Everyone remembers the ‘Invincibles’ side brilliantly assembled by Arsene Wenger in his early days as Arsenal boss and the truly splendid talents he has both bought and moulded in 22 years in charge of the Gunners, during which he redefined not only the club but English football.
Three Premier League titles and seven FA Cups can’t be ignored. Neither, sadly, can the demise of both Wenger and the club in the twilight years of his reign.
And while the triumphs and totemic players like Thierry Henry, Patrick Vieira, Dennis Bergkamp and Robert Pires will always be his lasting legacy, it is one that the Frenchman has tainted by not getting out when on top.
For all the stars he bought or created, Wenger’s has also fielded some absolute duds during his time.
Here, we offer a take on Wenger’s worst-ever XI.
WENGER’S WORST XI (4-3-3):
RICHARD WRIGHT
£6m from Ispwich, 2001-02
Appearances 22, Goals conceded 27
The Ipswich-born stopper signed for the Tractor Boys as a trainee, going on to play for the club 298 times between 1995 and 2001. That attracted Arsenal, where the 23-year-old was signed to provide competition for places and, ultimately, replace veteran David Seaman.
It didn’t work out. He slipped to third choice behind Stuart Taylor and made just 22 appearances in total before moving to Everton, where he spent another underwhelming five years. Won two England caps and was in the Three Lions squad for Euro 2000. Now goalkeeping coach at Manchester City.
PHILIPPE SENDEROS
£2.5m from Servette, 2003-10
Appearances 116, Goals 4
Has been capped 57 times by Switzerland yet there were more holes in his defensive game and the Arsenal defence when he featured than a block of Swiss cheese.
Senderos, who joined Arsenal from Servette in 2003, was a calamity in waiting and never instilled confidence in an already porous Gunners defence. Failed to hold down a regular first-team place and, after loan spells at somehow AC Milan and then Everton, he moved to Fulham.
Played for Grasshoppers in his homeland and Rangers in 2016 but has now hopped across the pond and playing for the Houston Dynamo in Major League Soccer.
PASCAL CYGAN
£2.1m from Lille, 2002-06
Appearances 98, Goals 3
Signed as a long-term replacement for Tony Adams and Martin Keown, it quickly became apparent the Frenchman wasn’t fit to lace the boots of either, even though his career started out with him featuring in some big matches.
He was soon considered a fringe player and was dropped to fourth choice behind Sol Campbell, Kolo Toure and Philippe Senderos (yes, Senderos). After being scorched for pace by a 17-year-old Wayne Rooney at Highbury, Cygan never really recovered.
Along with Senderos, was a player whose name being read out on the teamsheet would draw nervous gasps from Gunners’ fans. Left after four years to join Villarreal.
SEBASTIEN SQUILLACI
£6.5m from Sevilla, 2010-13
Appearances 39, Goals 2
Capped 21 times by France, Squillaci enjoyed a distinguished career in France, winning the Coupe de la Ligue with Monaco and two Ligue 1 titles with Lyon, as well as the Copa del Rey in Spain with Sevilla. But it was abundantly clear Squillaci’s best days were behind him when he joined the Gunners in 2010.
Wenger said: “We needed a centre-back of quality and experience and at the right price – he was all of that,”. Well, he was a centre-back…and that was about it. Early errors proved he was well out of his depth and he quickly fell down the pecking order following the capture of Per Mertesacker.
JOHAN DJOUROU
Free from Etoile Carouge, 2004-14
Appearances 140, Goals 1
Another of Wenger’s defensive mistakes. Promised much but proved too light-weight to handle the challenge of the physical battle in the Premier League.
Promoted from Arsenal’s youth academy in 2004 after joining the club as a teenager, the Switzerland international somehow amassed 144 appearances but never looked like the answer to defensive problems which plagued Wenger’s side following their move to the Emirates in 2006.
Wenger finally cut his losses and released Djourou in 2014 – after a decade in London. Is now captain of relegation-threatened Bundesliga club Hamburg.
