Arsenal FC: 20 Games We'd Rather Forget

Arsenal v Sheffield United. Emirates Stadium. Carling Cup. September 23, 2008.

6-0.

I remember the day as if it were yesterday. As an old buddy, his father-in-law and I watched the rampant Arsenal youngsters (featuring Jack Wilshere, Aaron Ramsey, Kieran Gibbs, Alex Song and Francis Coquelin) rip a fairly accomplished Sheffield United team to shreds, I can clearly recall turning toward him in our lower tier seats and saying, "one day, we will realize how lucky we are to have supported this team."

And as I took in every possible Arsenal game I could during my two-year stint in London, that same line often played over in my head.

It is truly a privilege to support a team like Arsenal. A team that always plays to win, to play attacking football and to score goals. With youthful innocence, zest and exuberance. In a truly world-class stadium. A club that is run professionally, responsibly and profitably. Under a manager who, for me, will go down as the greatest of all time, even if he never wins another trophy.

There were many other memorable afternoons and nights at the Emirates, numerous 4-0s, 5-0s, 5-1s, 6-1s ...you get my drift, I'm sure. Games that gave us footballing nirvana. Games that made me scream "Ooh to be a Gooner" and "Oh Arsenal we love you" with genuine pride and joy.

But as with everything else in life, balance had to be restored. For every set of uplifting victories, there has to be a devastating loss or draw. And because, over the past 15 years, Arsenal have been a winning team fighting for trophies, the significance of each adverse result is magnified, especially in cup competitions. 

As I look back over the Arsene Wenger years, here is list of 20 games that I have watched either in person or on television, that still make me cringe every time I think about them. Games that I wish I could erase from my memory forever. Games that were season-changers and, in some cases, career terminators. 

They say that time is the best healer. Well, all I can say is that in my case, having recalled these 20 games, there's still a lot of healing left to be done...

20. Arsenal 1-2 Manchester United, FA Cup, April 14, 1999

Arsenal faced Manchester United at Villa Park in a semifinal replay of the FA Cup in April 1999. United were seeking a treble, and Arsenal promised to be a significant obstacle in their path. 

United opened the scoring when David Beckham smashed in from 25 yards after 17 minutes. The Red Devils dominated a majority of the first half but after the interval, it was the Gunners who were in the ascendancy, and equalized through Dennis Bergkamp's strike via a deflection off defender Jaap Stam.

Shortly after, Roy Keane was sent off for a foul on Marc Overmars, and in second-half injury time, Arsenal were awarded a penalty. But it was not to be. Dennis Bergkamp's shot was well saved by Peter Schmeichel, and the game went into extra time.

Five minutes into the second period of extra time, United substitute Ryan Giggs set off on a slaloming run that took him past four Arsenal defenders before he fired an unstoppable shot into the roof of David Seaman's net. His subsequent shirtless, hairy-chested celebration is now, unfortunately, the stuff of legend. Amazing images.

United went on to win the treble, and Arsenal ended the season empty-handed. 

19. Arsenal 0-1 Fiorentina, Champions League, October 27, 1999

There isn't much I remember about the game itself, but I do know that Arsenal needed to not lose in order to get out of the group.

That season, Arsenal played their Champions League games at Wembley (bad idea!!), a fact that served to buoy the visitors more than it did the "home" team. And so it was with Gabriel Batistuta, ever the man for the big stage. In the 74th minute, he settled this game with a goal of the highest quality. Picking up the ball on the right hand side of the box, he coasted past Nigel Winterburn, before driving a fearsome shot over David Seaman into the roof of his net from no more than a 20 degree angle.

It was a spectacular strike from a wonderful player, and resulted in a premature and unexpected end to Arsenal's Champions League challenge that season. It was our first season in Europe that I can vividly remember, and the "premature exit" theme became something of an annually recurring nightmare for me.

18. Arsenal 2-3 Leeds United, Premier League, May 4, 2003

The 36th game of the 2002-03 campaign pitted title-chasing Arsenal against relegation-threatened big spenders Leeds United at Highbury.  Both sides desperately needed to win.

Arsenal were stunned by Harry Kewell's fantastic fifth-minute opener. However, the inspired Ray Parlour led the Gunners' revival, and his shot led to a Thierry Henry equalizer. Ian Harte then put Leeds ahead via a free kick that beat David Seaman after two deflections, but Dennis Bergkamp poked home to equalize for the home team.

