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Walcott & Van Persie: The latest in a long tradition of lethal Arsenal double acts
From Henry and Pires to James and Bastin, Goal.com looks at the greatest attacking twosomes to play for the Gunners ahead of the crucial Champions League clash with Dortmund
23 Nov 2011 08:08:00
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ANALYSIS
By Stephen Darwin
As Arsenal prepare to face Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday, they will no doubt be looking at the in-form Robin van Persie to provide the inspiration as they attempt to secure the three points that will guarantee qualification to the knockout stages of the Champions League.
The Gunners' talisman is arguably playing the best football of his career at present, with the high-profile summer departures of Samir Nasri and Cesc Fabregas doing little to deter the Dutchman on the path to legendary status with the north London club.
That said, Van Persie hasn't done it all alone. Every Torvill needs a Dean, every Morecambe needs a Wise - dare I say every Ant needs a Dec - and in Theo Walcott, the 28-year-old has seemingly found his ideal partner in crime.
In what has developed into something of a winning formula for the Gunners in 2011, Goal.com takes a look at the Walcott - Van Persie combination, as well as some of the other famous double-acts from years past.
It wouldn't be an outlandish statement to suggest that Robin van Persie is the in-form striker at the moment - certainly on British shores, if not around Europe. The 28-year-old has already notched up 15 goals for the Gunners this season and is three ahead of the chasing pack in the Premier League with 13.
But, as the saying goes, it takes two to tango and the Dutchman has revelled in the level of service provided to him by the Arsenal midfield - a supply line that has seen Theo Walcott emerge as the main man in the supporting cast.
Walcott, a player that has long divided opinion since his move to the north London club from Southampton back in 2006, has thrived on what has developed into an almost telepathic understanding with the Dutchman - whereby he seemingly knows exactly where his skipper is going to be positioned in the box and finding him has become second nature. A point only exemplified by the fact that each of Walcott's eight assists in 2011 have led to goals for Van Persie.
Prior to Saturday's 2-1 win over Norwich City, that yielded two more Van Persie goals and yet another Walcott assist, the former Feyenoord striker spoke of the "connection" the duo shared: "After every single goal, people ask me, 'Who gave the assist?' I just say, 'Who do you think?' We have that connection," he told the Daily Mirror.
"I know what he is going to do, which is very important. It's vital to have a player around me, as a striker, who knows where I move, how I move, do I want the ball into feet, do I want it behind. He knows where to find me. Stuff like that is vital."
Arsenal's record goalscorer was another who didn't do it alone - well, not quite. Thierry Henry's astounding 226 goals for the Gunners helped yield two Premier League titles, three FA Cups and two Community Shield triumphs - and Robert Pires was often on hand to provide the ammunition for his compatriot.
The duo combined seamlessly, along with regular supporting forays forward from Ashley Cole, to forge a formidable attack on the Gunners' left-hand side. The relationship wasn't all one way, however, because, as highlighted by The Arsenal Database, on top of Pires' 22 assists for the former Monaco star, Henry was on hand to set-up 17 goals for his France team-mate in return.
Two of the more vital cogs in the Wenger-operated machine that remained unbeaten for the entire 2003-04 Premier League campaign, Pires and Henry combined to score an incredible 57 goals in all competitions between them - highlighting their importance to the Gunners' cause.
Speaking of the partnership between the two, Henry hailed Pires as a "dream to play with", while the one-time Aston Villa midfielder waxed lyrical about the "perfect" Henry-Pires-Cole triumvirate, telling FourFourTwo: "With Ashley and Thierry, wow! Every day in training we worked on it and it became automatic. It was almost perfect. With Ashley, bang! With Thierry, cor! With them, I played some amazing games; I always felt perfect alongside them."
Flair, pace, creativity - just a few of the words that come to mind when attempting to describe the qualities that both Marc Overmars and Nicolas Anelka brought to the table in their pomp at Arsenal. It's often difficult to measure just how influential a player was to a certain club but when you consider, in the case of Overmars and Anelka, that their respective next moves after Highbury were Barcelona and Real Madrid, it tells its own story as to the individual ability both possessed.
Anelka, never one to shy away from controversy, was seemingly never a huge fan of his Dutch team-mate - despite their often devastating form together on the pitch. The Chelsea striker even made public his views back in 1999, claiming that Overmars never passed to him: "It's the absolute truth that Overmars plays exclusively for his own benefit," Anelka told L'Equipe.
