2001–02 Arsenal F.C. season

Arsenal
2001–02 season
ChairmanPeter Hill-Wood
ManagerArsène Wenger
StadiumHighbury
Premier League1st
FA CupWinners
League CupFifth round
UEFA Champions LeagueSecond group stage
Top goalscorerLeague: Thierry Henry (24)
All: Thierry Henry (32)
Highest home attendance38,254 vs Everton
(11 May 2002)
Lowest home attendance16,917 vs Grimsby Town
(27 November 2001)
Average home league attendance36,541
(in all competitions)

The 2001–02 season was Arsenal Football Club's 10th season in the Premier League and their 76th consecutive season in the top flight of English football. Having ended the previous season as FA Cup finalists and league runners-up to Manchester United, the club went one better in this campaign, by completing the domestic double – their second in four years and third overall. Arsenal won the Premier League by a seven-point margin, were unbeaten away from home and managed the unique feat of scoring in every league game. They lost only three times in the division, all of which at home. At the Millennium Stadium, Arsenal beat Chelsea 2–0 to win the 2002 FA Cup Final. In Europe however, they fared poorly as they were eliminated in the second group stage of the UEFA Champions League.

In the transfer window, Arsenal sold several fringe players, notably Nelson Vivas to Internazionale and Sylvinho to Celta Vigo; goalkeeper John Lukic was released following his decision to retire. Goalkeeper Richard Wright was signed as an earmarked understudy to David Seaman, while midfielder Giovanni van Bronckhorst and striker Francis Jeffers were purchased in big money moves from Rangers and Everton respectively. Perhaps the marked signing for Arsenal was the acquisition of defender Sol Campbell, who moved from local rivals Tottenham Hotspur on a free transfer.

Manager Arsène Wenger was named Barclaycard Manager of the Year and midfielder Freddie Ljungberg received the player equivalent – the Barclaycard Player of the Year, in recognition of the team's achievement. Winger Robert Pires was given the accolade of being the Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year, while Thierry Henry ended the campaign as club and the league's top goalscorer, the latter for which he was awarded the Premier League Golden Boot. At the end of the season, club captain Tony Adams announced his retirement from football; he was followed by fellow defender Lee Dixon and club goalkeeping coach Bob Wilson.

Background

In the 2000–01 season, Arsenal finished second in the Premier League for the third consecutive season – this time ten points behind Manchester United. The title race was as good as over by February, when Arsenal lost 6–1 to United at Old Trafford. The season gave priority to cups, with the best chance of ending their three-year wait for a trophy being in the FA Cup; Arsenal beat Tottenham Hotspur in the semi-finals and met Liverpool in the final. Although they dominated most of the match and went a goal up, they succumbed to two late Michael Owen goals and lost 2–1.

Transfers

Defender Sol Campbell joined Arsenal from rivals Tottenham Hotspur in the transfer window.

The cup final defeat prompted manager Arsène Wenger to admit new players would be brought in during the transfer window. To fill the seemingly large void left by Emmanuel Petit in the centre of midfield, Giovanni van Bronckhorst was signed from Rangers for £8.5 million. Teenager Francis Jeffers was purchased from Everton in an initial £8 million deal. Junichi Inamoto and Richard Wright were also recruited, with Nelson Vivas and Sylvinho departing the club. After a protracted transfer saga, which involved him questioning Arsenal's ambitions and being linked to a move with Manchester United, midfielder Patrick Vieira remained at the club.

Perhaps the marked signing of the summer was defender Sol Campbell, who moved from rivals Tottenham Hotspur on a Bosman ruling. The player's wage demands seemed to have extinguished Arsenal's chances of signing the player at one point. Campbell was unveiled at a midday news conference on 3 July 2001, which journalists "presumed had been called to announce goalkeeper Richard Wright's arrival from Ipswich." Wenger described Campbell as the "best", adding: "I felt we could not compete on financial basis with the top clubs but we could give him a football challenge."

In

No. Position Player Transferred from Fee Date Ref
57 DF Juan São Paulo Undisclosed 1 May 2001
9 FW Francis Jeffers Everton £10,000,000 14 June 2001
16 MF Giovanni van Bronckhorst Rangers £8,500,000 19 June 2001
23 DF Sol Campbell Tottenham Hotspur Free transfer 3 July 2001
24 GK Richard Wright Ipswich Town £6,000,000 5 July 2001
19 MF Junichi Inamoto Gamba Osaka £3,500,000 23 July 2001
27 DF Stathis Tavlaridis Iraklis Thessaloniki £1,000,000 19 September 2001
28 DF Kolo Touré ASEC Mimosas £150,000 14 February 2002

Out

No. Position Player Transferred to Fee Date Ref
40 DF Lee Canoville Torquay United Free transfer 1 June 2001
24 GK John Lukic Retired Free transfer 1 June 2001
23 DF Nelson Vivas Internazionale Free transfer 12 June 2001
19 MF Stefan Malz Kaiserslautern £580,000 24 June 2001
27 MF Guillaume Norbert FC Lorient Free transfer 25 July 2001
26 MF Guy Demel Borussia Dortmund £194,000 25 July 2001
16 DF Sylvinho Celta Vigo £5,000,000 31 August 2001
44 MF Greg Lincoln Stevenage Borough Free transfer 1 September 2001

Pre-season

Arsenal kicked off their pre-season in England playing, and beating both Boreham Wood, and Rushden & Diamonds, before flying to Austria to play a series of friendlies against Turkish club, Kocaelispor, Spanish side Real Mallorca, and Italian champions, Roma, with mixed results. Both Sol Campbell and Richard Wright made their debuts for the club in the 2–0 win against Real Mallorca. Returning to England they won games against Norwich City., and Barnet, before the commencement of the Premier League.