Arsenal desperately searched for a winner, while Leeds hung on to dear life for a point. Fate dealt Arsenal a cruel hand, though, as Mark Viduka was in the right place at the right time to curl home a fantastic winner for Leeds in the 88th minute.

The end of Arsenal's title dreams for another season.

17. Arsenal 1-2 Chelsea, Champions League, April 6, 2004

This was the one that really got away.

During the "Invincibles" season of 2003-04, there was a genuine belief in the world of football that Arsenal were one of the top two or three teams in Europe, and were serious contenders for the Champions League. And with a quarter final draw against their then-whipping boys Chelsea, a semifinal spot was almost guaranteed.

The first leg at Stamford Bridge ended in a 1-1 draw, giving Arsenal the crucial away goal. And when the teams came to Highbury, Jose Antonio Reyes struck just before halftime to give Arsenal the upper hand.

However, a crucial mistake by Jens Lehmann handed Frank Lampard the equalizing goal for Chelsea, and Arsenal were well and truly stunned in the 87th minute by a fizzing long-range strike by the unlikeliest of scorers, Wayne Bridge, one of only six goals he has scored in his professional football career.

The Arsenal team that day comprised of outstanding players like Patrick Vieira, Dennis Bergkamp, Thierry Henry, Robert Pires, Sol Campbell, Freddie Ljungberg and Ashley Cole, and who knows what direction the club might have taken had they gone past Chelsea and won the Champions League that year.

16. Arsenal 1-2 Barcelona, Champions League Final, May 17, 2006

In spite of an early red card for Arsenal's goalkeeper Jens Lehmann, the Gunners actually took the lead at the Stade de France, with a thumping Sol Campbell header from a Thierry Henry free kick in the 37th minute.

Henry should have put Arsenal two goals ahead in the second half when presented with a great chance to score, but he missed, and that signaled Arsenal's downfall.

As the Gunners faded physically because of their numerical disadvantage, Barcelona were resurgent. Swedish legend Henrik Larsson pulled the strings to hand Samuel Eto'o the chance to equalize in the 76th minute. And just four minutes later, Larsson crossed for substitute Juliano Belletti to score the winning goal.

Arsenal looked well beaten by then, and were unable to recover.

Arsenal had come into the final after an amazing run of clean sheets, built on a defensive five of Lehmann, Emmanuel Eboue, Kolo Toure, Phillippe Senderos and Mathieu Flamini, and the loss of Lehmann so early in the tie killed off their chances of being competitive and defensively stable over 90 minutes.

An indicator to Arsenal's squad depth that evening—Dennis Bergkamp and Robin van Persie were unused substitutes. 

Here are the match highlights, if you'd like to take a look.

15. Birmingham City 2-2 Arsenal, Premier League, February 23, 2008

Early red card, William Gallas's tantrum, late penalty equalizer.

This game had enough drama even without the horrific injury that probably ruined a club's season and a player's career.

Going into this game, Arsenal led the Premier League by five points. But just three minutes into the tie, a disgusting tackle from Birmingham's Martin Taylor crushed Arsenal striker Eduardo's leg, ending his season and leaving a trail of devastated teammates.

A shell-shocked Arsenal went into the break trailing 0-1 to a James McFadden free kick, but came out with renewed spirits for the second half.

Theo Walcott grabbed a quick brace, Arsenal stood firm and were on the cusp of a magnificent victory. But in the final moments of injury time, referee Mike Dean wrongly penalized Gael Clichy for a trip in the box when he clearly won the ball, and McFadden scored from the resulting penalty. 

Mike Dean is still in his job, Martin Taylor was banned for three games, Eduardo missed a year and has never returned to his best form, and Arsenal have never since looked as likely to win the league.

Justice ...

14. Liverpool 4-2 Arsenal, Champions League, April 8, 2008

With six minutes to go in this second leg Champions League quarterfinal tie, the scores were level 3-3, with Arsenal ahead on away goals. Emmanual Adebayor had just slid in Arsenal's second on the night, being set up after a breathtaking 60-yard run by Theo Walcott.

But then Ryan Babel, making the most telling contribution of his Liverpool career, dived over an invisible tackle from Kolo Toure and won a penalty, which Steven Gerrard duly converted. Babel then scored a fourth on the break with Arsenal fully committed to attack.

