With Arsene Wenger's future finally resolved,
there is at last some clarity for Arsenal followers as they look ahead
to next season.
After agreeing a new contract with the club, his decision to
remain at the Emirates Stadium is likely to split opinion among fans
following last season's fifth-place finish and another failed attempt to
win the Premier League.
Here, we look back at the highs and lows of his tenure since his last Premier League title triumph in 2004.
Highs: Arsenal's defence of their title began well and
they equalled Nottingham Forest's record of 42 league games unbeaten,
before going another seven matches without losing before a 2-0 defeat at
Manchester United. Although they could not retain the Premier League,
Arsenal's 5-4 north London derby win at Tottenham was a classic and they
defeated Everton 7-0 in their final home game, a result which still
stands as their joint-biggest victory under Wenger. Arsenal then saw off
United 5-4 on penalties after a 0-0 draw to win the FA Cup in Cardiff.
Lows: The inevitable break-up of the Invincibles squad
began as Martin Keown (Leicester), Ray Parlour (Middlesbrough), Sylvain
Wiltord (Lyon) and Nwankwo Kanu (West Brom) left for new clubs. After a
good start, Arsenal's form dipped in November and draws with Crystal
Palace and West Brom were followed by a 2-1 loss at Liverpool. It saw
them drop briefly to third as Chelsea took the lead and stayed at the
top of the table for the rest of the season. In February, Arsenal
fielded a team without an Englishman for the first time in their history
against Palace. While they won 5-1, not having a single home-grown
player in their squad drew criticism.
2005/06
Highs: Arsenal's run to their first and so far only
Champions League final was spectacular. A 1-0 win at Real Madrid saw
Wenger's side become the first English team to win at the Bernabeu and a
0-0 second leg draw took them into the last eight, where a terrific
display at home to Juventus saw them win 2-0. A 1-0 aggregate success
against Villarreal set up a date with Barcelona in Paris for the trophy.
In the Premier League, there was another 7-0 win - this time against
Boro - and Tottenham were beaten to fourth and Champions League
qualification on the final day. There was also an emotional send-off for
Highbury, the club's home for 93 years, with a 4-2 win over Wigan in
the final match there.
Lows: After months of speculation, Patrick Vieira was
sold to Juventus before the season began. Arsenal also had an
indifferent start to the Premier League, losing early games to Chelsea
and Middlesbrough then drawing at West Ham. With a League Cup semi-final
defeat to Wigan and elimination to Bolton in the fourth round of the FA
Cup, it was a season to forget domestically. While their European
campaign captured the imagination much more, Arsenal lost in the final
to Barca after leading through Sol Campbell. Their eventual 2-1 defeat
meant they finished a season without a trophy for the first time in five
years.
2006/07
Highs: They were few
and far between in 2006/07. A 6-3 win at Liverpool in the League Cup saw
Julio Baptista score four and it was one of three victories against the
Anfield side that term. Otherwise, two wins over Manchester United and
another pair against Tottenham were the main highlights of another
barren campaign.
Lows: Having grown used to seeing their team rack up
scores of handsome wins, seeing Robin van Persie finish as the club's
leading scorer with just 13 goals took a bit of getting used to for
Arsenal fans. Wenger's side lost the League Cup final to Chelsea, were
beaten in the FA Cup by Blackburn and were knocked out of the Champions
League in the last 16 by PSV, something Gunners supporters would soon
get used to. Arsenal also missed out on third place in the Premier
League to Liverpool on goal difference and won just eight of their last
23 games in all competitions. With club legend Dennis Bergkamp retiring,
Robert Pires leaving for Villarreal and Ashley Cole sold to title
rivals Chelsea, there were a few low points.
2007/08
Highs: Arsenal had
actually ended 2006/07 without losing any of their last seven games and
they took that form into the new campaign, setting a new club record of
28 games unbeaten in all competitions in a run which took them to a 3-1
Champions League defeat at Sevilla in late November. By that point,
Arsenal had matched their record European win of 7-0 a month earlier
against Slavia Prague and gone top of the Premier League. They later
became the first English team to win at AC Milan with a 2-0 victory in
Italy as they knocked the holders out.
