Your best Arsenal XI ever

Asterix

Ok, the season is nearly over so time for some silly stuff. Someone mentioned how we hadn't had a ball carrying midfielder like Vieira for so long - since, well, himself - so it got me thinking.

Using a now-standard 433 here is my initial dream line up - I've stuck to players that have played in my lifetime.

             Pires  Henry  Saka (he's that good)
            Cesc  Vieira  Bergkamp

Winterburn Adams Campbell Lauren
Seaman

Bench: Lehmann Cole Toure Gilberto Brady Wright Ljungberg Ozil Alan Smith

Left back is probably the weakest there. I've included Ashley on the bench, despite him being a whiny prick. Alan Smith may surprise some but he was phenomenal in the 90-91 season and won us our last European trophy, plus we need some heading ability off the bench. Thought about Niall Quinn but decided against 😆

Bring Back Kerrea Gilbert

What about John Hartson for the heading ability? 😉

Nice thread. Time for something out there:

Seaman

Cole
Campbell
Touré
Lauren (he'd be inverting)

Ljungberg
Vieira
Pires

Henry
Bergkamp (perfect in this link/false 9 role)
Overmars

Pepe LeFrits

Henry
Pires Fabregas Odegaard Sanchez
Vieira Gilberto
Cole Saliba White
Ramsdale

invisibleman18

Using just players from my time as a fan (since 1997).

Seaman
Dixon Campbell Adams Cole
Ljungberg Vieira Gilberto Pires
Bergkamp Henry

Find it difficult to justify picking many from outside of the unbeaten team to be honest. So many of those players were the best in the world in their positions at the time and the team should really have won more. Outside of them Adams obviously and peak Seaman gets in over Lehmann. Was torn on right back and the best of Dixon was probably before my time but his testimonial was my first time at Highbury so will always have a soft spot. Pains me to pick Cashley but can't really avoid it.

RocktheCasbah

invisibleman18 Seaman
Dixon Campbell Adams Cole
Ljungberg Vieira Gilberto Pires
Bergkamp Henry

This, but with

---------------------Seaman
Dixon -----Campbell -----Adams ------Cole
Saka---- Vieira---------- Cesc ---------Pires
------------Bergkamp-------- Henry

Team of favourites:

-----------------------Seaman
Sagna ------Campbell------ Adams---------Tierney
Rocastle----- Vieira --------Cazorla ---------Saka
----------------Cesc
---------------------------Wright

lorddulaarsenal

————————-Seaman
Sagna——-Campbell———Adams—-Cole
——————Vieira——-Cesc
—Saka—————————————Pires
—————-Bergkamp—-Henry

Clrnc

RocktheCasbah let me try this too.

BEST XI
Lehmann
Lauren Adams Campbell Cole
Pires Cesc Vieira Alexis
Henry Bergkamp

Favorites for beautiful football (CL run inspired)
Lehmann
Eboue Saliba Koscielny Monreal
Hleb Cazorla Fabregas
Reyes Henry Arshavin

lorddulaarsenal

For an entertainment eleven

————————Lehmann
Eboue——-Campbell—-Keown—Zinchenko
——————-Vieira——Cazorla
—-Pepe————————————Arshavin
——————Kanu——Henry

RocktheCasbah

lorddulaarsenal King Kanuuuuuuuuuuuuu is a great shout, will we ever see his like again?

RocktheCasbah

Clrnc Hleb Cazorla Fabregas
Reyes Henry Arshavin

Ooof! Ballerz.

Pepe LeFrits

Clrnc Alexis

Forgot about him. Updated mine

Qwiss

Lehmann
Lauren Campbell Adams Cole
Saka Vieira Fabregas Pires
Henry Bergkamp

Bench: Seaman, Gabriel, Sagna, Odegaard, Gilberto, Petit, Overmars, Wrighty, Sanchez

RocktheCasbah

Did some of you not see big Dave in goal for the Arsenal, or just not rate him/ too late?

By a distance, the best goalkeeper Arsenal have ever had. Although I do think Aaron Ramsdale is the one since (not the only one, but let's not mention the Argentinian) who shares something of his presence.

Pepe LeFrits

RocktheCasbah Did some of you not see big Dave in goal for the Arsenal, or just not rate him/ too late?

Didn't pick him for the same reason I didn't pick most of the Wenger-era defensive greats: not comfortable enough with the ball at his feet.

Don Pacifico

RocktheCasbah anyone who remembers my original avatar on AM will know I agree. Do feel he's rather underrated by Arsenal fans. One of the best goalkeepers this country has ever produced (behind only Banks and Shilton, two greats) and probably the 2nd (?) best 'keeper of his generation behind Schmeichel.