"He never gives a scoring pass. Why shouldn't I say that? There's no reason why I should shut up about having to run like a bird-dog after the missiles that he aims out to the wings, where I'm left with no choice but to put them back into the centre so that he can take advantage of them to shine all by himself, which was his aim all along."
Stern words indeed but that didn't stop Overmars having a hand in six Nicolas Anelka goals during the pair's time with the Gunners, as documented by The Arsenal Database, while the Frenchman played a part in creating seven goals for the team-mate he would go on to criticise for stealing the spotlight.
One of the greatest foreign imports to grace the Premier League, Dennis Bergkamp was a player that could make anyone who played with him look great. So says Ian Wright, who flourished alongside with the Dutchman as the Gunners claimed a league and FA Cup double during the 1997-98 campaign.
The duo complemented eachother perfectly - Bergkamp with all his guile and creative nous playing in behind a predatory striker who knew exactly where the back of the net was. Indeed, speaking to FourFourTwo, Bergkamp even revealed that the fact Wright played for Arsenal helped convince him to make the move to north London in 1995. It was an immediate match made in heaven for the Gunners faithful.
A prolific scorer at Ajax, with over 100 goals in just seven years at the club, Bergkamp revelled in a more withdrawn role during his time with the Gunners, creating chances for the "unbelievable" Wright to finish off: "At Arsenal I was always more comfortable playing behind a striker, just outside the box," he told FourFourTwo. "It wasn't my quality to go in the box at the right time and tap in. I was always amazed by players like Ian Wright. He was unbelievable at that."
And support Wright he certainly did. During the three years the pair shared at the club, The Arsenal Database lists that Bergkamp assisted the England forward 14 times - including his final goal for the Gunners in a 2-1 win over West Ham in the League Cup in January 1998. Bergkamp, meanwhile, set-up Wright on six occasions - in six separate games that saw Arsenal victorious in five, drawing the other.
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By Stephen Darwin
As Arsenal prepare to face Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday, they will no doubt be looking at the in-form Robin van Persie to provide the inspiration as they attempt to secure the three points that will guarantee qualification to the knockout stages of the Champions League.
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The Gunners' talisman is arguably playing the best football of his career at present, with the high-profile summer departures of Samir Nasri and Cesc Fabregas doing little to deter the Dutchman on the path to legendary status with the north London club.
That said, Van Persie hasn't done it all alone. Every Torvill needs a Dean, every Morecambe needs a Wise - dare I say every Ant needs a Dec - and in Theo Walcott, the 28-year-old has seemingly found his ideal partner in crime.
In what has developed into something of a winning formula for the Gunners in 2011, Goal.com takes a look at the Walcott - Van Persie combination, as well as some of the other famous double-acts from years past.
| WALCOTT & VAN PERSIE |
It wouldn't be an outlandish statement to suggest that Robin van Persie is the in-form striker at the moment - certainly on British shores, if not around Europe. The 28-year-old has already notched up 15 goals for the Gunners this season and is three ahead of the chasing pack in the Premier League with 13.
| THEY'RE A BIT LIKE... EASTHAM & BAKER |
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| Graham Lister: "England internationals George Eastham and Joe Baker wrought havoc on opposition defences in the early to mid-1960s; their problem was Arsenal's own defence at the time was as full of holes as a colander. So the team frequently relied on the slick interplay between the cerebral Eastham and irrepressible Baker - many of whose 100 goals for Arsenal were set up by the astute passing of Eastham - to score four while their opponents hit three." |
Walcott, a player that has long divided opinion since his move to the north London club from Southampton back in 2006, has thrived on what has developed into an almost telepathic understanding with the Dutchman - whereby he seemingly knows exactly where his skipper is going to be positioned in the box and finding him has become second nature. A point only exemplified by the fact that each of Walcott's eight assists in 2011 have led to goals for Van Persie.
Prior to Saturday's 2-1 win over Norwich City, that yielded two more Van Persie goals and yet another Walcott assist, the former Feyenoord striker spoke of the "connection" the duo shared: "After every single goal, people ask me, 'Who gave the assist?' I just say, 'Who do you think?' We have that connection," he told the Daily Mirror.