Results

13 July 2001 Friendly Boreham Wood 0–2 Arsenal Borehamwood
Report Jeffers
Bergkamp
Stadium: Meadow Park (Borehamwood)
21 July 2001 Friendly Rushden & Diamonds 0–2 Arsenal Northampton
Report Henry 69'
Volz 88'
Stadium: Nene Park
Attendance: 6,071
25 July 2001 Friendly Kocaelispor 4–1 Arsenal Innsbruck, Austria
Lazarov
Colak
Topraktope
Report Parlour
30 July 2001 Friendly Real Mallorca 0–2 Arsenal Kufstein, Austria
Report Bergkamp
Van Bronckhorst
1 August 2001 Friendly Roma 1–0 Arsenal Austria
Vincenzo Montella 45' Report Attendance: 10,000
7 August 2001 Friendly Norwich City 2–4 Arsenal Norwich, England
Report Patrick Vieira
Sylvain Wiltord
Francis Jeffers
Stadium: Carrow Road
Attendance: 21,000
11 August 2001 Friendly Barnet 1–6 Arsenal Barnet, England
Midgley 55' Report Ljungberg 26'
Cole 34'
Bergkamp 38'
Henry 68'
Vieira
Wiltord 83'
Stadium: Underhill Stadium
Attendance: 4,600

Tony Adams Testimonial

Following his announcement of retirement, a testimonial match was organised for Tony Adams at the end of the season, against the Scottish football champions, Celtic, on 13 May, at Highbury. The match played out as a 1–1 draw, with Lee Dixon scoring the singular Arsenal goal.

13 May 2002 Tony Adams Testimonial Arsenal 1–1 Celtic London
Dixon 67' Report Thompson 32' Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 38,021

Premier League

August–October

"I saw something today I never saw last season – we played as a team. It's the most important thing in football."

 — Thierry Henry's reaction following the Middlesbrough game.

Arsenal's league campaign started on 18 August 2001, with an away fixture at Middlesbrough. Thierry Henry scored the opening goal in the 43rd minute, before teammate Ray Parlour was sent off in the second half for a second bookable offence. In spite of the man disadvantage, Arsenal was awarded a late penalty which was converted in by Robert Pires – it was conceded by Ugo Ehiogu for a trip on Ashley Cole, who subsequently was sent off. Substitute Dennis Bergkamp added two goals in two minutes, in what finished a 4–0 victory. At home to Leeds United, Arsenal conceded within the half-hour after Ian Harte's "low, left-footed free-kick" beat goalkeeper Seaman. Although Sylvain Wiltord equalised moments after, striker Mark Viduka in the second half collected a pass from Harry Kewell and used his strength to beat Tony Adams and score for the visitors. In spite of an attacking formation change and Leeds going down to nine men, as Danny Mills and Lee Bowyer were dismissed, Arsenal was unable to break down their defence. Goals from Ljungberg, Wiltord, Henry and Kanu against Leicester City moved Arsenal into third place, a point behind joint-leaders Everton and Leeds.

The team could only manage a draw against Chelsea on 8 September 2001, in a game described by The Guardian writer David Lacey as one where "the teams simply battered away at each other until one cracked." Henry scored the winning goal away to newly promoted outfit Fulham; the 3–1 victory moved Arsenal to the top of the league for the first time in the campaign. Against Bolton Wanderers, Arsenal was held to a 1–1 draw after Jeffers' goal was cancelled out by Michael Ricketts. A win at Derby County, where Henry scored two goals was followed by an identical scoreline against Southampton at the new St. Mary's Stadium. At home to Blackburn Rovers, midfielder Keith Gillespie gave the visitors the lead, before Pires equalised and Bergkamp put Arsenal in front. A mistake by Lauren presented David Dunn the chance to shoot "from 25 yards" and score. Henry's controlled effort looked to have been the winner for Arsenal, until a pass by Tugay caused goalkeeper Wright to "race out of his goal" – the loose ball was collected by Dunn who shot into the empty net. Although Wenger was disappointed with the manner of the defeat, he saw some encouragement: "What's positive for everyone is that Manchester United are dropping points as well. But we need to rectify the fact we concede goals at home." October ended with a draw against Sunderland, where notably former Arsenal player Stefan Schwarz equalised for the home side and Patrick Vieira missed a penalty.

November–February

Bergkamp scored the winning goal for Arsenal against Blackburn Rovers in January 2002.

