Arsenal left backs - A potted history.

Arsenal have a history of great left backs, going back to the days of Eddie Hapgood in the 1930's, but such has been the consistency of the players in that position the club has only had 6 regular left backs over the last 45 years.

Bob McNab was signed by manager Bertie Mee from Huddersfield Town in 1966 and went on to make 365 appearances over the next nine years, scoring 6 goals. He helped the club win the European Fairs Cup in 1970 and the League and FA Cup double the following year. He also played in the 1972 FA Cup final defeat to Leeds United and the League Cup final defeats in 1968 and 1969, to Leeds and Swindon Town respectively. McNab left for Wolverhampton Wanderers in the summer of 1975, before ending his playing career in the United States, where he still lives.

Bob McNab - won the double.

Sammy Nelson, a Northern Ireland international who came through the ranks at Arsenal, was understudy to McNab for several years before finally holding down a regular spot after his departure in 1975. He played a total of 338 times for the club, scoring 12 goals, and won an FA Cup winners medal in 1979 with victory over Manchester United. He also played in the losing finals of 1978 and 1980, against Ipswich Town and West Ham United respectively, as well as the final of the European Cup Winners Cup, also in 1980 - a penalty shoot-out defeat to Valencia. He joined Brighton and Hove Albion in 1981 and played in their FA Cup final defeat to Manchester United two years later, before retiring. He now works in the insurance industry.

Sammy Nelson - an FA Cup winner

Manager Terry Neill paid over £1million for Crystal Palace left back Kenny Sansom in the summer of 1980, in a swap deal for Clive Allen, and he quickly became Nelson's successor. Sansom was a regular in the England side during his 8 years at Highbury and held the record for most capped player at the club until Patrick Vieira surpassed it 20 years later. In total Sansom played 394 times for Arsenal, scoring 6 goals, and won a League Cup winners medal in 1987, captaining the side in the 2-1 victory over Liverpool. He also played in the final the following year, a 3-2 defeat to Luton Town. Sansom moved to Newcastle United in the summer of 1988, but he never recaptured his best form in the North-East and returned to London to play for Queens Park Rangers a year later. He later played for Coventry City, Everton, Brentford and Watford and now works in the Arsenal media department.

Kenny Sansom with the League Cup in 1987, his only success at Arsenal.

Nigel Winterburn had been signed by George Graham in 1987 and initially played at right back until Sansom's departure. His first full season in the side saw Arsenal win their first League title in 18 years, and Winterburn played in every match. He went on to become one of the most successful players in the clubs history, winning further League titles in 1991 and 1998 and the FA Cup in 1993 and 1998. He also played in the European Cup Winners Cup final success over Parma in 1994, and the final defeat to Real Zaragoza the following year. In total Winterburn played 579 times for the club, putting him fourth in the all-time list behind David O'Leary, Tony Adams and Lee Dixon, and he scored 12 goals in his 13 year career at Highbury. The only real surprise was that he did not play more for England, the consistency of Stuart Pearce restricting him to just 2 caps. He left in the summer of 2000 to finish his career at West Ham United.

Nigel Winterburn - won 3 titles, 2 FA Cups and a ECWC

Brazilian Silvinho briefly replaced Winterburn in 2000 but manager Arsene Wenger was unable to hold back the progress of Ashley Cole, and he became a regular in 2001. Often described as the best left back of his generation, Cole became a regular in the England side and made 224 appearances for Arsenal, scoring 9 times, in his six years in the first team. He won league title medals in 2002 and 2004, as part of the Invincibles side, and lifted the FA Cup in 2002, 2003 and 2005. He also played in the side that lost to Liverpool in the 2001 FA Cup final, and to Barcelona in the 2006 Champions League final. He left for Chelsea in acrimonious circumstances in August 2006, where he has since added to his honours.

Ashley Cole - part of the Invincibles team.

Frenchman Gael Clichy had been understudy to Cole since 2003 but made the left back position his own after the laters departure in 2006. He qualified for a Premier League title medal in 2004 and was in the squad for the FA Cup final success against Manchester United a year later, while he played in the League Cup final defeats to Chelsea in 2007 and Birmingham in 2011. In the end he actually made more appearances for the club than his more famous predecessor, 256 in total, scoring just twice. Clichy left in the summer of 2011 to join Manchester City.

Gael Clichy - the last link to the Invincibles left this summer.

So who will be next in line? This season has seen Kieran Gibbs and new signing Andre Santos fight over the left back slot. Gibbs came through the ranks at the club and has played over 50 times since making his breakthrough in 2008, while Brazilian Santos joined from Fenebache on transfer deadline day in August and has scored twice for the club already. Of course they both have a long way to go until they can join the illustrious list mentioned above, but it does appear as though the club has once again found the players to continue this great tradition.