by swipe right » Tue Jul 07, 2020 2:38 pm
by ag6789 » Tue Jul 07, 2020 5:28 pm
by Ach » Tue Jul 07, 2020 5:54 pm
by ag6789 » Tue Jul 07, 2020 6:07 pm
by VCC » Tue Jul 07, 2020 6:20 pm
by themessiah » Tue Jul 07, 2020 6:50 pm
swipe right wrote:Graham only won 41 games in 9 years. Easy record for Arteta to better.
by Arsenal Tone » Tue Jul 07, 2020 7:30 pm
themessiah wrote:swipe right wrote:Graham only won 41 games in 9 years. Easy record for Arteta to better.
Tbf Graham was the real genius. The defensive platform he left behind propped up Wenger's early years. Without it Wenger would exposed as a tactical imbecile, proven by his abysmal record in Europe.
by starmandb » Tue Jul 07, 2020 7:41 pm
won 221gamesswipe right wrote:Graham only won 41 games in 9 years. Easy record for Arteta to better.
by Phil71 » Tue Jul 07, 2020 8:35 pm
swipe right wrote:Graham only won 41 games in 9 years. Easy record for Arteta to better.
by swipe right » Wed Jul 08, 2020 12:22 am
by Gordon Bennit » Wed Jul 08, 2020 2:13 am
by VCC » Wed Jul 08, 2020 3:34 am
Gordon Bennit wrote:Looking at the thread title, I'd have thought the reasons for adulation were obvious. It doesn't need to be a comparison to Wenger, Chapman or anyone else in order to appreciate what George Graham did for the club.
Firstly, he was a member of the Double team of '71 so deserves legendary status for that alone. I don't mean a statue to genuflect over, just a ton of respect and a place in Arsenal folklore. Even if he did try and claim the first goal in the Cup final! Ironically, when he returned to the club, he was still the only person in the place to have lifted the Championship (unless Geordie Armstrong was there, not sure).
The back 4. THE back 4. It was George's decision to make a young Tony Adams the club captain and lynchpin of the defence aligned with incredibly astute signings. In 'Addicted' Adams mentions George beaming at him after Anfield, telling him that he always knew 'the Stoke boys' would come good. He must also deserve some credit, whilst the individuals concerned should take much more, when Adams was getting donkey chants and Lee Dixon had to listen to 'If Lee Dixon can play for England so can I,' for keeping them going.
Whether he man managed Adams well, or allowed him to crash and burn, knowing he would manage to come back each time as a colossus is another issue. However, Adams did credit him over the way he managed Ian Wright. Wrighty, who was of course, signed by George and would go on to become the leading scorer in Arsenal history, overtaking Arsenal legend Cliff Bastin, before Ian himself was overtaken by some French guy
While the back 4 would create history for more than a decade, they needed someone equal to them between the posts. Lukic was the first player I remember doubting. He must have been pretty good obviously, winning another title with dirty Leeds, but in the 'Champions' video, George said that 'David Seaman was the best.' Indeed he was. I don't give a shiny shite what the pundits and experts say, I would rather have that calm, unflappable Yorkshire bloke in goal any day, rather than the Dane.
Trophies. 6 of them, including the first Cup 'Double,' the only European trophy I've ever seen us win and 2 titles. One title was won with a single defeat, which even the media-obsessed dippers haven't managed this year. This was despite losing the captain to a prison sentence, a 2 point deduction for a brawl which may not have happened had the ref spotted a sly kick from Brian McClair previous to it and fines for both the club and manager (I think!)
In the Cup Winners' Cup (great trophy, never understood why they did away with that) Arsenal triumphed over arguably superior opposition. Paris St Germain were very good; they had Ginola, a Brazilian called Valdo, not sure he ever played for Brazil at the World Cup, which tells you what a team they had in '94 and a really good goalie, whose name escapes me. George and the team shut them out for 180 mins before taking on Parma. Brolin, the pre chocolate one, Asprilla and Zola. 1-0 to the Arsenal, yet again. The defence were awesome but again, credit to the manager who had to select a team and prepare them tactically without Ian Wright, after his personal Gazza moment.
As for Anfield '89? We hadn't been champions for 18 years (in fact we had only won 2 titles in the previous 36 years), Liverpool were on a wave of emotion, were going for the Double, were 3 points clear and top going into the last game, were at home, hadn't lost by 2 goals there in 2 years, were the reigning champs and had legends such as Barnes, Rush, Aldridge and Beardsley. George picked a team which featured David O'Leary as an extra defender which even surprised seasoned commentator Brian Moore (RIP). No more needs to be said.
It's laughable to think of Arsenal being boring, when the only reason we won the title in '89 was scoring more goals than Liverpool.
