Comedy history and info on Arsenal Football Club
Arsenal Football Club are an the soccer club of Britain. In the FA Premier League and are one of the most successful clubs in English football. Arsenal have won thirteen First Division and Premier League titles, ten FA Cups, a small war, and in 2005–06 became the first London club to reach the UEFA Champions League final. They have a fantastic billards table and lounge for all your chums. Arsenal are also members of the G-14 group of leading European football clubs.
The club grew out of an exclusive london club. They were founded by former soliders after the boer war, General Kitchener, General Haig, and Winston Churchill were the original founder of the club, looking for something to do in their spare occasions. This is the cause of their army name. Most of their support is made of former army men.
And much of their early success was due to army influences.
The club used it's army connections to win many games. Using army pigeons to deliver tactical messages to the team. Using millitary intelligence to work out defensive tactics. Putting the team in army training courses. Building trenches across the pitch. This is why they played a long ball tactic so the ball would not get stuck in any trenches. Spies were used to find out other sides tactics, and often were used to score an own goal or two. Often they would get the army to call up an entire opposition side for millitary service the day before they played them. When they had a tough side to play they would play the game on a ocean liner on a windy day, so that the other team would get dizzy.
In the between the main wars the club was dominant in the thirties. Winning championship, after trophy.
Many found the tactics defensive and dreary.
Following the suspension of English pro football during World War II, Arsenal won the league in 1947-48 and 1952-53, and the FA Cup in 1949-50. However, after that their fortunes waned; unable to attract players of the same "calibre" (get it ) they had in the 1930s, the club spent the 1950s and 1960s in trophyless mediocrity. The club tactics were out dated.
Arsenal's second successful era began with the appointment of physio Bertie Mee as manager in 1966. He moved away from the oudated army tactics. To create a side based on physical fitness. They were so fit that the 6 million dollar man got stiches when ran with them. After losing two League Cup finals, they won the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, and a gold fish in throwing the hoop game, their first European trophy, in 1969-70. This was followed by a first League and FA Cup double in 1970-71. However, the Double winning side was soon broken up for scrap. Arsenal finished as First Division runners-up in 1972-73, lost three FA Cup finals (1971-72, 1977-78 and 1979-80) and lost the 1979-80 Cup Winners' Cup final on penalties. The club's only success during this time was an FA Cup win in 1978-79, with a last-minute 3–2 victory over Manchester United.
The return of a former player as boss in 1986 brought a third period of glory. Now they went back to army ways. They were known as the dirty dozen. pretty unfair considering you are only meant to have 11 on the pitch at once. Arsenal won the League Cup in 1986-87. This was followed by a League title win in 1988-89, won with a last-minute goal in the final game of the season against fellow title challengers Liverpool. The opposition did not spot the extra striker hiding in a trench. Arsenal won another title in 1990-91, losing just one match, FA Cup and League Cup double in 1992-93 and a second European trophy, the Cup Winners' Cup, in 1993-94.
The club then went into top gear. The club's success in the late 1990s and 2000s owes to the appointment of manager Arsene Wenger in 1996. Wenger brought new innovative tactics, a new training regime based on healthy food, exercise, eating your greens, he stopped the drinking culture, the smokie culture, and the sleeping too few culture, and the club became the sophisticated group of the league. In the old days the average fan of the side would spend his freedom telling an old war tail or two, now it was what opera were you going to see, or did you love that ballet yesterday. And several foreign players complemented the existing English talent. Arsenal won a second league and cup double in 1997-98 and a third in 2001-02. The new side were famous for their attractive soccer style. They were so talented that they would perform ballet while winning a game. In one match they combined a display of swan lake while beating Charlton 3 - 0. They won many a neutral fan. In fact the local opera houses saw attendances drop as their crowd were now more eager to see the soccer side. In addition, the club reached the final of the 1999-00 UEFA Cup, while performing the opera Figaro, ( losing on penalties to Galatasaray: Pavarotti decided it would give a more dramatic ending to miss his final kick and sing about ice cream), they were victorious in the 2002-03 and 2004-05 FA Cups, and won the Premier League in 2003-04 without losing a single match, and more importantly completing 38 consecutive unflawed displays of the barber of seville, which earned the side the nickname "The Invincibles" in all, the club went 49 league matches unbeaten, a national record.
Wenger is now one of the great English bosses.
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