Arsenal's first fixture of November was at home to Charlton Athletic. The team conceded four goals in 20 minutes and blew several chances to "kill the game", in what was the club's biggest home defeat in the league under Wenger. An away trip to local rivals Tottenham Hostpur became magnified with interest, given it marked the return of Campbell following his move to Arsenal. An 81st-minute goal scored by Pires put Arsenal into the lead, before a lapse by Wright in goal allowed Gus Poyet's shot to squirm from his grasp and enter the goalnet. Arsenal then faced league champions Manchester United and in spite of conceding inside 14 minutes through a Paul Scholes’ strike, Ljungberg equalised for them "with a wonderful chipped finish, following Gary Neville's wretched error." Arsenal improved in the second half but scored in unforeseen fashion: United goalkeeper Fabien Barthez passed the ball directly into the feet of Henry, who profited from the error and scored. Five minutes later, Barthez's failure to grasp the ball presented Henry the chance to score his second, which he did. Both Henry and Wenger defended the opposition goalkeeper, with the former, his international teammate saying: "Of course I was happy to score the goals but it was strange. He's my good friend and I feel sorry for him; I would rather have got them another way."

Arsenal beat Ipswich Town on 1 December 2001 to put the club second in the league table. A week later the team played Aston Villa,. Goals from ex-Arsenal midfielder Paul Merson and Steve Stone gave the visitors a deserved lead before Arsenal produced an "enthralling" fight back, capped off by Henry, who scored the winner in stoppage time. The team drew 1–1 at West Ham United and lost more ground at the top of the league table following a comprehensive home defeat to Newcastle United. Arsenal began the Christmas period with a fixture against Liverpool and the team were without Vieira, who was suspended. Striker Michael Owen thought he had scored his 100th goal for Liverpool, which was acrobatically cleared off the line by Cole. Vieira's replacement Giovanni van Bronckhorst was sent off in the 35th minute for a dive but the man disadvantage did not stop Arsenal "catching their opponents on the break". The team scored the first goal of the match – a penalty, converted by Henry minutes before the interval and "uncharacteristic slackness" by Steven Gerrard allowed Pires to beat his defender and cross the ball from the left-hand side; it was met by Ljungberg, who nipped in at the far post to double Arsenal's lead. Jari Litmanen pulled a goal back for Liverpool but Arsenal hung on to record their first win at Anfield in Wenger's tenure. On Boxing Day Arsenal recorded a win against Chelsea and two days after, earned three points at home to Middlesbrough, courtesy of a headed winner by Cole.

In their first league match of 2002, Arsenal hosted Liverpool at Highbury. The match brought "little but frustration" for the home side as Liverpool scored an equaliser six minutes after Ljungberg gave Arsenal the lead. More ground was lost and the initiative was handed to Manchester United, following a second successive stalemate in the league, this time away to Leeds on 20 January 2002. With results going in Arsenal's favour that midweek however, the club moved second in the table after a 3–1 win against Leicester City. Victory away to Blackburn Rovers, where Oleh Luzhnyi was sent off in the second half and his defensive partner Campbell "provided the sort of display usually described as sterling", kept Arsenal in-touch of Manchester United.

A Jo Tessem equaliser for Southampton earned the visitors a point against Arsenal on 2 February 2002; in hindsight this proved to be the last time they dropped points in the league season. Wiltord scored the winning goal against Everton and Arsenal moved back to second place, which was obtained by Liverpool, following a 4–1 win at home to Fulham.

March–May

Arsenal recorded a 2–0 win against Newcastle United on 2 March 2002. The opening goal scored by Bergkamp was described as a "really clever goal" by opposition manager Sir Bobby Robson. The move involved the striker receiving a low pass from Pires and under pressure from his marker Nikos Dabizas, he controlled the ball with one flick and went around before placing the ball into the right-hand corner. Arsenal moved to the top of the table three days after, as they beat Derby County by one goal to nil. They were displaced by Manchester United the following night, albeit with the reigning champions having played a game more. An inspired performance by Pires against Aston Villa on 17 March 2002 kept a point behind top spot; the win was followed up by a comprehensive defeat of Sunderland, where all three Arsenal goals were scored in the first half.

Henry scored a brace against Charlton Athletic to move Arsenal back to first spot, one clear of Liverpool with a game-in-hand. They then played Tottenham Hotspur on 6 April 2002 and took the lead in the opening half through Ljungberg, via a deflection off goalkeeper Kasey Keller. Teddy Sheringham equalised for Spurs from the penalty spot, before Arsenal was awarded a spot kick when Henry was adjusted to have been fouled by Dean Richards. With Henry receiving treatment and normal penalty takers Edu and Bergkamp substituted, Lauren stepped up to take the responsibility and scored what was the winner. Victory against Ipswich Town and five days later at home against West Ham United, where Ljungberg and Kanu scored meant Arsenal was two wins away from securing the title. The team beat Bolton Wanderers at the Reebok Stadium, which mathematically ruled out Liverpool's chances of winning the league and meant Manchester United needed to beat Arsenal the following game to have any chance of retaining it. Ruud van Nistelrooy was surprisingly named on the bench for Sir Alex Ferguson's side, with Arsenal missing Adams and Henry. Having withstood pressure from the home side in the first half, Wiltord scored for Arsenal in the second half, receiving a pass from Ljungberg in the build up. The win secured the double for the second time in four seasons and prompted Wenger to acclaim a "shift of power" in the league. On the final day of the season, Arsenal beat Everton by four goals to three, in a match where defender Lee Dixon and goalkeeping coach Bob Wilson received warm send-offs from the crowd.