What's with the adulation of George Graham? Forget the bungs. He made Arsenal the best team in the country again, Twice. He made an 11 year old able to strut around the playground which was full of Liverpool or Man Utd fans, most of whom didn;t have a clue about their team's history, just loud mouths and too many of them. And he also wrote to that 11 year old twice, when I sent letters of support to the team. I don't give a shit whether the words were his, but the imprint on the back of them and the accompanying photos signed in biro, are good enough for me. Cheers George.
by Arsenal Tone » Wed Jul 08, 2020 4:10 am
OMFG Love every word!Gordon Bennit wrote:Looking at the thread title, I'd have thought the reasons for adulation were obvious. It doesn't need to be a comparison to Wenger, Chapman or anyone else in order to appreciate what George Graham did for the club.
Firstly, he was a member of the Double team of '71 so deserves legendary status for that alone. I don't mean a statue to genuflect over, just a ton of respect and a place in Arsenal folklore. Even if he did try and claim the first goal in the Cup final! Ironically, when he returned to the club, he was still the only person in the place to have lifted the Championship (unless Geordie Armstrong was there, not sure).
The back 4. THE back 4. It was George's decision to make a young Tony Adams the club captain and lynchpin of the defence aligned with incredibly astute signings. In 'Addicted' Adams mentions George beaming at him after Anfield, telling him that he always knew 'the Stoke boys' would come good. He must also deserve some credit, whilst the individuals concerned should take much more, when Adams was getting donkey chants and Lee Dixon had to listen to 'If Lee Dixon can play for England so can I,' for keeping them going.
Whether he man managed Adams well, or allowed him to crash and burn, knowing he would manage to come back each time as a colossus is another issue. However, Adams did credit him over the way he managed Ian Wright. Wrighty, who was of course, signed by George and would go on to become the leading scorer in Arsenal history, overtaking Arsenal legend Cliff Bastin, before Ian himself was overtaken by some French guy
While the back 4 would create history for more than a decade, they needed someone equal to them between the posts. Lukic was the first player I remember doubting. He must have been pretty good obviously, winning another title with dirty Leeds, but in the 'Champions' video, George said that 'David Seaman was the best.' Indeed he was. I don't give a shiny shite what the pundits and experts say, I would rather have that calm, unflappable Yorkshire bloke in goal any day, rather than the Dane.
Trophies. 6 of them, including the first Cup 'Double,' the only European trophy I've ever seen us win and 2 titles. One title was won with a single defeat, which even the media-obsessed dippers haven't managed this year. This was despite losing the captain to a prison sentence, a 2 point deduction for a brawl which may not have happened had the ref spotted a sly kick from Brian McClair previous to it and fines for both the club and manager (I think!)
In the Cup Winners' Cup (great trophy, never understood why they did away with that) Arsenal triumphed over arguably superior opposition. Paris St Germain were very good; they had Ginola, a Brazilian called Valdo, not sure he ever played for Brazil at the World Cup, which tells you what a team they had in '94 and a really good goalie, whose name escapes me. George and the team shut them out for 180 mins before taking on Parma. Brolin, the pre chocolate one, Asprilla and Zola. 1-0 to the Arsenal, yet again. The defence were awesome but again, credit to the manager who had to select a team and prepare them tactically without Ian Wright, after his personal Gazza moment.
As for Anfield '89? We hadn't been champions for 18 years (in fact we had only won 2 titles in the previous 36 years), Liverpool were on a wave of emotion, were going for the Double, were 3 points clear and top going into the last game, were at home, hadn't lost by 2 goals there in 2 years, were the reigning champs and had legends such as Barnes, Rush, Aldridge and Beardsley. George picked a team which featured David O'Leary as an extra defender which even surprised seasoned commentator Brian Moore (RIP). No more needs to be said.
It's laughable to think of Arsenal being boring, when the only reason we won the title in '89 was scoring more goals than Liverpool.
What's with the adulation of George Graham? Forget the bungs. He made Arsenal the best team in the country again, Twice. He made an 11 year old able to strut around the playground which was full of Liverpool or Man Utd fans, most of whom didn;t have a clue about their team's history, just loud mouths and too many of them. And he also wrote to that 11 year old twice, when I sent letters of support to the team. I don't give a shit whether the words were his, but the imprint on the back of them and the accompanying photos signed in biro, are good enough for me. Cheers George.
by Nuggets » Wed Jul 08, 2020 6:09 am
themessiah wrote:swipe right wrote:Graham only won 41 games in 9 years. Easy record for Arteta to better.
Tbf Graham was the real genius. The defensive platform he left behind propped up Wenger's early years. Without it Wenger would exposed as a tactical imbecile, proven by his abysmal record in Europe.
by theHotHead » Wed Jul 08, 2020 7:18 am
Ach wrote:3 leagues and 7 fa cups is 17?