It was a crushing, late blow for Arsenal. And an unfair one to boot. Coming in the same season as the Eduardo injury, it was a double-blow from which the team could not recover.

13. Arsenal 1-2 Hull City, Premier League, September 27, 2008

Not many readers will remember this game, I'm sure.

For me it's unforgettable. For two reasons. It was the first Arsenal defeat that I witnessed in person at the Emirates Stadium (and only the second in 60 games until then). And secondly, it was a game that the Gunners dominated from start to finish, and had nothing to show for it—even the Arsenal goal came courtesy of a Hull player.

I can vividly remember an expressive Gooner sitting in the row behind me saying again and again that he couldn't believe that Arsenal were losing to a "Sunday League" side like Hull. And the longer the game went, the louder and more expressive he got.

I also remember the game for a quite spectacular strike by Hull's Brazilian player, Geovanni. He picked up the ball in the inside left channel and thumped a quite audacious screamer that no goal keeper in the world would have got close to. Six inches higher or wider and it would have gone out.

And we had poor Almunia in goal.  

12. Arsenal 4-4 Tottenham Hotspur, Premier League, October 29, 2008

When I started compiling this list from memory, this was the first game that came to my mind. Because I was there.

It was a freezing October night. And the mercury dipped ever lower when David Bentley scored a freak goal out of nowhere in the 13th minute, volleying past Manuel Almunia from all of 40 yards.  But then things began to warm up quite nicely as Mikael Silvestre (what???), William Gallas and Emmanuel Adebayor all scored to give Arsenal a comfortable looking 3-1 lead.

Then Darren Bent and Robin van Persie scored within a minute of each other to keep the gap at two goals. Things cruised along quite nicely till the 89th minute, when someone told the Arsenal players that the game was over. There is no proof of this, but that is the only logical explanation for what happened next.

First Jermain Jenas literally waltzed through Arsenal's half and scored without anyone even remotely trying to make anything that resembled a tackle. And then in the fourth and last minute of injury time, Luka Modric did the same, except that his shot came back off the post, leaving Aaron Lennon with the simplest of tap-ins, with no Arsenal defender in sight.

To say that the game left me sick to my stomach would be an understatement. Not beating Spurs always hurts. Drawing 4-4 after being two goals up with a minute to go is gut-wrenching. But capitulating without a fight, at home, against your greatest rivals is nothing short of devastating. 

The journey home from the Emirates that night was the longest I ever made. And every once in a while, the sound of the Spurs fans singing "4-2, and you ****ed it up" still resonates in my head.

11. Arsenal 1-3 Manchester United, Champions League, May 5, 2009

After Arsenal overpowered Villareal 3-0 at home in the second leg of the quarterfinals of the 2008-09 Champions League, there was again real hope in north London that this could be the year. Domestic opposition loomed in the form of Manchester United.

In spite of having lost the first leg 0-1 at Old Trafford, there was still genuine optimism that we could do the business at the Emirates.

However, within 11 minutes of the start, that bubble had burst as Arsenal's nemesis Ji Sung Park and then Cristiano Ronaldo scored to give United a 3-0 aggregate lead, with Arsenal needing to score four times to progress to the final.

That, of course, never materialized, and the Gunners needed to thank their keeper Manuel Almunia for keeping the scoreline respectable, with a string of fine saves.

Ronaldo then put the icing on the cake with a breakaway goal of breathtaking speed and quality in the 61st minute, the ball taking all of 13 seconds to travel from United's box to the back of Almunia's net via a total of just seven touches.

Robin van Persie scored a consolation penalty for Arsenal in the 75th minute, but even in the words of the official match report on arsenal.com, "Wenger’s side had been well-beaten on the night and in the tie overall."

10. Arsenal 1-4 Chelsea, Premier League, May 10 2009

Having been knocked out of the Champions League by Manchester United a few days earlier, Arsenal's woeful home form continued, culminating in a 1-4 defeat (Arsenal's biggest loss at the Emirates) to Chelsea.

I was at the game, which is one of the reasons why it figures on this list. Losing was bad enough, but what made it worse was to see our obnoxious alumni Nicolas Anelka and Ashley Cole strut about victoriously, and play a key role in some of Chelsea's goals.