GRANIT XHAKA
£35m from Borussia Monchengladbach, 2016-present
Appearances 84, Goals 7
May be argued as a controversial addition to the list but Xhaka’s inconsistent form and splitting of the Arsenal fanbase mirrors Wenger’s final years at the club.
Signed from the Bundesliga after extensive scouting, the Swiss international was expected to be the new, tough-tackling enforcer which Arsenal post-Invincibles have been crying out for.
Instead, within six months, Wenger admitted Xhaka could not tackle, his disciplinary record speaking volumes, and his unwillingness to track back saw him singled out by supporters during bad spells.
“Intelligence means you don’t make the same mistake twice,” Wenger said following a red card against Swansea during his first season – Xhaka, 25, has been dismissed nine times in his career.
KIM KALLSTROM
On loan from Spartak Moscow, 2014
Appearances 4, Goals 0
Signed on January’s deadline day in 2014, Arsenal decided to bring in the Sweden international despite the fact he had a broken back.
He made just four appearances in his loan spell although he will be remembered for scoring the second penalty in an FA Cup semi-final shoot-out with Wigan Athletic, though he didn’t feature in the final against Aston Villa where the Gunners won 4-0.
Unsurprisingly, Arsenal didn’t move to make his switch permanent and he retired from football last year.
EMMANUEL FRIMPONG
Arsenal academy, senior career 2011-14
Appearances 16, Goals 0
Frimpong joined Arsenal’s youth academy as a nine year-old and came through the ranks with the likes of Jack Wilshere. Despite making his Premier League debut aged 19, ‘Frimmy’ never quite realised his potential and was released in 2014 after a string of loan spells in the Championship.
When he left Arsenal, Frimpong famously tweeted “how am I gonna draw girls now,” before promptly deleting it. As he could no longer play for the Gunners, Frimpong settled for the next best thing when he went on to play for FC Arsenal Tula in the Russian Premier League.
Still just 26, he is now with Cypriot first division side Ermis Aradippou.
MAROUANE CHAMAKH
Free from Bordeaux, 2010-13
Appearances 67, Goals 14
The Morocco international joined on a free and enjoyed a promising start to his Gunners career, with a solid return of 11 goals from 44 appearances in his debut campaign.
But he spent much of the second half of 2010/11 on the bench when Robin van Persie returned from injury and then admitted to feeling burnt out.
“I played for six months, I scored goals, I was decisive,” he said. “In January [2011], Robin returned from injury and overnight, I landed on the bench.”
Scored once in 19 appearances the following season and soon left for stints at West Ham and Crystal Palace. Will be more renowned for the ridiculous amount of gel he used in his hair rather than his goalscoring.
PARK CHU-YOUNG
£4m from Monaco, 2011-14
Appearances 7, Goals 1
South Korea international Park was undergoing a medical at Lille when he learned of Arsenal’s interest in the summer of 2011.
He left the hotel he had been staying in to head to London and complete a dream move to the Premier League. But he would never become a first-team regular at the Emirates and made only one appearance in the league – a 2-1 defeat to Manchester United.
Was highly rated in Ligue 1 and scored on his debut in a League Cup match against Bolton, but a lack of game time and questions over his quality saw him leave the club in 2014 after loan spells with Celta Vigo and Watford.
CHRISTOPHER WREH
£300k from Monaco, 1997-2000
Appearances 46, Goals 5
Everyone remembers the story of Ali Dia, the man who was signed by Southampton manager Graeme Souness after receiving a call purported to be from PSG and AC Milan legend George Weah telling him Dia was his cousin.
The call was in fact made by one of Dia’s friends and he was memorably substituted off having earlier come on as a replacement for Matt Le Tissier in a game against Leeds in November 1996.
Weah’s actual cousin Wreh wasn’t a whole lot better at football, winding up at Bishop’s Stortford while still in his 20s, even though he won a league and cup double with Arsenal in 1997/98. Played 46 times but struggled to hold down a regular spot.
SUBS:
Petr Cech, Guy Demel, Andre Santos, Igor Stepanovs, Junichi Inamoto, Julio Baptista, Gervinho, Francis Jeffers
