Your Top 5 Arsenal Players Ever

[Macho]

You can make a case for Cazorla the DLP being a hype job but overall he was a wonderful player, so versatile as well. Put up big numbers on the wing and at AM as well as being so easy on the eye.

RVP... nah, it's like calling Henry, Vieira or Bergkamp hype jobs. It's not hype, they are all World Class players in their prime. VP won United the title in the year he left us, would have won us a couple of titles if he'd stayed fit for a whole season as well.

You can be world class and still overrated imo. VP and Santi on Arsenal-Mania specifically I feel are a shade overrated.

I struggle to put VP in the same bracket as Henry or Pires. Both the absolute best on the entire planet in their respective positions at one point. Can't say the same for VP as there were Suarez and other killers around in his pomp.

 

[Barry]

You can be world class and still overrated imo. VP and Santi on Arsenal-Mania specifically I feel are a shade overrated.

I struggle to put VP in the same bracket as Henry or Pires. Both the absolute best on the entire planet in their respective positions at one point. Can't say the same for VP as there were Suarez and other killers around in his pomp.

Yeah it's such a subjective debate as well. Someone posted earlier that they wouldn't have a player in the Top 5 if they haven't won major trophies with us. Completely legit view but it reduces players like Fabregas and VP who were unfortunate to be playing for the club at a time we stopped competing financially at the top of the league. Wenger said something on this in his autobiography along the lines of the how he saw the achievements of the 2005 - 2014 teams as almost comparable to the Invincibles because of the resources they had (I obviously don't agree with that - club missed a massive opportunity to push on with hindsight).

Pires seems to be weirdly underrated by non Arsenal fans, whilst VP gets that recognition - probably because he had a few years at United.

 

[UpTheGunnerz]

Oh no, another thread for @Riou to jerk off to his nostalgia @UpTheGunnerz

I used to rate him as both unfinished and undusted, that is not the case anymore I’m afraid

 

[pigge]

Favorites, probably in order:
Fabregas
Rvp
Sanchez
Ramsey
Diaby/Sagna

Started watching in 2007/2008 so never watched the so called legends. Feels wierd to call them my favorites tbh.

 

[Gunner D]

Probably just comes down to most being too young for the Highbury years as they were pre 2006, they just have more memories from The Emirates.

What age did you start watching the Arsenal?

 

[2Smokeyy]

Haha, let's see your list then. Its boring if everyone has the same 5 names so a few leftfield choices are all good in my book (as long as you don't pick Wiltord or AM Hype-job Hleb who would be getting murdered today if he was scoring 3 goals a season as our winger).

Smokeyy’s top 5 is only for exclusive Patreon or OnlyFans subscribers.

PM me for a link to my subscribers page.

 

[Riou]

What age did you start watching the Arsenal?

Like most Arsenal fans, my first game was indeed Anfield '89...so I would have been around negative two and a half years old.

Have been hooked ever since!

 

[Riou]

@Gunner boy dd

I have been watching since the early 2000s, consider myself very lucky to have got to watch us win the league (not sure what the odds are on it happening again!) with peak Wenger.

So as good as some of the Emirates era players have been, it's hard to not just pick my top 5 from the Invincibles

Henry is number 1 and Pires is number 2, haven't been able to figure out the rest though...too difficult.

 

[Mitch]

Best

1. Henry
2. Bergkamp
3 & 4. Can make a debate for either Vieira or Adams.
5. Pires

Then Honourable mentions to the likes of Cesc, Seaman, Campbell, Özil, Alexis, Wright and as much as I hate to admit it Cashley and RVP.

Personal favourite players: Bellerin, Ramsey, Giroud, Diaby and Song.

Seriously it's Bergkamp

As far as how old I'm well let just say the first season I can recall a season and peformances properly is 95/96 season although i have magazines,, sticker books and programs dating back to 93.