Definitely one of my most forgettable days at the Emirates, and an insipid performance by the Gunners as they wound down yet another underwhelming season.

9. Manchester City 4-2 Arsenal, Premier League, September 12, 2009

It was bad enough losing a premiership game 2-4, very early on in the season.

It was even worse losing at nouveau riche Manchester City, who had just indulged in the first of many ugly spending sprees.

But what really took the mickey was the sight of a former Gunner, Emmanuel Adebayor, scoring against his old club and running the length of the pitch to rub it in the traveling Arsenal fans' faces. And did I mention that he also kicked Robin van Persie in the head, and got nothing from Mark Clattenburg for his troubles?

To be perfectly honest, Arsenal were turned over at Eastlands that afternoon. City were on their game, played at a high tempo and deserved three points. Except for a brief period in the second half, around the time van Persie equalized, the home team were dominant.

A terrible and forgettable day at the races for the Gunners.

8. Barcelona 4-1 Arsenal, Champions League, April 6, 2010

Every cloud has a silver lining.

And the silver lining after this annihilation was that it surely signaled the end of Mikael Silvestre's highly underwhelming Arsenal career. Good riddance, in my opinion.

Arsenal came into this tie on the back of a creditable come-from-behind 2-2 draw at the Emirates, with Theo Walcott getting rave reviews from all and sundry for a sprightly second half performance. And when we took the lead at the Camp Nou with a Nicklas Bendtner goal after good work by Walcott and Abou Diaby, Gooner hopes were lifted.

Unfortunately, what came next was one of Lionel Messi's best ever masterclasses. He scored four special goals, three in the first half and one more as time was winding down, to put the tie way beyond Arsenal's reach. In fairness, the better team over both legs did go through to the semifinals of the Champions League.

And although no Arsenal defeat ever needs to be replayed, take a look at the match highlights and feast your eyes on four wonderful goals from the greatest player of our time.

7. Wigan Athletic 3-2 Arsenal, Premier League, April 18, 2010

Arsenal traveled to the DW Stadium with their Premiership challenge all but over. Their form wasn't too flash either, as they were on a run of two consecutive defeats. However, this game should have been put away with ease, especially after Walcott and Silvestre gave Arsenal a two-goal lead by the 48th minute.

What happened next put me off football for the rest of the season. Between minutes 80 and 90, Wigan struck thrice (yes, three times) to claim a famous victory, and put paid to whatever hopes Arsenal had of catching eventual champions Chelsea.

In terms of abject collapses, this was in the same class (for want of a better word) as the Spurs game at the Emirates the previous season. Think about it: three goals in 10 minutes against Wigan Athletic.

Get thee away from me, Satan ...

6. Arsenal 2-3 Tottenham Hotspur, November 20, 2010

No defeat against the old enemy is pleasant, but this one was one of the worst.

On the verge of top spot in the league, Arsenal entertained their noisy neighbors, whom they had not lost to at home for 17 years. And the Gunners had cruised into a 2-0 lead at the break, through goals from Samir Nasri and Marouane Chamakh (yes, he once scored goals).

But Spurs fought back in the second half through a Gareth Bale goal. And on 60 minutes, Cesc Fabregas was adjudged to have handled a free-kick and Rafael van der Vaart put away the resulting penalty.

Things went completely pear-shaped for Arsenal in the 86th minute when Younes Kaboul glanced home a header off a van der Vaart free kick.

More than just losing three points, the air of invincibility that surrounded Arsenal in north London derbies had suddenly disappeared. Spurs would become formidable opponents henceforth.

5. Newcastle United 4-4 Arsenal, Premier League, February 5, 2011

It started off so well.

45 seconds on the clock, and Theo Walcott ran onto a flick by Andrey Arshavin to score past Steve Harper in Newcastle's goal. Two minutes later, Johan Djourou rose highest to power in a header—his first Arsenal goal—off an Arshavin free kick. And by the 26th minute, Robin van Persie had scored twice to give the Gunners an astonishing 4-0 lead.

Having held onto that lead until half time, things went into a downward spiral for Arsenal right after the re-start. First, Djourou, who was in the middle of his best run of games and form since he joined Arsenal, got injured and was replaced by the plodding Squillaci.  

Then, Newcastle's enfant terrible, Joey Barton, did what he does best, enticing Abou Diaby down the slippery slope of self destruction. Diaby was sent off for retaliating to some Barton instigation. Typically, the Newcastle man didn't even get a booking. 

