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Ode to the Invincibles, and why Keano is hard to beat as a top striker
I HATE to bang on about it but that season Arsenal went the whole season unbeaten (played 38, won 26, drew 12, lost big fat zero) looks an ever more amazing feat as each year passes. Especially this week.
It’s only the end of September and already every team in the Premiership has been beaten.
If other big teams can’t even get through six weeks of the campaign without capsizing at Wigan or being mugged by Burnley, how are they ever going to match Arsene Wenger’s Invincibles?
As the 2004 season drew to a close, Wenger was adamant that he just wanted to make sure that his team finished in first place – records were all of secondary importance.
But he must wonder whether he’s done something that Sir Fergie, Rafa and Ancelotti will never achieve. Of course, Arsenal have done little to boast of since.
The highlights were beating United without having a shot on goal in the 2005 FA Cup final, Lauren kicking Cristiano Ronaldo up in the air (relive it on YouTube), showboating in the Bernabeu and the San Siro, and signing Andrey Arshavin.
But if that’s the price of winning in such historic style, then maybe a few years without a trophy is a worthy fee.
I ALWAYS think there’s something not quite right about the supporters who pay money to go to a match and then spend the entire game complaining about their team.
They’re found at every ground and the less vociferous tend to endure them.
So, when visitors Burnley put Spurs under some severe early pressure on Saturday, the tetchiness of the home fans who remember last season’s League Cup semi-final seemed reasonable.
Robbie Keane’s early one-on-one miss with Clarets’ keeper Brian Jensen didn’t lift their mood. Even I began to question Harry Redknapp’s wisdom of leaving a mid-week, hat-trick-scoring Peter Crouch on the bench. “Keane’s not the same player that left for Liverpool,” I complained to my mate and began recalling the chances that he’d have “definitely scored” before his transfer to Merseyside.
I questioned the wisdom of bringing him back and even wondered how long I’d be prepared to wait before giving up on him completely! Then, by the time I’d calculated all of his misgivings, “Keano” was on his way to scoring four. So, to the fans that complained until the final whistle, let me share with you what a good friend once shared with me: “In Harry we trust.” |
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