 

[Trilly]

Supported us since like 2002 but only started following us properly in like 2015. So here’s an interesting list

1. Henry
2. Sanchez
3. Özil
4. Auba
5. Cazorla

I actually can’t remember RVP and Cesc being good, I just knew they were from little bits and pieces I’d see and general football talk but can’t say I paid that much attention in those days. I have faint memories of RVP’s god season and I can remember Cesc scoring from kick off or something against Sp**s.

Henry for some reason (probably because he’s the best PL player ever) I can remember very well especially the post invincible years where he carried us, I think I almost cried when he went to Barca.

When we signed Özil I could see the quality and intelligence of a genuine world class playmaker but Sanchez was the first time in a long time where you could make a case for us having the best player in the league. Genuine match winner, think he was as talented as anybody in the world at his peak but decision making

I rank Auba highly because he showed genuine class as a goalscorer, despite all the problems we had and some of the flaws in his game you saw someone who was genuinely one of the best in the world at what he does.

Cazorla was genuine quality, looking back at it I feel like he may not have been any better than your Thiagos, Bernardo Silva’s etc but Having a player like that for us, was a big deal another one you could always rank in and around the top 10-15 players in the league.

 

[ArsenesCoatMaker]

You can be world class and still overrated imo. VP and Santi on Arsenal-Mania specifically I feel are a shade overrated.

I struggle to put VP in the same bracket as Henry or Pires. Both the absolute best on the entire planet in their respective positions at one point. Can't say the same for VP as there were Suarez and other killers around in his pomp.

Suarez didn't really hit his prime until RVP had dropped off though. David Villa, Rooney and Torres was more his generation I suppose

 

[Gunner D]

@Gunner boy dd

I have been watching since the early 2000s, consider myself very lucky to have got to watch us win the league (not sure what the odds are on it happening again!) with peak Wenger.

So as good as some of the Emirates era players have been, it's hard to not just pick my top 5 from the Invincibles

Henry is number 1 and Pires is number 2, haven't been able to figure out the rest though...too difficult.

Thought you’d been watching earlier than that last tbh seeing as you know a lot about the older generation of players. Fair play for doing your research, I rate that.

Yeah you won’t find any of these emirates guys in an of my top 5 list. Big shout out to Santi Cazorla though, absolutely loved that guy. Quality player.

Been Watching football since I can remember being born. Started following Arsenal around the age of 4, so 97/98 season. I was Bergkamp obsessed.

Lucky enough to see all our league wins under Arsène, although I only have vague memories of the 97/98 season. Good times.

 

[Riou]

Supported us since like 2002 but only started following us properly in like 2015.

Why were you a bit non-committal during our peak years, but fully committed yourself to the club just in time for the season we lose the league to Leicester and **** was about to hit the fan?

 

[Trilly]

Why were you a bit non-committal during our peak years, but fully committed yourself to the club just in time for the season we lose the league to Leicester and **** was about to hit the fan?

Nobody in my immediate family really watched football. I was too young during the peak years and then didn’t bother watching until it was easier to get streams.

 

[Riou]

Nobody in my immediate family really watched football. I was too young during the peak years and then didn’t bother watching until it was easier to get streams.

Least you were in time for "North London Forever" though, God was good to you in the end!

 

[A_G]

Why were you a bit non-committal during our peak years, but fully committed yourself to the club just in time for the season we lose the league to Leicester and **** was about to hit the fan?

He only used to watch MOTD apparently.

 

[Riou]

Still can't understand how people can support any other football club, other than the one these 2 dons played at...



...you have just wasted your fandom, as this is the level of players Arsenal fans can pick from!

 

[GDeep™]

Not so obvious players that you loved, top 5 -

Eduardo
Ramsey
Koscielny
Fabianski
Guendouzi

 

[A_G]

Not so obvious players that you loved, top 5 -

Eduardo
Ramsey
Koscielny
Fabianski
Guendouzi

Surprisingly good idea from you there. I’d go:

Diaby
Sagna
Adebayor
Vela
Aliadiere during domestic cup ties

 

[sergio_giorgini]

Santi
Bergkamp
Pires
Fabregas
Henry