Ray Palour, Cliff Bastin, Alan Smith and Charlie George made my all-time Arsenal team. I built my team based upon that team.
-- Arsenal went undefeated in the Premiership in the 2003-2004 season.  The team was known as "Invincibles". I only selected three players from that team: Sol Campbell, Ray Parlour and Martin Keown.
-- I also created this blog team Arsenal All-Time Team Under Arsene Wenger.  Only 7 English players (David Seaman, Tony Adams, Lee Dixon, Sol Campbell, Ashley Cole, Ray Parlour and Nigel Winterburn) made the team.  Except Parlour, all of them are defensive players.
-- Arsenal compiled an official ranking of their 50 Greatest Ever Players. Leading the top 10 were 1) Thierry Henry, 2) Denis Bergkamp, 3) Tony Adams, 4) Ian Wright, 5) Patrick Vieira, 6) Robert Pires, 7) David Seaman, 8) Liam Brady, 9) Charlie George, and 10) Pat Jennings. Meanwhile, in 2022, FourFourTwo also curated a list of Arsenal's 50 greatest players, featuring 1) Thierry Henry, 2) Denis Bergkamp, 3) Tony Adams, 4) Patrick Vieira, 5) Ian Wright, 6) Robert Pires, 7) Liam Brady, 8) David Seaman, 9) Charlie George, and 10) Cliff Bastin. I used both lists for reference.   However, in 2016, the magazine also ranked the 11 greatest players for Arsenal.  The list was different: 1) David Seaman, 2) Tony Adams, 3) Liam Brady, 4) Patrick Vieria, 5) Alan Smith, 6) Thierry Henry, 7) Denis Bergkamp, 8) Alex James, 9) Frank McLintock, 10) Ashley Cole and 11) Cliff Bastin.  This list was not in a formation since only two defenders were selected.
Goalkeepers
-- David Seaman is probably Arsenal's greatest English goalkeeper.  On the official list of Arsenal's 50 greatest players, he holds the 7th spot.
-- Jimmy Ashford was the first Arsenal player ever of all position capped by England.  I gave him a spot for his historical role.
-- The third keeper was between John Rimmer, Frank Moss, John Lukic and George Swindin.  Rimmer was the most famous keeper out of the group so I took him in 2019.  By 2024, Aaron Ramsdale emerged.  He was a member of England';s squard in the 2020 and 2024 European Championship as well as the World Cup Finals in 2022. He was named on the PFA Team of the Year for the 2022–23 season.   However, he lost his starting job for the 2023-2024 season so the verdict remained opened.  So I kept Rimmer on the team.
Defenders
-- Tony Adams and Sol Campbell were a lock on the team.  Adams was a one club man who spent two decades with the club.  He ranked 3rd as Arsenal's 50 Greatest Ever players.  By contrast, Campbell only spent 5 seasons here, but he was one of the most important players for the "Invincibles".  Matt Keown narrowly missed the cut for my Arsenal All-Time team.  Steve Bould was also close behind.  They were both another undisputed selection over here.  Percy Sands spent 17 years in Woolwich Arsenal.  He alongside Peter Simpson and Herbie Roberts made honorable mentions. Ben White also played as a central defender.
-- Lee Dixon is the 21st as the greatest ever Arsenal player by their official website. Peter Storey was ranked at 50th.  He played mainly as a defensive midfielder, but I still took him over Viv Anderson whose career was more associated with  Nottingham Forest. I also put Tom Parker on honorable mentions.  I am not sure if Laurie Scott played on the right, but I did find some information.  He was only listed as a fullback. Ben White needed to build more on his career at the time of writing.
--  I considered Eddie Hapgood and Ashley Cole to be England's greatest leftbacksWhile the two of them were expected to hold undisputed positions at left-back, Cole's controversial move to rival Chelsea altered the course.  So, I did study Bob McNab, Sammy Nelson, Kenny Sansom and Nigel Winterburn, but I decided to keep Cole who was probably Arsenal's most iconic fullback.
