In collaboration with Sriram Chidambaram
Arsenal’s unbeaten title-winning season in 2003-04 has got to go down as one of the most significant achievements ever accomplished in Premier League history. With a staggering 26 wins, 12 draws, and no losses, this Arsenal team led by Arsene Wenger will forever remain in the history books.
Wenger not only revolutionised Arsenal, but the entire division, introducing new training, fitness and dieting regimes that forced managers across the country to follow suit and demand greater professionalism and discipline from their players. The year prior to the Invincible season, Arsène Wenger mentioned that he believed a team could go the entire campaign unbeaten. Most journalists and experts mocked him for that assertion but the following year, he went and proved them wrong.
Arsenal lined up in a 4-4-1-1 led by one of the most lethal and iconic center forwards in Thierry Henry, accompanied by the ‘Non-Flying Dutchman’ Dennis Bergkamp. They were flanked by Robert Pires and Freddie Ljungberg. Arsenal was more than well stocked in attack, scoring a whopping 73 goals; over a third of these scored by Henry. The attack was complemented by skipper Patrick Vieira, a fearsome leader, and defensive powerhouse Gilberto Silva, who possessed phenomenal ability to regain and recycle possession for his team. The defence, consisting of the no-nonsense Sol Campbell and Kolo Toure along with full-backs Ashley Cole and Lauren provided the team with much-needed stability. The side was further reinforced with the German goalkeeper Jens Lehmann, shipping in only 26 goals throughout the entire campaign.
During the formative 2000s, the intensity and competition of the Premier League was at its highest. There were several fierce competitors including Chelsea and Manchester United who were also in their prime. This impressive feat did not come easy for Arsenal and included many iconic matches, where Arsenal had to show mental fortitude and resolve in order to stay invincible.
Here are some of those iconic matches:
Gameweek 6: Manchester United 0-0 Arsenal
Arsenal faced the daunting task of visiting the reigning Premier League Champions at Old Trafford. This game was popularly known by Premier League fans around the world as the ‘Battle of Old Trafford’. United dominated early on but the game was evenly matched. It seemed like the ‘Battle of Old Trafford’ would end in a 0-0 draw, with both sides having a fair amount of chances, until chaos ensued in the 80th minute as Patrick Vieira was sent off with a second yellow card for kicking out at Dutch striker Ruud Van Nistelrooy.
Tempers flared within the Arsenal players as they believed that Vieira didn't deserve a second yellow card. However, following a huge spell of pressure, Manchester United were given a penalty in the 90th minute to snatch the win from Arsenal and to end their invincible run. However, Ruud Van Nistelrooy missed the penalty, striking the crossbar, and this sent the Arsenal players into a passionate frenzy, which in turn led to a huge altercation. In fact, six Arsenal players including Ashley Cole and Patrick Viera were charged with improper conduct and the club was handed a £175,000 fine, the largest in the history of the FA. However, the match ended 0-0, preserving Arsenal’s unbeaten run while Manchester United were left to rue their chances. The Gunners fought admirably with 10 men to harbour the pressure in the last 10 minutes: a solid display of grit and determination.
Gameweek 34: Arsenal 2-2 Tottenham
Arsenal vs Tottenham. A classic North London Derby took place on April 25, 2004. If Arsenal were able to snatch a draw or a win from their fierce rivals at White Hart Lane, they would be crowned as Premier League Champions. And the match could not have been more feisty.
Arsenal started in amazing fashion. Thierry Henry made a solo run all the way to the halfway mark and released Dennis Bergkamp, who slid in a through ball for Patrick Vieira to finish with an easy tap in. The second goal was pure class with amazing tiki taka football involved. Dennis Bergkamp made a great through pass to Viera who provided the assist for another tap in, this time Robert Pires, and all of a sudden it was 2-0. The commentator called it ‘football from another planet’.
Tottenham started with a vengeance in the second half. Arsenal were put under pressure and soon Tottenham reduced the deficit to a goal when Jamie Redknapp scored an absolute screamer into the bottom corner, leaving Lehmann with no chance. Robbie Keane secured a late equaliser with a penalty, but had left it a little too late. The match deservedly ended 2-2 and Arsenal were crowned as the Premier League Champions and had achieved what nobody thought they could ever achieve. They were awarded a Golden Premier League Trophy, because Arsenal remained invincible throughout the entire season.
Gameweek 2 (2004/05) : Arsenal 5-3 Middlesbrough
The scoreline itself shows how intense this game was. It all started well for Arsenal, with Jose Antonio Reyes providing a great long ball to Henry who finished with a cool lob over the keeper. Middlesbrough rallied back and responded with 2 amazing strikes from Joseph Job and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, one of the great Premier League strikers, as well as a long range effort from Franck Queudrue due to a positional error from Arsenal goalkeeper Jens Lehmann. Arsenal’s hopes of an invincible season looked to be shattered at this point.
However in the second half, Arsenal showed Middlesbrough why they deserved to be invincible. Dennis Bergkamp scored Arsenal’s second goal with a finish drilled into the bottom corner, followed by a simple tap in for Pires due to phenomenal strength displayed from Henry. The comeback was completed by Jose Antonio Reyes, who cut back inside and produced a stunner into the top corner. Thierry Henry added the icing on the cake with a simple tap in late on in the game. Highbury was rocking and Arsenal had shown the Premier League their unflinching resolve.
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Arsenal went on a 49 game unbeaten streak, continuing their amazing form into the next season for a period of 11 games before eventually getting beaten by Manchester United 2-0 at Old Trafford. Till this date, nobody has been able to replicate this remarkable feat. However, Liverpool and Manchester City, the current and last season respectively, only lost 1 game and had amazing seasons. This shows how difficult it was to be invincible throughout an entire Premier League season. Billions of pounds have been spent on players, and top class managers have come and gone, yet still the run endures. And until a club manages to get close to matching it, nobody should ever underestimate what an achievement it was.
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