Clrnc

RocktheCasbah still annoys me how we let that particular Argentinian go easily. Oh well. Could have been a cult hero here.

For Seaman, I started watching Arsenal in 2000. By then he was on the wane but still great (SHU save comes to mind). But his reflexes was slower by that time and he was slowly to often go down. Probably didn't catch his prime at all.

Lehmann was awesome even at old age though. Some of his saves was unbelievable especially in the UCL and his penalties antics were great. I love his personality tbh

JazzG

Personally I am not fully convinced about Ramsdale, first 6 or so months this guy was a beast. Far too many flaky performances since mixed with some great ones. Needs to find a lot more consistency.

But yes Seaman easily the best keeper I've seen for Arsenal, followed by Jens.

RocktheCasbah

Pepe LeFrits 😃

I think you're doing him a disservice there, I'm sure he assisted the greatest goal I ever saw at Highbury - Ian Wright's lob against Everton... Rocket of a right foot.

Mirth

---------------------Seaman
Dixon -----Campbell -----Adams ------Cole
Saka---- Vieira---------- Cesc ---------Pires
------------Bergkamp-------- Henry

Almost two decades on and there's not much change to this.

Team of favourites:

-----------------------Lehmann
Sagna ------Campbell------ Koscielny--------Zinchenko
Saka----- Fabregas --------Cazorla ---------Pires
----------------Odegaard
---------------Henry

Pepe LeFrits

RocktheCasbah I think you're doing him a disservice there, I'm sure he assisted the greatest goal I ever saw at Highbury - Ian Wright's lob against Everton... Rocket of a right foot.

Well these things are all comparisons relative to other Arsenal players, so someone is always being done a disservice whatever pick you make... the only exceptions being any of the Arsenal strikers who aren't Henry!

I think all the teams being picked that are heavy in Wenger era defenders would struggle in today's league (and by struggle, I mean probably finish a close 2nd to City). PL teams are much less naive these days; they're more tactically astute, more like the continental teams that Wenger's sides traditionally struggled against. They'd take one look at teams with Henry, Vieira and Pires in them and universally adopt very well organised deep blocks to deny the space in behind and deny them any transitional moments, which is where those teams were truly lethal. If these selections were in the league today, the majority of games would see an awful lot of horseshoe football (particularly at the Emirates). Rather than the rip-roaring, full-length of the pitch interchanges between Cole/Pires/Henry that we remember so fondly, janky sequences of passes between Dixon, Adams, Lehmann, Campbell etc in front of a wall of 11 players would be the more common sight. Opposition sides would be happy to sit deep, nullify the greatest asset those players had (in transition), and set traps for our defensive players to fall into, which they'd do more often than even our current, occasionally leaky rearguard.

RocktheCasbah

Don Pacifico I guess he may be a victim of the same thing as Shilton (without being a massive weapon) in that he went on just a bit too long and maybe tarnished his legacy a little. Although, much as I mentioned Wrighty's lob against Everton up above, I was also at Old Trafford for that incredible save from Peschisolido - and will never forget the Sheffield United fans behind that goal starting to celebrate and then realising Seaman had saved us. There's a great a photo of it outside one (maybe a few) of the boxes in Club level.

But he was a brilliant keeper. I remember thinking how cruel it was that Zaragoza happened, because had it not been for his heroics - never mind against Sampdoria, he was brilliant away at Auxerre, a one man rearguard - we would never have got to that final in the first place.

QuincyAbeyie

Martinez
Sagna - Gabriel - Koscielny - Monreal
Partey
Fabregas - Cazorla
Saka - van Persie - Sanchez

Although I started supporting Arsenal in 05/06 I didn't watch many games before 06/07 so it felt cheap to include Henry.

Clrnc

QuincyAbeyie hmmm Martinez is a good shout. Certainly for quality he's right up there but sample size too small for me

@Pepe LeFrits you really rate Ramsdale and White this highly or you just want to play out from the back 😂

QuincyAbeyie

Clrnc Mainly due to a lack of options. Lehmann was bad at the end, then came Almunia, Szczesny, Leno and now Ramsdale. That period where Martinez played for Leno was the only time I felt we had a world class GK. Ramsdale could get there.

Pepe LeFrits

Clrnc A bit of both. We're not exactly blessed with a wealth of choices of ball-playing keepers and right-sided defenders who were quick, strong, totally comfortable on the ball, tactically astute, equally comfortable at CB, RB or even stepping into midfield, and also a big fucking unit.