"I know what he is going to do, which is very important. It's vital to have a player around me, as a striker, who knows where I move, how I move, do I want the ball into feet, do I want it behind. He knows where to find me. Stuff like that is vital."
| PIRES & HENRY |
| THEY'RE A BIT LIKE... JAMES & BASTIN |
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| Graham Lister: "Manager Herbert Chapman signed established Scotland international schemer Alex James and hitherto unknown Devonian teenager Cliff 'Boy' Bastin within a couple of weeks of each other and the pair not only quickly developed a near-perfect understanding, but also became the attacking fulcrum of the Arsenal team that dominated the 1930s. Frequently supplied by the audacious vision of James, Bastin broke goalscoring records for a winger, and until Ian Wright surpassed him in 1997 was the Gunners' all-time leading scorer." |
The duo combined seamlessly, along with regular supporting forays forward from Ashley Cole, to forge a formidable attack on the Gunners' left-hand side. The relationship wasn't all one way, however, because, as highlighted by The Arsenal Database, on top of Pires' 22 assists for the former Monaco star, Henry was on hand to set-up 17 goals for his France team-mate in return.
Two of the more vital cogs in the Wenger-operated machine that remained unbeaten for the entire 2003-04 Premier League campaign, Pires and Henry combined to score an incredible 57 goals in all competitions between them - highlighting their importance to the Gunners' cause.
Speaking of the partnership between the two, Henry hailed Pires as a "dream to play with", while the one-time Aston Villa midfielder waxed lyrical about the "perfect" Henry-Pires-Cole triumvirate, telling FourFourTwo: "With Ashley and Thierry, wow! Every day in training we worked on it and it became automatic. It was almost perfect. With Ashley, bang! With Thierry, cor! With them, I played some amazing games; I always felt perfect alongside them."
| OVERMARS & ANELKA |
| THEY'RE A BIT LIKE... MERSON & SMITH |
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| Graham Lister: "The widespread denigration of George Graham's Arsenal as 'boring' conveniently forgot the flair of his two title-winning teams (1988-89 and 1990-91), when the fluent, subtle and often lethal combination of Alan Smith and Paul Merson provided the attacking firepower that took the Gunners to the top of the pile and ensured they were still there at the end of those triumphant campaigns. And, of course, Merson was no stranger to controversy himself..." |
Anelka, never one to shy away from controversy, was seemingly never a huge fan of his Dutch team-mate - despite their often devastating form together on the pitch. The Chelsea striker even made public his views back in 1999, claiming that Overmars never passed to him: "It's the absolute truth that Overmars plays exclusively for his own benefit," Anelka told L'Equipe.
"He never gives a scoring pass. Why shouldn't I say that? There's no reason why I should shut up about having to run like a bird-dog after the missiles that he aims out to the wings, where I'm left with no choice but to put them back into the centre so that he can take advantage of them to shine all by himself, which was his aim all along."
Stern words indeed but that didn't stop Overmars having a hand in six Nicolas Anelka goals during the pair's time with the Gunners, as documented by The Arsenal Database, while the Frenchman played a part in creating seven goals for the team-mate he would go on to criticise for stealing the spotlight.
| BERGKAMP & WRIGHT |
| THEY'RE A BIT LIKE... BRADY & STAPLETON |
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| Graham Lister: "Liam Brady was an intelligent and technically-gifted attacking midfielder who would have complemented any half-decent striker. Fortunately for Arsenal, he was complemented superbly by fellow-Dubliner Frank Stapleton. For a while, the Gunners boasted one of Europe's most inventive talents as well as one of its best centre-forwards and the two dovetailed sublimely. The enduring example of their partnership came in the 1979 FA Cup final when the aerially majestic Stapleton headed Brady's flighted cross into Manchester United's net to put Arsenal 2-0 ahead." |
The duo complemented eachother perfectly - Bergkamp with all his guile and creative nous playing in behind a predatory striker who knew exactly where the back of the net was. Indeed, speaking to FourFourTwo, Bergkamp even revealed that the fact Wright played for Arsenal helped convince him to make the move to north London in 1995. It was an immediate match made in heaven for the Gunners faithful.
A prolific scorer at Ajax, with over 100 goals in just seven years at the club, Bergkamp revelled in a more withdrawn role during his time with the Gunners, creating chances for the "unbelievable" Wright to finish off: "At Arsenal I was always more comfortable playing behind a striker, just outside the box," he told FourFourTwo. "It wasn't my quality to go in the box at the right time and tap in. I was always amazed by players like Ian Wright. He was unbelievable at that."
And support Wright he certainly did. During the three years the pair shared at the club, The Arsenal Database lists that Bergkamp assisted the England forward 14 times - including his final goal for the Gunners in a 2-1 win over West Ham in the League Cup in January 1998. Bergkamp, meanwhile, set-up Wright on six occasions - in six separate games that saw Arsenal victorious in five, drawing the other.
Follow Stephen Darwin on
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