When Arsenal announced that three statues were to be unveiled on Friday outside The Emirates the debate about their identities was bound to consume Arsenal fans, each with their own special memories, each with their own favourite players. The trio of Herbert Chapman, Tony Adams and Thierry Henry were revealed but not all agreed. Most of the talk on the Internet predicted that Thierry Henry and Wenger would be accompanied by one other, the identity of which varied from person to person depending on their generation and therefore favourite players. Writers such as The Mirror’s John Cross claimed that whilst the three figures warranted their place on the plinths so did so many other individuals such as George Graham, and Ian Wright. To a certain extent this is true.
Ian Wright was one of the best and most charismatic Arsenal players that I have witnessed in my two decades of watching Arsenal. In the latter George Graham years he was almost the soul outlet for a largely defensive side and the personality the exuded from both himself and his football made ‘boring’ Arsenal a pleasure to watch. To break Cliff Bastin’s scoring record as he did was a remarkable feat considering he played in such a defensive side under Graham and he was unfortunate that his record was so short lived due to the mercurial Henry. But that is the point really; however good Wright was, and he was an exceptional talent, Henry was better and he not only broke Wright’s record but he beat it by more than forty goals.
I think that ahead of Wright in the queue would come Bergkamp too. Bergkamp’s move to Arsenal was a seminal moment not only for Arsenal but also for all English clubs. Prior to the Dutchman their had been few players from the continent who had come over to England with their best years ahead of them as Dennis did. Bergkamp encapsulated Wenger’s new look Arsenal perfectly and brought a touch of class to the Premier League that was rarely seen before and we have rarely seen since.
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As for George Graham there can be no doubt that he was a truly wonderful manager for Arsenal and a lot of Wenger’s early success was partly down to the defensive solidity that Graham had instilled in his team. However the cloud under which he left tainted the fans’ memory of him and like Ian Wright he was not the most successful of his kind, Wenger is. Although Wenger might not have a statue at present we can know with close to certainty that we he eventually steps down a fourth statue will be raised in his honour. Many people were surprised about his omission but you don’t make people saints before they’ve passed away and in the same way you don’t honour a manager’s achievements when there are still more to come. He is our longest serving and most successful manager and the transformation he has instigated in both English football and at Arsenal football club have been nothing short of breathtaking. He will have his statue, but not yet.
To have omitted Herbert Chapman would have been to disrespect the history and roots of the football club itself. Chapman won Arsenal their first ever trophies in the double winning season of 1930/31 and successfully persuaded the authorities to change Gillespie Road tube station to Arsenal tube station. In all senses of the expression Chapman put Arsenal on the map. He laid the foundations for success at this club and if it wasn’t for his sudden death in 1934 he could and would have achieved a lot more.
If we could have a hundred statues to remember a hundred players I’m sure we could find players to be their subject but the fact is then we wouldn’t be celebrating these few individuals who have really made the biggest difference. Obviously that is a hard accolade to quantify but in that way you have to consider which individuals have statistically done the most. Adams is the most successful captain we’ve ever had and Henry is our all time top goal scorer. Chapman was the first ever truly successful manager of our club and you can be sure that our most successful manager ever will get his statue when he retires. Ultimately the statues could have included Liam Brady, Dennis Bergkamp, Vieira, Cliff Bastin, Alan Smith, David Rocastle and many others but the point of the statues is to celebrate the best of the best and not the best of the rest. That is what has been done.
For more Arsenal news and stories follow me on Twitter @H_Mackay
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