Heroes vs Villains.

Two sets of XI players. Not the best or the worst, but the players who stood up at key times and the players who let us down.

Heroes
GK - Alex Manninger - Came in at the business end of the 97/98 season and did remarkably well, including a famous clean sheet at Old Trafford in a 1-0

RB - Lauren - 01/02 title race, north London derby, Spurs have just equalised from the spot. Then Henry is fouled, Arsenal get a penalty. It is our Cameroonian who steps up and rolls the kick down the middle. 2-1 and an important 3 points.

LB - Ashley Cole - yes, he did us dirty. But apart from stunning goals (Winterburn v Chelsea, Sylvinho v Chelsea etc) there aren't too many stand out left back moments. So Cole gets it for his 2005 cup final penalty.

CB - Andy Linighan - 210 minutes into the 93 cup final, with the first ever penalty shoot out to decide a final seemingly certain, Andy powers a header towards goal. Chris Woods fumbles it and Arsenal win! To add a bit of heroism, Linaghan was playing with a broken nose after Mark Bright elbowed him.

CB - Mr Arsenal Tony Adams. The 98 goal against Everton,the 93 semi final goal against Spurs, and many other moments from our captain. Legend.

CM - Michael Thomas - It's up for grabs now!!!! The most dramatic way to end a football season, away to the mighty Liverpool who never lost at Anfield never mind by 2. It was looking like Mission impossible from the start, never mind as the clock ticked past 90. But Thomas showed great composure as he burst last Nicol and flicked the ball past Grobbelar.

CM - Steve Morrow - A player who would not get within a mile of any "best of" XIs cemented his place in Arsenal legend when he won us the 93 League Cup with a rare goal. The events during the celebrations only enhance the legend, as his captain managed to drop him causing a broken arm and our cup winner to miss the presentation and the rest of the season.

CM - Ray Parlour - The Romford Pele put in two massive Cup final performances in 98 and 02. An unsung hero of the glory days under Wenger, Ray will be remembered under the Tim Lovejoy line "it's only Ray Parlour" just before he hit a beauty to break the deadlock against Chelsea in the latter final.

RW - Freddie Ljungberg - the man for the big occasion. Cup final goals in consequetive seasons, a run of very important goals in the 01/02 title chase. Ljungberg is a shout for any best XI, but a certainty for this.

LW - Marc Overmars - edges out Pires, the Dutchman gets in for his goal at Old Trafford in the 97/98 season. He also scored the opener in that years FA Cup final. He also scored two against Everton in the title clincher. What a player.

ST - Alan Smith - European glory is hard to come by for us, but back in 94 the sweetest of volleys from Smudger gave us the Cup Winners Cup. A match probably fairly remembered for our defensive performance, a match in which the prolific Ian Wright missed through suspension, a match we were underdogs in against the holders with so much attacking talent. However Smiths strike wins it. Smith also scored the opener at Anfield in 89, adding to his status as a hero.


Villains
GK - Jens Lehmann - could have been Seaman for the CWC final defeat, could have been Szczesny for the League Cup howler, but you have to go with the man who got himself sent off in the Champions League final. Also his loss of temper cost us winning the game that won the title at the Lane.

RB - Nigel Winterburn - Yes, a left back. However, he wasn't when Arsenal took the field in the 1988 league cup final. Behind for most of that match, a 5 minute spell with around 15 to go saw Hayes and Smith put us 2-1 up. Then Rocastle was brought down in the box, penalty to Arsenal. Game over, surely. Nutty Nige stepped up, only to see Andy Dibble save it. 2-1 amazingly became 2-3 giving Luton their first major trophy.

LB - Gael Clichy - this one is a bit harsh, as it was never a penalty. But Clichy was the player adjudged to have fouled the Birmingham player that led to them equalising from the spot on the day Eduardo was brutally taken out of the game.

CB - Laurent Koscielny - The other Chuckle Brother in that league cup final mix up, along with Szczesny.

CB - Gus Caeser - gone back to 88 for this one. Bambi on ice, he was only playing due to O'Leary getting injured. Mistakes following Winterburns miss gave Luton the victory and embarrassed Arsenal.

CM - Patrick Vieira - yes, one of our greatest players. A player whose penalty kick won us the 2005 cup final, a player who captained us to an invincible season. So why is he here? Two words, Ryan Giggs. Another two words - Galatasaray miss. The assist to Giggs in the 99 semi final will haunt me, a goal that is shown more than most. His miss in the penalty shoot out of the UEFA cup final in 2000 has generally been forgotten, but it happened so Patrick is in.

CM - Paul Davis - most of the villains here have been for costing us trophies. Pauls inclusion is for something slightly different. Something he is actually remembered rather fondly for. Yes, Davis is here for his jaw breaking left hook handed out to Southamptons Glenn Cockerill. An unprecedented ban followed, after the punch was caught by the merest of margins on TV.

CM - Abou Diaby - 4-0 up and cruising. Then red mist leads to Diaby losing it with Joey Barton and he becomes the catalyst for one of our most embarrassing results. Yes, the ref was absolutely atrocious, but sadly Diaby has to live with his reaction and what followed.

ST - Davor Suker - The Croatian came to us on the back of an impressive World Cup in 98, but sadly his best days were behind him. He will be most remembered for his brief cameo in the 2000 UEFA cup final, brought on probably with penalties in mind, and missing the first one.

ST - Dennis Bergkamp. Yes, I have put Dennis in the villains XI. Like, Vieira it is for one game. A game that should of ended Uniteds treble before part one was won. A last minute penalty in a cup semi final against United with the scores level at 1-1 - a penalty saved by Schmeichel. Oh Dennis

ST - Thierry Henry - oh, another legend?!?! Yes, arguably our greatest ever player is here too. The 2001 FA Cup final will be remembered as the Owen final, it should have been remembered for Thierry winning it for us. Chance after chance - albeit a stinking ref performance allowed Henchoz to play as a second keeper to deny Henry twice with his hands.
But let's be honest, it isn't that final that he is here for. I know it, you know it, and he knows it.


So there we are, some of our legends make the villain team, while some players you may not have heard of are heroes. It's a funny old game.