Lows: Thierry Henry left before the season began,
signing for Barcelona, and although Arsenal got by without him at first,
it didn't last as they endured another difficult second half of the
season. A 5-1 second-leg thrashing at Tottenham in the League Cup -
their worst north London derby result in 25 years - was humiliating as
Nicklas Bendtner and Emmanuel Adebayor clashed on the pitch. Worse was
to come: Eduardo's broken leg at Birmingham coincided with a run of four
consecutive draws which began a sequence that ended the club's title
challenge. Just one win in eight games rendered four victories in a row
at the end of the campaign futile as Arsenal finished third.
2007/08
Highs: Arsenal had
actually ended 2006/07 without losing any of their last seven games and
they took that form into the new campaign, setting a new club record of
28 games unbeaten in all competitions in a run which took them to a 3-1
Champions League defeat at Sevilla in late November. By that point,
Arsenal had matched their record European win of 7-0 a month earlier
against Slavia Prague and gone top of the Premier League. They later
became the first English team to win at AC Milan with a 2-0 victory in
Italy as they knocked the holders out.
Lows:
Thierry Henry left before the season began, signing for Barcelona, and
although Arsenal got by without him at first, it didn't last as they
endured another difficult second half of the season. A 5-1 second-leg
thrashing at Tottenham in the League Cup - their worst north London
derby result in 25 years - was humiliating as Nicklas Bendtner and
Emmanuel Adebayor clashed on the pitch. Worse was to come: Eduardo's
broken leg at Birmingham coincided with a run of four consecutive draws
which began a sequence that ended the club's title challenge. Just one
win in eight games rendered four victories in a row at the end of the
campaign futile as Arsenal finished third.
2008/09
Highs:
Many of Arsenal's best moments again came in Europe, with a run to the
semi-finals of the Champions League including a sparkling 3-0
dismantling of Villarreal in London. Wenger's team briefly topped the
Premier League in September and went 21 league games unbeaten. Despite
spending much of the campaign in fifth place, they ultimately finished
fourth to secure a place in the Champions League once more.
Lows:
It's not that Arsenal were losing lots of games but rather they weren't
winning enough. With 12 draws, only Newcastle had more in the Premier
League and four 0-0 stalemates in a row with West Ham, Tottenham,
Sunderland and Fulham summed up the campaign. The unbeaten run ended
spectacularly with a 4-1 rout by Chelsea - who also knocked them out of
the FA Cup in the last four - at the Emirates. The European campaign was
ended by a familiar foe too - Manchester United - as Sir Alex Ferguson
oversaw home and away wins over Arsenal to set up a final with
Barcelona.
2009/10
Highs:
Four years since they saw any silverware, Arsenal fans were having their
patience tested yet were relatively accepting of the situation due to a
need to be prudent following the costly move to their new home half a
mile from Highbury. Nevertheless, some were getting restless as another
campaign passed without much to write home about. A run to the last
eight of the Champions League was good and Arsenal came from 2-0 down to
draw 2-2 at home with holders Barcelona. They even led in the return
game at the Nou Camp through Bendtner but four goals in reply from
Lionel Messi killed them off.
Lows: Arsenal
developed an unwelcome habit of losing games in twos. Of the nine
matches in which they were defeated in the Premier League, four of them
saw Wenger's side follow up with another loss immediately after. Having
still been in contention for the title towards the end of March, a run
of just five points from a possible 18 ended their hopes and they
finished 11 behind champions Chelsea in third place. Arsenal also failed
to make the last eight of either cup tournament, losing in the fifth
round of the League Cup at Manchester City and the fourth round of the
FA Cup to Stoke.
2010/11
Highs:
Arsenal enjoyed a famous 2-1 win over Barcelona to give themselves hope
of avenging their Champions League exit to the La Liga side a season
earlier as two goals in the last five minutes from Van Persie and Andrey
Arshavin gave them a slender lead but they lost 3-1 in the return game
and were knocked out. Otherwise, a familiar pattern was emerging and
what looked for a while like a season of promise turned into one of
unfulfilment…
Lows:
Throwing away a 2-0 lead to lose 3-2 at home to Tottenham - their first
home loss in the derby for 17 years - was a setback but Arsenal still
went into February in second, five points off the summit. From there,
their season unravelled. Giving up the 4-0 lead they built inside 26
minutes to draw 4-4 at Newcastle was a warning sign and being taken to
an FA Cup replay by Leyton Orient wasn't exactly impressive either.
