An all-English Arsenal XI from the Wenger era.Arsenal’s deadline day signing of England striker Danny Welbeck from Manchester United continued a growing trend at the club, with Arsene Wenger continuing his recent policy of fielding more homegrown players in his squad.
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Some of the best player’s in Arsenal’s history have featured for the club during Wenger’s reign, with the likes of Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp and Patrick Vieira helping the Gunners to one of the most successful periods in their history.
Many of these big names were brought in from abroad, however, with Wenger often criticised earlier in his time as Gunners boss that the team did not include enough English players. That is certainly not the case now with Welbeck joining the likes of Jack Wilshere, Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain as first-team regulars at the Emirates Stadium.
There have been other greats from this county to represent Arsenal in Wenger’s time in charge as well, and CaughtOffside has assembled a best XI of them here:
GK) David Seaman
One of Arsenal and England’s best ever goalkeepers, David Seaman was a key player for Arsenal in the rarly part of Arsene Wenger’s time in charge, helping the club to two double victories in 1998 and 2002, as well as captaining the side to victory in the FA Cup final in 2003, as pictured above.
DR) Lee Dixon
A superb right-back and one of the experienced members of the team left over from George Graham’s time in charge of Arsenal, there’s no doubt that Lee Dixon was a crucial player for Wenger in the earlier years of his reign at Highbury. Still regarded as an Arsenal legend, Dixon’s influence at the club will no doubt have helped Arsenal’s younger players from abroad settle into English football.
DL) Ashley Cole
Although he later went on to play for Chelsea and become hugely unpopular with Arsenal fans, Ashley Cole was a fantastic player for the Gunners as he forced his way into Arsene Wenger’s side after coming through the club’s youth system. The club certainly haven’t had as good a left-back since, though another Englishman Kieran Gibbs is certainly doing a good job since becoming first choice in recent years.
DC) Sol Campbell
A towering centre-back and one of the best defenders in the Premier League era, Sol Campbell will have to go down as one of Arsene Wenger’s most inspired signings as he made the highly controversial move from north London rivals Tottenham Hotspur in the summer of 2001. Campbell was quite simply world class at his best and even returned for a second spell with the club towards the end of his career.
DC) Tony Adams
Mr Arsenal, Captain Fantastic, there is arguably no player English or otherwise who better sums up Arsenal at their best than Tony Adams. The former defender was a rock for the club as he spent his entire career in north London, winning a whole host of trophies and bouncing back from alcholism problems to continue to be a regular for Arsenal well into his late 30s.
MR) Theo Walcott
A current star of this Arsenal team, Theo Walcott has grown to become a key player for the Gunners and for England in recent times after initially struggling to fulfill the enormous potential seen in him as a youngster. Signed from Southampton when he was just 16, Walcott has had some bad luck with injuries, but will provide Arsenal with a welcome boost when he finally returns to the first-team.
ML) Paul Merson
An old Arsenal favourite, Paul Merson may not have lasted long under Arsene Wenger at Arsenal, but he remains one of the club’s greats from the late 80s and early 90s, and proved a useful member of the team when the Frenchman first took over at Highbury in 1996.
MC) Ray Parlour
A player who was reborn under Arsene Wenger, Ray Parlour went from being mostly a backup player at Arsenal to one of the most important members of the team in the late 90s and early 00s. Although never a regular for England, winning only ten caps for the Three Lions, he was the definition of under-rated, becoming a highly energetic and committed performer with an eye for the occasional spectacular goal, including his memorable effort against Chelsea in the 2002 FA Cup final to seal a second double in four years. In addition, Parlour was later a member of the club’s famous ‘Invincibles’ side of 2004.
MC) Jack Wilshere
A player yet to reach his best potential, but Jack Wilshere is certainly among the most naturally talented Englishmen that Arsene Wenger will have worked with. The 22-year-old is blessed with great technique on his left foot, and looked a wonderful talent when he first broke into the team as a teenager. Injuries have held him back in recent times, but Wilshere still deserves his place in Wenger’s best English XI.
FC) Danny Welbeck
Although he is yet to kick a ball as an Arsenal player since making the deadline day move from rivals Manchester United, Danny Welbeck is an exciting signing for the club and one of very few English strikers to play for the team under Arsene Wenger. The 23-year-old will presumably turn out to be better than the infamous Francis Jeffers, and goes straight in upfront in this all-English Arsenal XI.
FC) Ian Wright
Finally, an easy selection to partner Welbeck upfront is the legendary Ian Wright. One of the finest strikers in Arsenal’s history, Wright is another who did not get much of a chance to shine for the England national team, but still established himself as a Premier League great with a superb goalscoring record for the Gunners, coming in at second place in their all-time goalscorers list. Only Thierry Henry and Dennis Bergkamp could realistically keep Wright out of an overall best Arsenal XI, and he fully deserves his place in this side even if he fell out of favour with Arsene Wenger towards the end of his career with the north London club.
Arsenal’s best English XI under Arsene Wenger in full: