The 2003/04 season, when Arsenal won the English Premier League’s first-ever unbeaten title, was an “invincible” one.
The Gunners won 26 of their 38 games that season, drew 12, and didn’t lose a single game.
Arsenal’s unbeaten title run is the only one under Arsène Wenger since the Premier League’s inception in 1992/93. It’s an “immortal record” that remains unbroken 20 years after it was established.
What was the secret to Arsenal’s unbeaten title run?
British broadcaster Sky Sports invited Arsenal winger Freddie Ljungberg, who was instrumental in the Gunners’ unbeaten run, as a guest on its soccer podcast channel on April 1 (KST). He described Arsenal as “a team with no ego,” saying “everyone was selfless.”
Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher, who also appeared on the show, spoke with Ljungberg and reminisced about playing against Arsenal in the past. As a defender, Carragher often came up against Yung Berry.
“Arsenal used to be my least favorite team to play against,” he admits. The reason for this was the Gunners’ very fast attacking tempo. “I’m more of a defensive player, shouting at players and telling them where to go and how to stop them,” he says, “but when you play Arsenal, they’re so fast, you can’t really shout or give instructions.”
“Our play was centered around selflessness,” he says, “and if we could get a better result by passing, we would use our teammates.”
The key to their quick transitions and changes in attacking direction was to find their way through passing rather than trying to break through on the dribble themselves, which meant that Arsenal’s defenders would be dragged around by the change in direction, leaving space behind them for the fast-running Ljungberg or Thierry Henry.
This selflessness was reflected in their personal views. 보스토토
“I don’t think he’s the best player I’ve ever played with,” he shockingly said. The implication was that the club’s all-time leading goalscorer, who scored 228 goals in 377 games for Arsenal, was not the best. After making the comment, he added: “Every player did the best they could in their position. Henri didn’t even tackle as well as the defenders,” he said, adding that the players were all very good.