Losing the League Cup final to Obafemi Martins' late winner for
Birmingham saw Wenger drop to his knees in despair and from there,
Arsenal capitulated. They won only once in the Premier League in March
and April - taking eight points from a possible 21 - and limped home in
fourth.
2011/12
Highs: In
the club's 125th anniversary season, there was a need to show
improvement and that came to an extent. Van Persie scored 37 goals in
his best campaign at the club as he won a string of awards, including
the PFA Footballer of the Year prize. His talismanic contribution still
wasn't enough, however, as Arsenal could only finish third - 19 points
behind champions Manchester City - and went into the summer with that
now-familiar feeling of emptiness. The fact a quirky club record of four
games in a row in which Arsenal came back from a losing position to win
was set between February and March barely hit the radar.
Lows:
Where do you start? An 8-2 demolition at Manchester United - the club's
worst defeat since 1896 - is probably as good a place as any given it
came early in the season and it was the cue for the rest of English
football to say they would '8-2 be an Arsenal fan right now'. Little
wonder, really, when you consider that result contributed to an awful
start which saw the Londoners win two of their first seven games, a run
which also included a 2-1 defeat at Tottenham and had them sitting a
lowly 17th at one stage. Although Arsenal did rise up the table,
successive defeats to Fulham, Swansea and United in January did much to
end their title push. A 4-0 loss at AC Milan was also too much to
overcome in the second leg of their Champions League tie, although they
had a good go at it as they won the return game 3-0.
2012/13
Highs:
Arsenal made the top four at Tottenham's expense once more despite an
unconvincing start which saw them draw three of their first five Premier
League games, with their recovery from that - 28 points from the final
30 available taken - impressive. In the League Cup, they also showed
character to come from 4-0 down in the first half to score twice in the
last two minutes, draw 4-4 in normal time and then defeat Reading 7-5 in
extra-time. There were also plenty of goals when Arsenal met Newcastle.
Having shared eight of them at St James' Park two seasons earlier in a
4-4 draw, Wenger's team came out on top in a 10-goal epic at the
Emirates, with Theo Walcott getting a hat-trick in a 7-3 success.
Lows:
After some of the lows in previous campaigns, the disappointments this
time were less frequent. Arsenal once again went out of the Champions
League in the last 16 but were unlucky to do so. After losing 3-1 at
home to Bayern Munich, they won the away tie 2-0 and exited on away
goals. There was little excusing their elimination from the League Cup,
however, as they lost on penalties to Bradford City, a team 65 places
below them in the league pyramid, after a 1-1 draw. Lower-league opposition also prevailed in the FA Cup, Championship side Blackburn winning 1-0 at the Emirates.
2013/14
Highs:
By now, Arsenal's supporters were getting restless at a lack of
big-name signings and understanding of the tight finances at the club
was wearing thin. A 3-1 defeat at home to Aston Villa only exacerbated
the situation and the response was emphatic, as Mesut Ozil was signed
for a club-record fee of £42.4m from Real Madrid. Wenger's team
responded well to the Villa loss, winning their next seven games and
spending more time on top of the Premier League than any other side,
even if they failed to win it. Away form was particularly good, with
Arsenal winning 1-0 at Borussia Dortmund in November to record a 14th
and final victory in 15 games unbeaten on the road. Arsenal also ended
their season with a trophy at last, ending a nine-year wait, with a 3-2
FA Cup final win over Hull. They made hard work of it, with Hull 2-0 up
after eight minutes before Aaron Ramsey's extra-time winner.
