Arsenal has an incredible history, both in recent times and dating all the way back to the 19th century. Throughout this time, many incredible players have worn the shirt, and below we will summarise 5 of the best.
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Thierry Henry
Perhaps the greatest ever premier league player, Thierry Henry was certainly the focal point of the Invincibles. Of the 376 Arsenal games played, Thierry scored 228 goals and won 6 major trophies. For most of us, this early 2000s period was the greatest Arsenal team we have ever seen.
Having started off his career as a left winger, Thierry was a specialist in both running at defenders as well as finishing. He also became the top assister at Arsenal with 103 assists.
Tony Adams
Tony Adams is a club legend. The English fan favourite played a 19-year career at Arsenal from 1983 to 2002 – though you can go back further than this if you include his youth career. Adams was central to the famous Back Four of Lee Dixon, Steve Bould, and Nigel Winterburn, meaning he was also central to the 1-0 Arsenal.
Adams was well known for his personality on the pitch and his leadership qualities. “Mr Arsenal” began his Arsenal career at the young age of 17 and was captain by 21. During this time, Adams won 10 major trophies and was inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame. Along with Dennis and Thierry, Adams has a statue of himself outside the Emirates.
Dennis Bergkamp
Dennis is one of the most intelligent players to represent an arsenal shirt. Often synonymous will ‘class’, the non-flying Dutchman brought an elegance and finesse to Arsenal that was rare in the Premier League at the time. He was ahead of his time, and remains to be one of the most technically gifted Arsenal players of all time.
Dennis played a supporting role to Thierry, landing him many assists. Dennis was one of the first foreign talents Arsenal had signed, marking a new era for the Premier League – both in terms of diversity of players and diversity of playing styles.
Liam Brady
Liam Braddy, otherwise known as Chippy, was a dribbling phenomenon. The attacking midfielder played for Arsenal between 1973 and 1980 before globe-trotting around Europe’s elite clubs at a time when foreign players were rare.
Brady was a special talent ahead of his time, and many of his incredible goals play on repeat to this day.
Patrick Vieira
Vieira is an iconic figure for both the Premier League and Arsenal. The central midfielder played a box-to-box number 4 role at Arsenal and was a rock for manager Arsene Wenger. The Frenchman was an aggressive leader, sometimes getting into infamous conflicts with the likes of Roy Keane.
Patrick became captain from 2002 to 2005 and lifted 3 Premier League titles at Arsenal. Like many other French players at the time, Vieira joined Arsenal because of Arsene Wenger, marking a new era for the league and club.
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