Match results

18 August 2001 1 Middlesbrough 0–4 Arsenal Middlesbrough
15:00 BST Report Henry 43'
Pires 87' (pen.)
Bergkamp 88', 90'
Stadium: Riverside Stadium
Attendance: 31,557
Referee: Graham Barber
21 August 2001 2 Arsenal 1–2 Leeds United London
19:45 BST Wiltord 32' Report Harte 29'
Viduka 52'
Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 38,062
Referee: Jeff Winter
25 August 2001 3 Arsenal 4–0 Leicester City London
15:00 BST Ljungberg 17'
Wiltord 28'
Henry 77'
Kanu 90+4'
Report Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 37,909
Referee: Andy D'Urso
8 September 2001 4 Chelsea 1–1 Arsenal London
15:00 BST Hasselbaink 31' (pen.) Report Henry 17' Stadium: Stamford Bridge
Attendance: 40,855
Referee: Mike Riley
15 September 2001 5 Fulham 1–3 Arsenal London
15:00 BST Malbranque 48' Report Ljungberg 17'
Henry 82'
Bergkamp 90+5'
Stadium: Craven Cottage
Attendance: 20,805
Referee: Alan Wiley
22 September 2001 6 Arsenal 1–1 Bolton Wanderers London
15:00 BST Jeffers 74' Report Ricketts 83' Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 38,014
Referee: Clive Wilkes
29 September 2001 7 Derby County 0–2 Arsenal Derby
15:00 BST Report Henry 21', 63' (pen.) Stadium: Pride Park Stadium
Attendance: 29,200
Referee: Rob Styles
13 October 2001 8 Southampton 0–2 Arsenal Southampton
15:00 BST Report Pires 5'
Henry 74'
Stadium: St. Mary's Stadium
Attendance: 29,759
Referee: Graham Barber
20 October 2001 9 Arsenal 3–3 Blackburn Rovers London
Pires 48'
Bergkamp 53'
Henry 78'
Report Gillespie 41'
Dunn 58', 89'
Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 38,108
Referee: Uriah Rennie
27 October 2001 10 Sunderland 1–1 Arsenal Sunderland
Schwarz 54' Report Kanu 40' Stadium: Stadium of Light
Attendance: 48,029
Referee: Mike Riley
4 November 2001 11 Arsenal 2–4 Charlton Athletic London
Henry 7', 60' (pen.) Report S. Brown 35'
R. Wright 43' (o.g.)
Jensen 49'
Euell 53'
Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 38,010
Referee: Mark Halsey
17 November 2001 12 Tottenham Hotspur 1–1 Arsenal London
15:00 GMT Poyet 90+4' Report Pires 81' Stadium: White Hart Lane
Attendance: 36,049
Referee: Jeff Winter
25 November 2001 13 Arsenal 3–1 Manchester United London
16:00 GMT Ljungberg 48'
Henry 80', 85'
Report Scholes 15' Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 38,174
Referee: Peter Jones
1 December 2001 14 Ipswich Town 0–2 Arsenal Ipswich
Report Ljungberg 5'
Henry 56' (pen.)
Stadium: Portman Road
Attendance: 24,666
Referee: David Elleray
9 December 2001 15 Arsenal 3–2 Aston Villa London
16:00 GMT Wiltord 46'
Henry 72', 90+1'
Report Merson 21'
Stone 34'
Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 38,074
Referee: Alan Wiley
15 December 2001 16 West Ham United 1–1 Arsenal London
15:00 GMT Kanouté 36' Report Cole 39' Stadium: Boleyn Ground
Attendance: 34,523
Referee: Mike Riley
18 December 2001 17 Arsenal 1–3 Newcastle United London
20:00 GMT Pires 20' Report O'Brien 60'
Shearer 86' (pen.)
Robert 90+1'
Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 38,012
Referee: Graham Poll
23 December 2001 18 Liverpool 1–2 Arsenal Liverpool
16:00 GMT Litmanen 55' Report Henry 45+2' (pen.)
Ljungberg 53'
Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 44,297
Referee: Paul Durkin
26 December 2001 19 Arsenal 2–1 Chelsea London
Campbell 49'
Wiltord 71'
Report Lampard 31' Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 38,079
Referee: Graham Barber
29 December 2001 20 Arsenal 2–1 Middlesbrough London
Pires 55'
Cole 80'
Report Whelan 22' Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 37,948
Referee: Andy D'Urso
13 January 2002 21 Arsenal 1–1 Liverpool London
16:00 GMT Ljungberg 62' Report Riise 68' Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 38,132
Referee: Steve Dunn
20 January 2002 22 Leeds United 1–1 Arsenal Leeds
16:00 GMT Fowler 6' Report Pires 45' Stadium: Elland Road
Attendance: 40,143
Referee: Mark Halsey
23 January 2002 23 Leicester City 1–3 Arsenal Leicester
19:45 GMT Izzet 68' Report Van Bronckhorst 33'
Henry 43'
Wiltord 90+4'
Stadium: Filbert Street
Attendance: 21,344
Referee: David Elleray
30 January 2002 24 Blackburn Rovers 2–3 Arsenal Blackburn
19:45 GMT Jansen 31', 39' Report Bergkamp 14', 75'
Henry 21'
Stadium: Ewood Park
Attendance: 25,893
Referee: Dermot Gallagher
2 February 2002 25 Arsenal 1–1 Southampton London
15:00 GMT Wiltord 40' Report Tessem 80' Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 38,024
Referee: Clive Wilkes
10 February 2002 26 Everton 0–1 Arsenal Liverpool
16:00 GMT Report Wiltord 62' Stadium: Goodison Park
Attendance: 30,859
Referee: Jeff Winter
23 February 2002 27 Arsenal 4–1 Fulham London
15:00 GMT Lauren 5'
Vieira 15'
Henry 38', 59'
Report Marlet 10' Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 38,029
Referee: Uriah Rennie
2 March 2002 28 Newcastle United 0–2 Arsenal Newcastle upon Tyne
17:30 GMT Report Bergkamp 11'
Campbell 41'
Stadium: St. James' Park
Attendance: 52,067
Referee: Neale Barry
5 March 2002 29 Arsenal 1–0 Derby County London
19:45 GMT Pires 69' Report Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 37,878
Referee: Graham Barber
17 March 2002 30 Aston Villa 1–2 Arsenal Birmingham
16:00 GMT Dublin 69' Report Edu 15'
Pires 60'
Stadium: Villa Park
Attendance: 41,520
Referee: Steve Dunn
30 March 2002 31 Arsenal 3–0 Sunderland London
15:00 BST Vieira 2'
Bergkamp 4'
Wiltord 30'
Report Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 38,047
Referee: Paul Durkin
1 April 2002 32 Charlton Athletic 0–3 Arsenal London
15:00 BST Report Henry 16', 25'
Ljungberg 21'
Stadium: The Valley
Attendance: 26,339
Referee: Andy D'Urso
6 April 2002 33 Arsenal 2–1 Tottenham Hotspur London
15:00 BST Ljungberg 24'
Lauren 86' (pen.)
Report Sheringham 81' (pen.) Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 38,186
Referee: Mark Halsey
21 April 2002 34 Arsenal 2–0 Ipswich Town London
16:00 BST Ljungberg 68', 78' Report Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 38,058
Referee: Alan Wiley
24 April 2002 35 Arsenal 2–0 West Ham United London
20:00 BST Ljungberg 77'
Kanu 80'
Report Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: Steve Dunn
Referee: 38,038
29 April 2002 36 Bolton Wanderers 0–2 Arsenal Bolton
20:00 BST Report Ljungberg 36'
Wiltord 44'
Stadium: Reebok Stadium
Attendance: 27,351
Referee: Dermot Gallagher
8 May 2002 37 Manchester United 0–1 Arsenal Manchester
20:00 BST Report Wiltord 57' Stadium: Old Trafford
Attendance: 67,580
Referee: Paul Durkin
11 May 2002 38 Arsenal 4–3 Everton London
15:00 BST Bergkamp 4'
Henry 33', 72'
Jeffers 82'
Report Carsley 20'
Radzinski 31'
Watson 89'
Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 38,254
Referee: Mark Halsey

