Finishing second in the Premier League for Arsenal would be no failure
If statues were to be erected outside the Emirates to honour the Arsenal B@nter Years, Marouane Chamakh, André Santos, “Troopz” and Sébastien Squillaci would all have a good shout about being permanently cast in bronze – cautionary tales to stand alongside Thierry Henry and Herbert Chapman, reminders that they have a proud history of being a laughing stock as well as one of the most feared clubs in English football. That period, for the outsider at least, was a lot of fun. William Gallas being given the No 10 shirt, Emmanuel Adebayor’s full-pitch sprint in celebration, the 8-2 at Old Trafford, Cheick Tioté’s volley, that Milk Cup final defeat to Birmingham, Kim Källström arriving with a broken back, losing 6-0 to Chelsea in Wenger’s 1,000th game, £40m + £1 for Luis Suárez – there are countless rose-tinted memories, tucked away in the archives for a rainy day. Even the Nicolas Pépé era was quite fun, as the club emerged from their Emirates-enforced austerity and decided to splurge gargantuan sums on hopeful, flickering talents, only to find new ways of falling short.