A man up, there was renewed wind in Newcastle's sails. I won't go into too many details of what happened next, except to say that the Geordies scored four times, two of those goals off dodgy penalties and the last one an absolute scorcher from the left foot of Cheik Tiote in the 87th minute. To be fair, Arsenal hung on for dear life in those final minutes.

To many experts, this game started Arsenal's slide in the 2010-11 season, a slide that saw us lose the Carling Cup final in farcical circumstances a few weeks later, and then go out to Barcelona in the Champions League.

Yet another devastating 4-4.

4. Arsenal 1-2 Birmingham City, Carling Cup Final, February 27, 2011

No further commentary is needed on this game, as I'm sure it is still fresh in every Gooner's mind. But as Obafemi Martins made the most of the catastrophic (and unfortunate) mix-up between Laurent Koscielny and Wojciech Szczesny, I remember saying to myself, "That's it for this season."

One of those times I wish I wasn't right.

With Arsenal in the sixth year of an over-publicized trophy drought, here was the ideal chance to put all those stories to rest and build a solid base for a late-season trophy-charge. And with the game tied at 1-1 after Robin van Persie's fantastic right-footed volley had cancelled out Nikola Zigic's opener, the cup was Arsenal's to win.

Without playing spectacularly well, Arsenal had dominated proceedings, and on the balance of play, should have won.

But as we know too well, possession doesn't necessarily translate into points or trophies, and so it proved to be on that miserable Sunday afternoon, as Martins announced his return to English football, back-flips and all, in the most dramatic fashion.

It is too soon to declare that the 89th minute of this game might be one of the defining moments of Arsenal's history.

But equally, it is too soon to say that it may not.

3. Manchester United 2-0 Arsenal, FA Cup, March 12, 2011

After a few years, this game may pale into insignificance, but right now, it's fresh in my memory.

I was watching this game on TV with a couple of Manchester United fans (bad decision), and when we saw United's starting line up, there was a collective exclamation of surprise. Sir Alex Ferguson had surely lost the plot. Seven defenders in his starting line-up?

But as the game panned out, the penny dropped, as far as I was concerned. It was that day that I figured out the true greatness of Sir Alex. Only he could have put such an imbalanced side on the park for an FA Cup quarterfinal against Arsenal, and instilled in those players the belief that they would (not could) win.

As far as the game was concerned, Arsenal dominated proceedings, had a plethora of chances, but were up against one of the greatest goal keepers of all time in Edwin van der Saar. Arsenal's keeper, one Mr. Almunia, is unfortunately not one of the greatest of all time, and had a big hand to play in both United goals.

And as a bonus for Arsenal, we ended the game with ten men after Johan Djourou ended his season with a dislocated shoulder.

All in all, an eminently forgettable game.

2. Arsenal 1-1 Liverpool, Premier League, April 17, 2011

Arsenal were falling behind Manchester United in the title chase when their north western rivals Liverpool came calling. The game wasn't the greatest spectacle of football ever seen, with Arsenal holding the upper hand, but it ended in an unforgettable climax.

Eight minutes were added to the clock due to a terrible injury suffered by Jamie Carragher, and that was when the drama unfolded.

In the very last minute of the eight, Arsenal were awarded a penalty, that was comfortably dispatched home by Robin van Persie. For some reason, the referee Andre Marriner added a further three minutes, and in the 101st and last minute of the game, Emmanuel Eboue clumsily ran into the back of Lucas Leiva in a completely harmless position near the touchline.

Marriner had no option but to point to the spot, and Dirk Kuyt slotted the penalty home. 1-1 it ended, as did Arsenal's hopes of challenging United in the league.

For Eboue, it was one transgression too many. He had, over the years, morphed from a good right back into something of a clown prince, and while that was all well and good, the fans, the club and the manager were never going to tolerate his tomfoolery on the pitch.

He was duly sold at the end of the season.

1. Manchester United 8-2 Arsenal, Premier League, August 28, 2011

I really don't like re-opening fresh wounds, so I'll keep this short and bitter.

If you really want to (and I wouldn't recommend it), you can read the match report here and my thoughts on the game here.

In one sentence, the most abject Arsenal performance over 90 minutes that I have ever had the misfortune of watching.

The end.

(I need a shrink!!)