On August 21, 2005, the Gunners visited Stamford Bridge. Drogba scored on Senderos's goal. The Blues won 1-0. Wenger's 500th game as coach of the Gunners ended in failure.
It was as if Pandora's box had been opened. For a long time after that, pieces of Arsenal's invincible armor fell off, but Wenger used his broad shoulders to protect batch after batch of young gunners to thrive.
Although the Gunners youth team subsequently failed to achieve their ambitions again and again, the professor still cultivated a number of potential players for England, a captain for Wales for the next ten years, a championship-winning striker for Manchester United, and a successor to Xavi for Spain. The midfield maestro.
At the same time, the professor is still alone at the front of the team, enduring the pressure and doubts of not winning the championship year after year.
It's not like he doesn't have a better place to go.
In the past nine years, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain have successively made invitations with great hospitality and high prices, but the professor only loves Arsenal.
He threw water bottles, struggled with zippers, and even had tears flashing in his eyes, but still did not kneel down.
Even if rival fans are ridiculing like a mountain and even if his own fans start to vote against it, he still firmly believes that he is shaping the best future for Arsenal.
"If one day I decide to leave, it will be because I feel I can no longer take the team forward."
Perhaps, only when Wenger turns around and leaves, people will understand the full significance of the professor to Arsenal and football.
This Saturday, Wenger will coach the Gunners for a thousand games, again at the Blue Bridge, Chelsea and Mourinho again.
In the pre-match press conference, Wenger was still full of emotion when he mentioned his 999 Gunners games.
"... Like a lot of people have said, my 500th game might be a big dividing point.
Before that, we won a lot of honors, but after that, we encountered great difficulties.
It was a time without trophies, the most difficult and sensitive period. Compared with the first half of coaching Arsenal, the second half required more investment and strength.
I accepted the challenge because we had to compete with a club that was losing 150 million a season and at the same time we had to make a profit of 30 million.
It’s like I’m telling you that tomorrow you have to race Usain Bolt with a 10kg sandbag strapped to your body, and you have to win…
Fortunately, we have come through, and last season's Triple Crown is the best proof.
We now have the best players in the world, Lin Yun, Modric, Chamberlain, Arteta, Wilshere... We are confident to win everything! "
Among the Gunners' strongest lineup selected by the media during Wenger's 18 years of coaching, only Lin Yun is now in the lineup.
In the past nine years, the Gunners' main lineup has been in flux. Since Vieira left the team, as many as five captains have left the team. There is no one in the starting eleven in the game where he coached the 500th game. They are still at Arsenal, but looking at the opposite Chelsea, Cech, Terry and Lampard are still members of the Blue Bridge. Two of them have started for the team this round, and Chelsea's captain today is still Terry. .
"From the league away victory over Blackburn Rovers on October 12, 1996 to today's away challenge to Chelsea, Wenger has ushered in his 1,000th game as Arsenal coach.
In 17 and a half years, whether it was 49 games undefeated or 8 years without a championship, he has always stuck here. He has become the symbol of this team, the symbol of this team, and the belief of this team. The players definitely hope to help Wenger celebrate this special day with a hearty victory. "
"I don't know if the coming of the Champions League highlight has affected the Blues' status in the league. Chelsea experienced a nightmare round of league last weekend. Not only did two of their players get sent off with red cards, but even head coach Mourinho was sent off. The team was sent to the stands and lost 0-1 to the mediocre Aston Villa.
Now they are 6 points behind Arsenal with one more game. With only 9 rounds left in the league, it can be said that the championship situation is quite unfavorable. The Blues must take all three points in this game to retain it. Hope of winning the championship. "
"Chelsea started 4-2-3-1.
Goalkeeper: 1-Cech;
Defenders: 2-Ivanovic, 24-Cahill, 26-Terry, 28-Azpilicueta;
Midfielder: 21-Matic, 4-Luiz;
Midfielder: 14-Schürrle, 11-Oscar, 17-Hazard;
Forward: 29-Eto'o. "
"As for Arsenal, Wilshere and Theo Walcott are still absent due to injuries. The good news is that Rosicky has finally returned from injury.
The professor put up exactly the same formation as Chelsea.
Goalkeeper: 1-Szczesny;
Defenders: 3-Sagna, 4-Pertesacker, 6-Koscielny, 28-Gibbs;
Midfielder: 8-Arteta, 20-Flamini;
Midfielder: 7-Rosicki, 19-Chamberlain, 20-Modric;
Forward: 11-Lin Yun. "
Arsenal kicked off first, and the players showed a strong desire to attack. They pressed hard from the beginning. Various concise and fast ground passes made their offense like mercury pouring down the ground. They attacked the Blues goal for five seconds. minute.
Chelsea did not complete its first attack of the game until the 6th minute of the game.
Schürrle made a pass from the right and Eto'o hit the goal, but Szczesny made a timely attack to resolve it.
Arsenal responded 1 minute later. Rosicky made a direct pass. Lin Yun's left-footed shot from the edge of the penalty area was bravely saved by Cech.
Chelsea almost took the lead in the 10th minute.
Schürrle passed the ball in the counterattack. Eto'o dunked Sagna on the right side of the penalty area and kicked a high-quality curve ball with his left foot. Unfortunately, the football hit the side net.
The goal looked like it had been scored. Many Chelsea fans were already cheering. Even Mourinho jumped up excitedly, but he soon discovered that he had made an own goal.
Chelsea's midfield and frontcourt began to become somewhat active, and Hazard frequently dribbled the ball out, but the defensive midfielder composed of Arteta and Flamini nipped his threat in the cradle time and time again.
In the 16th minute of the game, Art successfully stole Hazard again and made a big-footed clearance. Modric got the ball in Chelsea's half.
Arsenal once again gained the right to attack, and Chelsea quickly shrank its defense.
Magic Flute encountered a high-intensity interception from Chelsea. Instead of continuing to advance with the ball, he kicked his heel and handed the ball to Rosicky who came in from behind.
Rosicky took the ball a few steps forward, and when Chelsea's defenders were pressing up, he suddenly passed the ball to Oxlade-Chamberlain who came in from the other side.
Chamberlain was nearly unguarded and received the ball comfortably.
He even had time to look up and take a good look, then pushed the ball forward, made a run, and passed the ball long.
This passing posture is extremely stretched and looks like shooting.
The ball did seem to be flying towards the goal, but halfway through it suddenly drew an arc that was so exaggerated that it had no friends and came to the left side of the penalty area.
Lin Yun had been lying in wait here for a long time. He rushed forward two steps and arrived at the landing point.
Terry quickly followed up and continued to press against her.
Lin Yun stretched out his right foot.
The football clung to his feet and he took it off comfortably.
The so-called comfort means that the football is flying at a very fast speed, but it is suddenly intercepted by one foot in a weightless manner, presenting a picture that even people who do not understand football will find very beautiful.
It was as if the whole world came to a standstill.
Of course, the so-called pause is just an illusion of the audience. The experienced Terry will not be fooled by this illusion. He decisively stretched out his feet to steal the ball the moment Lin Yun touched it.
Lin Yun, however, tipped the ball lightly as he had expected it.
After being stopped, the football didn't even leave his feet, and just flew up again. However, this time the football did not go over Terry's head, but flew past his chest at a height of half a high ball. The feeling of being able to break the ball within a centimeter but not being able to touch it made Terry so depressed that he wanted to vomit blood.
The football fell to the ground and bounced slightly.
Lin Yun took a step forward and slapped the football hard with his left foot.
Beautiful volley, fatal volley!
There's something going on today, that's all for now, sorry...
(End of chapter)
