Arsenal and big name signings - a potted history

I HAVE never understood this obsession with the transfer window. Perhaps being an Arsenal fan I have just got used to the fact that we are never going to make the big, exciting signings of clubs like Chelsea and Manchester United.

In fact since I first started supporting the club back in the late 1970s, I can count on one hand the number of really big name signings we have made. So why would anyone think this year will be any different.

The first big signing I can recall was back in the summer of 1976. Terry Neill had just taken over as manager, from Spurs of all places, and he wanted to make a big impression. He certainly did just that with the signing of Malcolm MacDonald from Newcastle.

 

Malcolm MacDonald scored 29 in his first season at Highbury

At the time Super Mac was one of best strikers in the country and it was a great coup for the club. He went on to score 29 goals that season as Neill began building a side that would reach three consecutive FA Cup finals by the turn of the decade. Unfortunately Super Mac was forced to retire in 1979 due to a serious knee injury and missed the FA Cup success that year.

The early 1980s saw our best players depart (sound familiar?) and we were crying out for another signing to get excited about. The summer of 1982 brought one - Tony Woodcock. The former Nottingham Forest striker arrived from Cologne in a bid to fill the void left by the departure of Frank Stapleton a year earlier.

Tony Woodcock running at the Man. United defence in 1983

He was certainly a big name player at the time and a player I had always admired from his Forest days. He was a success on the pitch too, scoring 21 goals in his first season, and 23 in his second. But he could not inspire the team to glory and left four years later having won nothing with the club.

The following summer bought an even bigger arrival. Charlie Nicholas had scored over 50 goals for Celtic in the 1982-83 season and he was the hottest property in British football that summer. But he snubbed Manchester United and Liverpool to come to Highbury. There is no doubt this was a massive signing for the club at the time and excitement was at fever pitch as the season began.

Charlie Nicholas, who never lived up to the hype but always had nice hair

But Nicholas took time to settle and his lack of goals, just 3 by Christmas, contributed to the sacking of Neill in December. Nicholas quickly became the fans favourite but there is no doubt that he failed to live up to the hype on the pitch. His 2 goals that won the Littlewoods Cup in 1987 apart, he often flattered to deceive and left in 1988 as one of football's great wasted talents.

The signing of Nicholas was the last really exciting arrival until that of Ian Wright, 8 years later. Wrighty had come to prominence with 2 goals for Crystal Palace in the 1990 FA Cup final and we were all thrilled when George Graham completed the signing in September 1991.

Wrighty doing what he did best - celebrating another goal

However, his arrival coincided with the decline of the team that had won the title the previous season, and although Wrighy's goals helped us win the domestic cup double in 1993 and the European Cup Winners Cup in 1994, the team became far too reliant on him. Of course he did end up breaking the club's goal-scoring record in 1997 and left a hero after helping us win the double in 1998.

All those signings paled into insignificance in the summer of 1995 however, when not only did England captain David Platt arrive, but also Dennis Bergkamp. This remains the biggest and most exciting signing we have ever made. Bergkamp was a superstar of world football at the time and I remember looking on in disbelief when I saw the pictures of him in an Arsenal shirt on the back page of the Daily Mirror whilst on holiday that summer.

The picture that got me so excited - Dennis Bergkamp in an Arsenal shirt

This turned out to be not only the best signing in the clubs history but possibly in the history of English football as well. Quite simply, Bergkamp was the greatest footballer I had ever seen. Technically he was flawless and he inspired the team to seven major trophies in his 11 years at Highbury. The word legend is used too easily these days but it sums up Bergkamp perfectly.

Since then however, the nearest we have come to genuine big name signings are those of Andrey Arshavin in 2009 and Lukas Podolski last summer. Arshavin had been the star of Euro 2008 and was certainly an exciting arrival. At first he did not disappoint with a series of amazing performances (like the 4-goal haul at Anfield) but it soon went wrong and he left the club this summer after nearly two years in the wilderness.

The jury is still out on Podolski. As a German international of over 100 caps, there is no doubt he was a big name when he arrived, although most of us did not feel that pang of excitement we did for say Nicholas or Bergkamp.

Lukas Podolski, the latest big name signing

I believe he could yet become one of our best ever signings, although I guess there is also a chance he could become the new Arshavin given Arsene Wenger's insistence on playing him on the wing.

So in conclusion, Arsenal rarely sign big names players and when they have done so it has rarely had the desired effect. Bergkamp and Wright apart, the others failed to win a single trophy with the club and were unable to significantly inspire those around them. It has always been the lesser known signings who have shone at Arsenal - Thierry Henry, Patrick Vieira, Cesc Fabregas, Robin van Persie etc. so perhaps this time next year we will all be singing the praises of a certain Yaya Sanogo.



Yaya Sanogo - the new Thierry Henry??

With the start of the season less than four days away, that is what I will be trying to convince myself anyway.