Classification

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Arsenal (C) 38 26 9 3 79 36 +43 87 Qualification for the Champions League first group stage
2 Liverpool 38 24 8 6 67 30 +37 80
3 Manchester United 38 24 5 9 87 45 +42 77 Qualification for the Champions League third qualifying round
4 Newcastle United 38 21 8 9 74 52 +22 71
5 Leeds United 38 18 12 8 53 37 +16 66 Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round
Source: Premier League
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions
Notes:
  1. ^ Since Arsenal qualified for the Champions League, their UEFA Cup place as FA Cup winners defaulted to Chelsea, the losing finalists.

Results summary

Overall Home Away
Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts W D L GF GA GD W D L GF GA GD
38 26 9 3 79 36  +43 87 12 4 3 42 25  +17 14 5 0 37 11  +26

Source:

Results by round

Round1234567891011121314151617181920212223242526272829303132333435363738
GroundAHHAAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHHHAAAHAHAHAHAHHHAAH
ResultWLWDWDWWDDLDWWWDLWWWDDWWDWWWWWWWWWWWWW
Position24341212135532223221442234221231111111
Source:
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

FA Cup

St James' Park, where Arsenal played their sixth round tie against Newcastle United.

Arsenal entered the FA Cup in the third round, in which they were drawn to play Watford of the First Division. They took the lead in the eighth minute, where good play by Kanu allowed Henry to round goalkeeper Alec Chamberlain and tap the ball into the net. The lead was doubled two minutes later: Kanu again found Henry, who "unselfishly squared the ball to midfielder Freddie Ljungberg for another tap-in." Gifton Noel-Williams moments afterwards halved the lead, when Arsenal failed to deal with a corner; Noel-Williams headed the ball in from a Gary Fisken cross. After squandering numerous chances to increase their lead, Arsenal added a late third and fourth goal from Kanu and Bergkamp before Marcus Gayle scored what was a mere consolation for Watford in stoppage time. Arsenal faced cup holders Liverpool the following round, whom they lost to in the 2001 FA Cup Final. A solitary goal scored by Bergkamp in the 27th minute was enough for Arsenal to progress, in a match layered with controversy: Martin Keown, Bergkamp and Liverpool's Jamie Carragher were sent off in the space of ten minutes – the latter footballer for hurling back a coin at the crowd. Against Gillingham in the fifth round, Arsenal twice had their lead cancelled out, before Adams, making his long-awaited return, scored the match-winning goal.

