Arsenal Away Days GFXGetty/GOAL

Believe! The incredible away days that prove Arsenal can win at Man City

“If you want to be champions, you have to win these matches. It’s as simple as that.” Those were the words of Mikel Arteta ahead of Arsenal’s huge clash at Manchester City on Wednesday.

The Gunners make the trip to the Etihad Stadium sitting five points clear of City at the top of the Premier League, but Pep Guardiola’s side have two crucial games in hand.

Three successive draws in recent weeks have left Arsenal with no more room for error as they go hunting a first title since 2004.

🏆 TOP STORY: James & Mount injury updates suggest season could be over

📣 HAVE YOUR SAY: Is Pochettino the right man for Chelsea?

🚨 MUST READ: Are Barca really Messi's only European option?

So it all adds up to a huge occasion in Manchester, and it’s a game that many believe will decide who will get their hands on the Premier League trophy at the end of the season.

Given the form of both teams, few are giving Arsenal any hope of victory. But the Gunners have had some huge results away from home in their long history that proves that anything is possible when it comes to football.

GOAL takes a look at some of Arsenal’s greatest ever away days...

  • Michael Thomas Arsenal Liverpool 1989 AnfieldGetty Images

    Anfield, 1989

    Surely the most famous of Arsenal away wins?

    Travelling up to Anfield on the final day of the 1988-89 season, George Graham’s side needed to win by two clear goals to be crowned champions. Fail to do so and the title would be Liverpool’s once again.

    Few gave Arsenal a chance, especially as they went into the game having lost at home to Derby County and then been held to a 2-2 draw by Wimbledon.

    But it was the visitors who came out on top, with Michael Thomas’ dramatic injury-time strike giving them the 2-0 success they required to claim a first league championship since 1971.

    This success, more than any other, proves that anything is possible in football.

  • Advertisement
  • Arsenal Old Trafford 2002Getty Images

    Old Trafford, 2002

    Arsenal went to Old Trafford in May 2002 as England’s best side. They had just beaten Chelsea to win the FA Cup a few days earlier and knew a win at the home of Manchester United would see them claim the double.

    Arsene Wenger’s side got the three points they needed to win the title at the home of their great rivals. Sylvain Wiltord scored the goal that did it, following up from close range after Freddie Ljungberg’s shot had been saved.

    It was a win that highlighted Arsenal’s superiority over United at that stage.

  • Arsenal-Tottenham-2004Getty

    White Hart Lane, 2004

    This may not have been a win, but it was still one of the great Arsenal away days.

    Chelsea’s defeat at Newcastle earlier in the day meant that Arsenal needed just a point at Spurs to claim the Premier League title.

    They flew into an early 2-0 lead thanks to goals from Patrick Vieira and Robert Pires, and even though they were eventually pegged back for a 2-2 draw, they got the result they needed to be crowned champions at the home of their bitter north London rivals.

    Arsenal fans will never forget the celebrations that took place on the pitch at White Hart Lane after the final whistle. Spurs fans probably won’t be able to either...

  • Tony Adams Arsenal 1998Getty Images

    Old Trafford, 1998

    Arsene Wenger’s side were on a roll when they went to Old Trafford in March 1998 having won four of their last five games in the Premier League.

    A title charge, which had looked unlikely just a few weeks earlier, was suddenly on the cards. But only if they could go to the home of the champions and beat them.

    And beat them they did, with Marc Overmars racing away to score the only goal of the game in the second half.

    It was a victory that gave Arsenal the belief to go on and overcome United in the race for the title.

  • Patrick Vieira Arsenal Chelsea 2003/04

    Stamford Bridge, 2004

    Arsene Wenger’s side went to Stamford Bridge in February 2004 having not yet been defeated in the Premier League that season. This, though, was arguably their hardest remaining fixture.

    Arsenal knew that victory in west London would not only probably signal the end of Chelsea’s title hopes, but it would also give them a real opportunity to go and finish the campaign unbeaten.

    Things started badly, with the hosts scoring inside a minute, but Patrick Vieira soon equalised before Edu scored what proved to be the winner.

    This was a huge win and a massive moment in the Invincibles season.

  • Thierry Henry ArsenalGetty Images

    Santiago Bernabeu, 2006

    Thierry Henry, at the Bernabeu. What a moment, what a win!

    When the draw for the Champions League last 16 was made, barely anyone gave Wenger’s young side any chance against the might of Madrid.

    But Arsenal signalled their intent for the rest of their European campaign with a historic 1-0 win, becoming the first English side to win at Santiago Bernabeu in the process.

    Henry, as he was so often, was the match winner, scoring the only goal of the game in the second half after a fabulous individual run.

  • Thierry Henry Arsenal Inter

    San Siro, 2004

    Another magical Champions League night.

    After losing 3-0 to Inter at Highbury earlier in the group stage, Arsenal travelled to Italy needing a win to keeper their hopes of qualification alive,

    And they got the win they needed in the most impressive of fashions, thumping Inter in their own back yard by scoring four goals in an incredible second-half display.

    Thierry Henry opened the scoring before a deflected Christian Vieri strike drew the hosts level.

    Freddie Ljungberg restored Arsenal’s lead after the interval, however, before goals from Henry, Edu and Pires put the gloss on one of the greatest European nights in Arsenal's history.

  • David RocastleGetty

    White Hart Lane, 1987

    One for the older generation, but it’s one of Arsenal’s great away days.

    Trailing 1-0 in the League Cup semi-final away at north London rivals Tottenham, George Graham’s side mounted a stunning late fightback to seal a spot at Wembley.

    Ian Allinson scored the equaliser before David Rocastle struck in the final minute to send Arsenal through.

    Graham’s side went on to beat Liverpool in the final, a success that was seen by many as the catalyst for the two league titles that would follow in the next four years.

  • Stadio Comunale, 1980

    A win many consider as Arsenal’s greatest ever in European competition.

    The Gunners travelled to Turin with few giving them a hope of victory after a 1-1 draw with Juventus at Highbury in the first leg of their UEFA Cup Winners' Cup semi-final.

    No English side had ever won at the Stadio Comunale, and with the second leg locked at 0-0 with just a couple of minutes remaining, that record looked set to continue.

    Then, a ball in from the left was met by the head of 18-year-old striker Paul Vaessen, who planted his finish beyond the great Dino Zoff to earn Arsenal a truly historic 1-0 win and sent them to the final.