Which Arsenal EPL Legend Would Fans Like to Reboot to Boost Current Team?

What Arsenal would give to be able to drop one of the Invincibles into their ailing team.

The Gunners are on an unprecedented run of three defeats in their past four games. The club is enveloped by uncertainty and seems to lack authoritative figures both on and off the field. Arsenal need help—and a rebooted club legend would be just the thing to revitalise the struggling side.

For this piece, we gave Arsenal fans the choice of three heroes from the spine of their greatest Premier League side: Sol Campbell, Patrick Vieira or Thierry Henry. Which Gunners great did they choose as the antidote to their problems?

It was interesting to see which Arsenal players the fans who voted "someone else" would have liked to see included. Predictably, there were calls for Tony Adams.

The quintessential Mr. Arsenal, Adams probably represents the lost link between supporters and players. Gunners fans have grown tired of Tottenham Hotspur supporters heralding Harry Kane as "one of their own" and yearn for someone who feels a true affiliation to their club. On top of that, Adams wasn't a bad defender, either. 

Surprisingly, there were not too many shouts for Dennis Bergkamp. Perhaps Arsenal fans feel that with Mesut Ozil in their ranks, they are suitably covered for visionary No. 10s. 

A name that cropped up more than once that might raise a few eyebrows is that of Gilberto Silva. Although he was never the most eye-catching player in an Arsenal shirt, the Brazilian possessed a calmness and defensive diligence that has been notably absent from the team of late.

With that in mind, it's remarkable that there were not more votes for Campbell. Arsenal have been vulnerable at the back, and Campbell's athleticism and positional sense would surely help shore up a porous back line. 

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Campbell would also be a natural partner for Laurent Koscielny. Arguably, the Frenchman's finest performances have come alongside Per Mertesacker—an aerial powerhouse with astute organisational instincts. Campbell shares those qualities and is even more dominant in duels. 

Perhaps the lack of votes for Campbell is no slight on the defender but merely an illustration of the desire to see Vieira back in the Arsenal side. There were a huge amount of votes for the former skipper, and that's likely for one reason: Central midfield has been a big problem for Arsenal this season. With Santi Cazorla out injured, manager Arsene Wenger has struggled to find a cohesive partnership in the middle of the park.

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Vieira could play with anyone. He could serve as destroyer or creator. At times, he resembled a one-man midfield, charging across the park and turning defence into attack. His stride enabled him to launch instant counter-attacks. He would stretch a long leg to recover the ball, then burst away from the opposition thanks to a combination of delicate skill and devastating power.

Former Southampton man Matthew Oakley played against him, and he waxed lyrical about Vieira's qualities to Jon Brodkin of the Guardian back in 2004:

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Say Sol Campbell gets pulled out of position and a forward's running through, he'll read that and make a tackle. He's got speed, his timing is good on his tackles and he's got such a long reach with his legs. You think you're away and he'll get back and toe it away.

I also think it comes from Patrick the way Arsenal can break up an attack when you're throwing players forward and within four or five passes the ball's in your net.

He's very aware of where players around him are and can turn away with both feet. He has the knack of finding Henry, who's clever at pulling wide.

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At his best, Vieira was thrilling to watch. However, he was also a fighter. Too frequently, Arsenal appear to be bullied by the opposition. They seem to shirk some of the more physical aspects of the game. Their reputation these days is for aestheticism rather than athleticism. Vieira would change that—he was never one to back down from a challenge. 

Crucially, he was also a leader. His leadership style was different to Adams'—he was less vocal than his English predecessor. However, he led by example. Vieira was an inspirational presence on the field, driving those around him to raise their standards to meet his impeccable level.

The same was true of Henry, who was not a natural captain but still inspired others with his breathtaking brilliance. It was inevitable he would receive plenty of votes—after all, he is the greatest goalscorer in Arsenal's history. 

The reason he's narrowly missed out to Vieira is presumably that attack is the least of Arsenal's problems. Wenger has a huge array of strikers to choose from, including the electric Alexis Sanchez—probably the closest thing Arsenal have had to an Henry type since the Frenchman’s heyday.

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That could well change this coming summer. Alexis has just over a year remaining on his deal, and with no renewal expected, the club could be forced to sell him. In a dream world, a youthful Henry would represent the ideal Alexis replacement. However, in Arsenal's predicament, Vieira remains the man required to save them.  

While this survey saw mentions for a number of Arsenal players from the past, there was one other name that occurred more than once. Asked which Premier League legend they would like to see back at the club, more than one supporter opted to suggest Wenger himself.

The Frenchman is still at Arsenal, but this is a different Wenger to the one who dominated English football around the turn of the millennium. While the idea that Campbell, Vieira or Henry could represent the club again is pure fantasy, Arsenal fans can at least hold out hope that Wenger will recapture his former powers and restore the Gunners to glory.

James McNicholas is Bleacher Report's lead Arsenal correspondent and is following the club from a London base throughout 2016/17.