Arsenal played league challengers Newcastle United in the sixth round, on 9 March 2002. The timing of the game, influenced by the television schedulers, angered Wenger, who threatened to field a weakened side, to prioritise on their Champions League progress: "The BBC have put us in this position of playing at 5.35pm on Saturday night instead of a noon kick-off. I don't know whether Newcastle would have played the game earlier on the Saturday but what can I do about the BBC? I feel it's being very unfair as we are the only side left in all three competitions." It was the second meeting between both teams in a week, and in spite of Arsenal winning the first fixture and scoring the opener in the cup tie, Newcastle found "new reserves of energy and determination" to draw level and created numerous opportunities to win the game outright. With the game ending in a draw, a replay was scheduled two weeks later. Arsenal won 3–0, but more concerningly lost Pires, who was carried off and subsequently ruled out for the remainder of the season with medial knee ligament damage. An own goal by Middlesbrough's Gianluca Festa, from an Henry free-kick in the semi-finals was enough to send Arsenal to their 15th FA Cup final.

Final

Arsenal contested the final against Chelsea on 4 May 2002. Wenger recalled Seaman in goal from the previous fixture, in place of Wright while Campbell was paired up with Adams in central defence. For Chelsea, Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Graeme Le Saux passed late fitness tests and were named in the first team; John Terry filled the substitutes bench, having woken up with a virus. Chelsea threatened early with goal efforts from Le Saux and midfielder Frank Lampard, before Bergkamp fashioned the first real chance of the match – he headed the ball over the top, which caught goalkeeper Carlo Cudicini off his line. In the 70th minute Arsenal took the lead: Adams found Wiltord in space, who in turn passed the ball towards Parlour – he kicked "from just beyond the arc", which flew into the top right corner. Ten minutes after, Ljungberg increased the lead, running from the half-way line and shrung off a late challenge by Terry to curl the ball past Cudicini. The win meant Arsenal completed one half of an expected double; Wenger was pleased with the team's performance, adding: "We were very frustrated last year. We have shown a lot of strength to come back here – beating Liverpool and Newcastle on the way."

5 January 2002 Third round Watford 2–4 Arsenal Watford
12:00 Noel-Williams 13'
Gayle 90'
Report Henry 8'
Ljungberg 10'
Kanu 83'
Bergkamp 85'
Stadium: Vicarage Road
Attendance: 20,105
Referee: Alan Wiley
27 January 2002 Fourth round Arsenal 1–0 Liverpool London
13:00 Bergkamp 27' Report Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 38,092
Referee: Mike Riley
16 February 2002 Fifth round Arsenal 5–2 Gillingham London
15:00 Wiltord 38', 81'
Kanu 50'
Adams 67'
Parlour 88'
Report King 38'
Gooden 54'
Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 38,003
Referee: Andy D'Urso
9 March 2002 Sixth round Newcastle United 1–1 Arsenal Newcastle
17:35 Robert 52' Report Edu 14' Stadium: St. James' Park
Attendance: 51,027
Referee: Mark Halsey
23 March 2002 Sixth round replay Arsenal 3–0 Newcastle United London
12:00 Pires 2'
Bergkamp 9'
Campbell 50'
Report Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 38,073
Referee: Uriah Rennie
14 April 2002 Semi-final Middlesbrough 0–1 Arsenal Manchester
16:00 BST Report Festa 39' (o.g.) Stadium: Old Trafford
Attendance: 61,168
Referee: David Elleray
4 May 2002 Final Arsenal 2–0 Chelsea Cardiff
15:00 BST Parlour 70'
Ljungberg 80'
Report Stadium: Millennium Stadium
Attendance: 73,963
Referee: Mike Riley

Football League Cup

In the third round of the Football League Cup, Arsenal faced Manchester United at Highbury. With both managers making several first team changes to give their younger and fringe players game time, it was Arsenal who came out on top, with Wiltord scoring a hat-trick. A 2–0 win against First Division outfit Grimsby Town, who knocked out competition holders Liverpool in the previous round followed, but Arsenal was eliminated in the fifth round, losing 4–0 to Blackburn Rovers on 11 December 2001. Wenger shrugged off the significance of the defeat and suggested that a spot in Europe, given to the winners of the competition, should instead be allocated to the Premier League: "I would give one more place to the championship because it's more difficult to play in the championship. But, as long as there is a European place at stake, we will play in the competition."

5 November 2001 Third round Arsenal 4–0 Manchester United London
19:45 Wiltord 14', 29', 46'
Kanu 65'
Report Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 30,693
Referee: Mike Riley
27 November 2001 Fourth round Arsenal 2–0 Grimsby Town London
19:45 Edu 4'
Wiltord 74'
Report Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 16,917
Referee: Dermot Gallagher
11 December 2001 Fifth round Blackburn Rovers 4–0 Arsenal Blackburn
19:45 Jansen 11', 15', 68'
Hughes 21'
Report Stadium: Ewood Park
Attendance: 13,278
Referee: Paul Durkin

UEFA Champions League

Group stage

Arsenal's qualification into the UEFA Champions League was ensured as league runners-up the previous season. The club were drawn in Group B, along with German opposition Schalke 04, Panathinaikos of Greece and Spain's Mallorca. In the opening match against Mallorca on 11 September 2001, Cole was handed a straight red card, as he was adjudged to have brought down striker Albert Luque in the penalty box. Vicente Engonga scored from the resulting penalty, which proved to be the winning goal, in spite of Wenger making attacking substitutions that threatened to go close. A 3–2 victory against Schalke 04, where Henry scored two goals was followed by a defeat away to Panathinaikos. In the reverse fixture, Arsenal held on to win 2–1, and secured their passage to the second group stage with a 3–1 victory over Mallorca. With nothing to play for, Wenger fielded an understrength Arsenal team against Schalke 04, who "...produced next to nothing in attack, looked poor in defence and were beaten by the time Sylvain Wiltord scored from Ray Parlour's cross."