Lows:
Injuries to key players and a string of heavy defeats away from home to
fellow challengers ended Arsenal's title aspirations early. A 6-3
defeat at Manchester City was closer than the final score suggests but
Liverpool were ruthless as they led 4-0 after 19 minutes and defeated
Wenger's team 5-1 at Anfield. Worst of all was the Frenchman's 1,000th
game in charge of the club, which saw Chelsea win 6-0 at Stamford
Bridge. Against his biggest rival Jose Mourinho, Wenger was embarrassed
as the big occasion saw Chelsea record their most comprehensive win over
Arsenal. For the first time in 17 and a half years in charge, Wenger's
response was to not show up for his post-match news conference. While it
secured more Champions League football, finishing fourth in the Premier
League for the sixth time in nine years wasn't seen as a good thing by
everyone.
2014/15
Highs:
After Ozil's arrival a year earlier, another big name joined Arsenal as
Alexis Sanchez signed from Barcelona. He made a good start to his time
in England, scoring 25 goals in his first season. The last of those came
at Wembley, when an excellent team performance saw Arsenal retain the
FA Cup with a 4-0 final win over Aston Villa as they set a shared
competition record of 12 wins.
Lows:
Of all their last-16 departures from the Champions League, the away
goals defeat to Monaco in 2014/15 was the hardest for Arsenal supporters
to stomach because it arguably gave Wenger's team their best chance of
making a long-awaited return to the quarter-finals. A 3-1 home loss gave
at least Arsenal a glimmer of hope by virtue of Alex
Oxlade-Chamberlain's goal but while they recorded a 2-0 win in France,
their salvage mission was unsuccessful as they fell short once more. In
the Premier League, two wins in their opening eight games left Arsenal
with too much to do there as well and while they went on a good run in
the second half of the campaign - winning eight games in a row - they
still finished 12 points behind champions Chelsea.
2015/16
Highs:
Needing to win 1-0 or 2-1 to reach the last 16, Arsenal travelled to
Olympiakos with seven first-team players out and their hosts boasting a
fine home record in Europe which included wins against Juventus and
Atletico Madrid. Undeterred, Wenger's side were 3-0 winners thanks to
Olivier Giroud's first hat-trick for the club and they claimed a place
in the knockout stages for the 13th year in a row. At home, Arsenal also
secured their highest league position since their last title win in
2004 as they finished second behind surprise champions Leicester, albeit
partly because of a collapse from neighbours Tottenham.
Lows:
The runners-up status was somewhat underwhelming and only came after
pressure on Wenger had intensified with a 2-1 home loss to Swansea in
March, their third successive defeat in all competitions. Once more,
Arsenal were choking at a crucial moment and with just one win in eight
games overall, they crashed out of the Champions League to Barcelona and
gave up their defence of the FA Cup to Watford. While their win at
Olympiakos in December had been a triumph of sorts, it only came after
an embarrassing 3-2 home defeat to the Greek side and a 2-1 loss at
Dinamo Zagreb. Also included in their group results was a 5-1 defeat to
Bayern Munich in Germany. There would be more of that to follow…
2016/17
Highs:
An opening-day defeat to Liverpool aside, the first half of the Premier
League campaign was a success for Arsenal. After 15 matches - the other
14 unbeaten - they were top of the table ahead of an improving Chelsea
team on goal difference, albeit having played once more than the
Stamford Bridge outfit. A 3-0 victory against Antonio Conte's team in
September was a clear highlight at the time, although it ultimately
brought about the change in system at Stamford Bridge which saw the
Blues dominate proceedings thereafter. A third FA Cup win in four years
went some way to making up for league disappointment.
Lows:
If one thing stands out about Arsenal's seasons since they last won the
Premier League, it is that they repeatedly lack durability. Six defeats
in nine games over a period of less than seven weeks represented the
slump the club's fans have now come to expect and with it came increased
calls for Wenger to leave. There's little questioning which losses in
that run were most damaging, with home and away 5-1 defeats to Bayern
putting them out of the Champions League 10-2 on aggregate. Contract
extension negotiations with both Sanchez and Ozil stalled to the extent
they were put on hold until the summer and attendances at the Emirates
noticeably dropped, such was the ill-feeling towards Wenger from some as
he stayed beyond the 20th anniversary of his appointment. Missing out
on Champions League football for the first time in his reign was a
telling blow.
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