Ashley Cole
-- During George Graham's tenure at Arsenal, the defensive lineup of Steve Bould, Tony Adams, Nigel Winterburn, and Lee Dixon stood out as one of the most formidable units in English football history. In the 1990/91 season, Arsenal conceded a mere 18 goals in the league and suffered only one defeat, which occurred away at Chelsea.  However, Bould, Winterburn and Dixon was notoriously ignored by the English national team during this period while they were the best defenders in England at their time.  Matt Keown also played with this group of players.  Graham sent him away in 1986, but he returned in 1993 and became an important defender for Graham and later, Wenger.  I also could not find space for Winterburn because Eddie Hapgood and Ashley Cole.
Midfielders/Wingers
-- As a home-grown talent, Raymond Parlour had the distinction of playing under both George Graham and Arsène Wenger at Arsenal.  Arsenal ranked him as their 19th greatest ever player while FourFourtwo put him at 14th.  Brian Talbot epitomizes a player exuding true grit, a combative spirit, and sheer power, making him a formidable force on the pitch.  Alan Ball arrived in Arsenal as a record transfer at a time. He kept Arsenal at the top when the Double winning side of 1971 started to fade away.   He held on his own, despite not winning a trophy here.  Furthermore, we needed one more midfielder on this team.
-- Arsenal had a number of non-English attack midfielders.  However, for English players, David Rocastle and Paul Merson stood out. Rocastle made my All-Time Team while Merson only made honorable mention, but he easily made this All-English team.  Rocastle was a beloved figure at Highbury, his untimely passing leaving a lingering sense of nostalgia among the fans. As the hero of the 1989 league-winning campaign, his legacy remained etched in the hearts of supporters long after he had left.  Merson was ranked 26th by Arsenal as their greatest ever players while FourfourTwo placed him at 22nd. I am not sure about David Jack's position, but he seemed to be a forward/attack midfielder.  
-- Cliff Bastian is a lock on one of the winger spots.  He held Arsenal's scoring record for many decades until Ian Wright broke it in 1997.  George Armstrong had appeared in over 500 matches for Arsenal. He had participated in more than 500 matches for Arsenal and held the appearance record at one point. He predominantly featured on the left side but was equally adept at operating on the right. I want to include him on my Arsenal all-time team, but I have Robert Pires and Fredrick Ljungberg ahead of him.  So I put him on this All-English team.  Then, I took Danny Clapton who was ranked 34th greatest ever Arsenal player. Graham Rix is not on the official Arsenal's Greatest 50 Players while the other players selected in the midfield are on that list.  He only made honorable mention.  John Radford also played on the wing in the beginning of his career.
George Armstrong
-- At the time of writing, Bukayo Saka is only 22 years old.  He would one day make this team, but he still needs a long way before I seriously considered him.
Forwards
-- Ian Wright was probably Arsenal's greatest ever English attacker.
-- Charlie George scored an important goal that gave Arsenal their first ever Double.  He is forever in an important part of of the club's history.  He is often listed as Arsenal's most important player.
-- Alan Smith scored two of the most crucial goals in Arsenal's history. The first was in Arsenal's 2-0 triumph at Anfield on May 26, 1989, securing that season's league championship. The second was the decisive goal in Arsenal's victory over Parma in the 1994 European Cup Winners' Cup final. Meanwhile, John Radford helped Arsenal to win the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup in the1969-1070 season, securing their first silverware in 17 years. The following season, Radford played a pivotal role in leading them to the prestigious Double of league and FA Cup, scoring 21 goals and cementing his legacy as one of Arsenal's finest forwards.  At the time of writing, he remained the 4th best goal scorer in the club's history. 
Alan Smith
-- When I first started this blog, I thought Tony Woodcock and Graham Rix would be on the team.  I have Ian Wright, John Radford, Alan Smith and Charlie George from my Arsenal All-Time Team. Then, I added Ted Drake who is still Arsenal's joint fifth highest goal scorer of all time.  I also took him over Woodcock because Drake played in the 1930's.  I wanted to balance the team with players from different eras. In the end, I have no space for Tony Woodcock and Graham Rix. Michael Thomas scored the winning goal in 1989 that helped the club to win the league title. He is listed on the Honorable Mention.

Formation







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