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Greece Panathinaikos 6 4 0 2 8 3 +5 12 Advance to second group stage
2 England Arsenal 6 3 0 3 9 9 0 9
3 Spain Mallorca 6 3 0 3 4 9 −5 9 Transfer to UEFA Cup
4 Germany Schalke 04 6 2 0 4 9 9 0 6
Source: RSSSF
11 September 2001 1 Mallorca Spain 1–0 England Arsenal Mallorca, Spain
20:45 CET Engonga 12' (pen.)
Olaizola Yellow card 32'
Niño Yellow card 53'
Vicente Yellow card 90+1'
Report Cole Red card 11'
Pires Yellow card 23'
Henry Yellow card 63'
Stadium: Son Moix
Referee: Knud Erik Fisker (Denmark)
19 September 2001 2 Arsenal England 3–2 Germany Schalke 04 London, England
19:45 BST Ljungberg 33'
Henry 36', 47' (pen.)
Report Van Hoogdalem 43' Yellow card 85'
Mpenza 59'
Hajto Yellow card 60'
Agali Yellow card 61'
Asamoah Yellow card 90+3'
Stadium: Highbury
Referee: Claude Colombo (France)
16 October 2001 4 Arsenal England 2–1 Greece Panathinaikos London, England
19:45 BST Henry 23', 52' (pen.)
Upson Yellow card 28'
Vieira Yellow card 32'
Lauren Yellow card 53'
Cole Yellow card 74'
Report Sousa Yellow card 13'
Kyrgiakos Yellow card 47'
Olisadebe 50'
Michaelsen Yellow card 80'
Stadium: Highbury
Referee: Urs Meier (Switzerland)
24 October 2001 5 Arsenal England 3–1 Spain Mallorca London, England
19:45 BST Pires 61'
Bergkamp 63'
Henry 90+3'
Report Akyel Yellow card 41'
Novo 74'
Stadium: Highbury
Referee: Dick Jol (Netherlands)
30 October 2001 6 Schalke 04 Germany 3–1 England Arsenal Gelsenkirchen, Germany
20:45 CET Mulder 2' Yellow card 80'
Böhme Yellow card 17'
Matellán Yellow card 27'
Vermant 60'
Möller 64'
Report Luzhnyi Red card 17'
Edu Yellow card 19'
Wiltord 71'
Stadium: Parkstadion
Referee: John McClelland (Scotland)

Second group stage

First half goals scored by Roy Makaay and Diego Tristán inflicted defeat for Arsenal in their opening group game against Deportivo La Coruña. The team responded with a 3–1 win against Italian champions Juventus; Ljungberg's second goal of the match and Arsenal's third involved a "wonderful piece of individual skill" by Bergkamp, as he held off two markers, before twisting and turning to find the Swede. What looked to be a priceless win against Bayer Leverkusen at the BayArena as Arsenal for much of the second half were down to ten men, in fact turned into a draw, as Ulf Kirsten scored in stoppage time to cancel out Pires' 56th-minute goal. In spite of winning the reverse fixture, defeat at home to Deportivo La Coruña and away at Juventus meant Arsenal finished third in the group with seven points.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Germany Bayer Leverkusen 6 3 1 2 11 11 0 10 Advance to knockout stage
2 Spain Deportivo La Coruña 6 3 1 2 7 6 +1 10
3 England Arsenal 6 2 1 3 8 8 0 7
4 Italy Juventus 6 2 1 3 7 8 −1 7
Source: RSSSF
4 December 2001 2 Arsenal England 3–1 Italy Juventus London, England
19:45 GMT Ljungberg 21', 88'
Henry 28'
Kanu Yellow card 65'
Report Nedvěd Yellow card 33'
Birindelli Yellow card 39'
Trezeguet 49'
Stadium: Highbury
Referee: Vítor Melo Pereira (Portugal)
19 February 2002 3 Bayer Leverkusen Germany 1–1 England Arsenal Leverkusen, Germany
20:45 CET Živković Yellow card 70'
Kirsten 90'
Report Stepanovs Yellow card 33'
Pires 56'
Parlour Yellow card 41' Yellow-red card 68'
Stadium: BayArena
Referee: Alain Sars (France)
27 February 2002 4 Arsenal England 4–1 Germany Bayer Leverkusen London, England
19:45 GMT Pires 5'
Henry 7'
Vieira 48'
Bergkamp 83'
Report Ballack Yellow card 47'
Živković Yellow card 71'
Ramelow Yellow card 72'
Sebescen 86'
Stadium: Highbury
Referee: Alain Hamer (Luxembourg)
12 March 2002 5 Arsenal England 0–2 Spain Deportivo La Coruña London, England
19:45 GMT Henry soccer ball with red X 66'
Vieira Yellow card 77'
Report Valerón 30'
Naybet 40'
Víctor Yellow card 44'
Sergio Yellow card 69'
Scaloni Yellow card 75'
Molina Yellow card 82'
Capdevila Yellow card 89'
Stadium: Highbury
Referee: Urs Meier (Switzerland)
20 March 2002 6 Juventus Italy 1–0 England Arsenal Turin, Italy
20:45 CET Davids Yellow card 43'
Zalayeta 76'
Pessotto Yellow card 90+1'
Report Vieira Yellow card 27' Stadium: Stadio delle Alpi
Attendance: 9,000
Referee: Karl-Erik Nilsson (Sweden)

Awards

In recognition of the team's achievement, Wenger was awarded the Barclaycard Manager of the Year, in addition to being named the League Managers Association Manager of the Year. Ljungberg, who scored in five of Arsenal's last eight league matches, as well as the second goal in the cup final, was given the Barclaycard Player of the Year accolade. Pires was named the Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year, with five votes separating himself from Ruud van Nistelrooy; he said it was "a great honour" to receive the award, adding: "Times have been difficult with my injury, but this has given me something to smile about."

For his goal against Newcastle United, Bergkamp received the Goal of the Season award, as voted by viewers of ITV's The Premiership. Henry earned the Premier League Golden Boot, scoring 24 league goals – one more than van Nistelrooy, while Paul Burgess was named "Premier League Groundsman of the Year".

Player statistics

No. Pos Nat Player Total Premier League FA Cup League Cup Champions League
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
1 GK England ENG David Seaman 25 0 17+0 0 1+0 0 0+0 0 7+0 0
2 DF England ENG Lee Dixon 19 0 3+10 0 2+2 0 0+0 0 2+0 0
3 DF England ENG Ashley Cole 40 2 29+0 2 4+0 0 0+0 0 6+1 0
4 MF France FRA Patrick Vieira 54 3 35+1 2 7+0 0 0+0 0 11+0 1
5 DF England ENG Martin Keown 34 0 21+1 0 3+1 0 2+0 0 4+2 0
6 DF England ENG Tony Adams 13 1 10+0 0 3+0 1 0+0 0 0+0 0
7 MF France FRA Robert Pires 45 13 27+1 9 3+2 1 0+0 0 12+0 3
8 MF Sweden SWE Freddie Ljungberg 39 17 24+1 12 5+0 2 0+0 0 8+1 3
9 FW England ENG Francis Jeffers 10 2 2+4 2 1+1 0 0+0 0 0+2 0
10 FW Netherlands NED Dennis Bergkamp 46 14 22+11 9 4+2 3 1+0 0 3+3 2
11 FW France FRA Sylvain Wiltord 54 17 23+10 10 6+1 2 3+0 4 9+2 1
12 DF Cameroon CMR Lauren 41 2 27+0 2 3+0 0 0+0 0 11+0 0
13 GK England ENG Stuart Taylor 15 0 9+1 0 1+0 0 2+0 0 1+1 0
14 FW France FRA Thierry Henry 49 32 31+2 24 4+1 1 0+0 0 11+0 7
15 MF England ENG Ray Parlour 40 2 25+2 0 2+2 2 1+0 0 5+3 0
16 MF Netherlands NED Giovanni van Bronckhorst 33 1 13+8 1 2+0 0 3+0 0 6+1 0
17 MF Brazil BRA Edu 27 3 8+6 1 4+1 1 3+0 1 2+3 0
18 DF France FRA Gilles Grimandi 40 0 11+15 0 1+3 0 2+0 0 5+3 0
19 MF Japan JPN Junichi Inamoto 4 0 0+0 0 0+0 0 2+0 0 0+2 0
20 DF England ENG Matthew Upson 22 0 10+4 0 0+1 0 1+0 0 5+1 0
21 MF England ENG Jermaine Pennant [R] 5 0 0+0 0 0+0 0 3+0 0 0+2 0
22 DF Ukraine UKR Oleh Luzhnyi 26 0 15+3 0 4+0 0 1+0 0 3+0 0
23 DF England ENG Sol Campbell 48 3 29+2 2 7+0 1 0+0 0 10+0 0
24 GK England ENG Richard Wright 22 0 12+0 0 5+0 0 1+0 0 4+0 0
25 FW Nigeria NGA Nwankwo Kanu 39 6 9+14 3 3+2 2 2+0 1 4+5 0
26 DF Latvia LVA Igors Stepanovs 14 0 6+0 0 1+0 0 2+1 0 3+1 0
27 DF Greece GRE Stathis Tavlaridis [R] 3 0 0+0 0 0+0 0 3+0 0 0+0 0
31 FW France FRA Jérémie Aliadière 3 0 0+1 0 0+0 0 0+2 0 0+0 0
36 DF England ENG John Halls [R] 3 0 0+0 0 0+0 0 0+3 0 0+0 0
37 FW England ENG Carlin Itonga [R] 1 0 0+0 0 0+0 0 0+1 0 0+0 0
40 MF England ENG Rohan Ricketts [R] 1 0 0+0 0 0+0 0 0+1 0 0+0 0
44 DF Denmark DEN Sebastian Svärd [R] 1 0 0+0 0 0+0 0 0+1 0 0+0 0
57 DF Brazil BRA Juan [R] 2 0 0+0 0 1+0 0 1+0 0 0+0 0
  • Source:[citation needed]

[R]Reserve team player [L] – Out on loan [S] – Sold

Source:

See also


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