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The 1987–88 season was Arsenal Football Club's 62nd consecutive season in the top flight of English football.[1][2] Arsenal finished sixth in the Football League First Division. Although the team again reached the final of the League Cup, Arsenal could not replicate the previous season's success, losing 3-2 to Luton Town. Arsenal lost in the quarterfinals of the FA Cup to Nottingham Forest.
| 1987–88 season | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Chairman | Peter Hill-Wood | ||
| Manager | George Graham | ||
| Stadium | Highbury | ||
| First Division | 6th | ||
| FA Cup | Quarter-finals | ||
| League Cup | Runners-up | ||
| Top goalscorer | League: Alan Smith (11) All: Alan Smith (16) | ||
| Highest home attendance | 54,703 vs. Liverpool (15 August 1987) | ||
| Lowest home attendance | 18,321 vs. Doncaster Rovers (6 October 1987) | ||
| Average home league attendance | 30,111 | ||
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Arsenal saw several notable changes in the transfer market. Charlie Nicholas, hardly playing, departed and defender Viv Anderson left for Manchester United. Manager George Graham looked to strengthen Arsenal's defensive options, bringing in Nigel Winterburn at left-back and later in the season, Lee Dixon at right-back. Brian Marwood was also signed in the late window as an alternative to Martin Hayes, and soon formed a good relationship with striker Alan Smith. Michael Thomas and Paul Merson, Arsenal academy products, also became first team regulars.
Near the end of the season, 21-year-old Tony Adams was named captain.
Season summary edit
After finishing fourth in the league and winning the Football League Cup a year earlier, Arsenal slipped to finish sixth. They did reach the League Cup final for the second year in a row. Although Arsenal took a 2–1 lead against Luton Town at Wembley, Nigel Winterburn missed a penalty which would have given them a 3–1 lead, and ended up losing the game 3–2.[3] Arsenal were quarter-finalists in the FA Cup, losing to Nottingham Forest.[4]
In the league, Arsenal got off to a slow start, winning just one of their first five games, before going top of the table with a 10-match winning run. They won 14 consecutive games between 12 September and 17 November 1987, in all competitions, a club record at the time.[4]
However, Arsenal then went into freefall, winning just one of their next 11 league games. Injury to David O'Leary weakened the team's traditionally strong defense. Liverpool, the eventual league champion, easily won both their matches against Arsenal.[4] Although their form improved during the final four months of the season, Arsenal could only manage a sixth-place finish. Young midfielders Michael Thomas and Paul Merson became regular members of the first team during this season.[3] Defender Tony Adams, still only 21, succeeded Kenny Sansom as captain, on 6 March 1988 against Tottenham Hotspur at Highbury.
Arsenal had agreed an £850,000 deal for Leicester City striker Alan Smith two months before the end of the previous season, although he had remained on loan back at the East Midlands club until the end of the campaign.[5] Smith finished as Arsenal's top scorer in his first season at the club, finding the net 16 times in all competitions. Charlie Nicholas, meanwhile, fell into Arsenal obscurity. After playing in the first three matches, he exclusively featured for the reserves before being sold to Aberdeen in January of 1988.[3][4]
A new signing at the start of the season was Nigel Winterburn, who arrived from Wimbledon to fill the right-back position left vacant by the sale of Viv Anderson to Manchester United.[4] Michael Thomas started the 1987/88 season at right back but his athleticism and passing ability soon brought a move to central midfield. From January 1988 Winterburn, the left-footed defender initially had to settle for the right-back role. Later signings at the club, were defender Lee Dixon in January 1988, who started in six matches as right-back, as well as winger Brian Marwood in March 1988, who started in four before the end of the season.[3][6][7]
Arsenal were in a great run of form when they travelled to The Dell to face Southampton on 9 April 1988. Arsenal were unbeaten in eight league games and, even though they were missing Tony Adams and David O’Leary, Southampton won 4–2. All the talk was centred on Southampton's new star, Alan Shearer who, at 17 years and 240 days, and broke Jimmy Greaves’ record of the youngest player to score a hat-trick in the English top flight. It had also been 21 years since a player had scored a hat-trick on his full debut in English football.[8][9]
Squad edit
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Top scorers edit
First Division edit
Alan Smith 11- Michael Thomas 9
- David Rocastle 7
- Perry Groves 6
- Paul Davis 5
- Paul Merson 5
Results edit
First Division edit
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | Everton | 40 | 19 | 13 | 8 | 53 | 27 | +26 | 70 | |
| 5 | Queens Park Rangers | 40 | 19 | 10 | 11 | 48 | 38 | +10 | 67 | |
| 6 | Arsenal | 40 | 18 | 12 | 10 | 58 | 39 | +19 | 66 | |
| 7 | Wimbledon[a] | 40 | 14 | 15 | 11 | 58 | 47 | +11 | 57 | Disqualified from European Cup Winners' Cup[10] |
| 8 | Newcastle United | 40 | 14 | 14 | 12 | 55 | 53 | +2 | 56 |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored
Notes:
| 19 August 1987 2 | Manchester United | 0–0 | Arsenal | Manchester |
| Stadium: Old Trafford |
| 22 August 1987 3 | Queen's Park Rangers | 2–0 | Arsenal | London |
| Stadium: Loftus Road |
| 29 August 1987 4 | Arsenal | 6–0 | Portsmouth | London |
| Stadium: Highbury |
| 31 August 1987 5 | Luton Town | 1–1 | Arsenal | Luton |
| Stadium: Kenilworth Road |
| 12 September 1987 6 | Nottingham Forest | 0–1 | Arsenal | Nottingham |
| Stadium: City Ground |
| 26 September 1987 8 | Arsenal | 1–0 | West Ham United | London |
| Stadium: Highbury |
| 3 October 1987 9 | Charlton Athletic | 0–3 | Arsenal | London |
| Stadium: Selhurst Park |
| 10 October 1987 10 | Arsenal | 2–0 | Oxford United | London |
| Stadium: Highbury |
| 18 October 1987 11 | Tottenham Hotspur | 1–2 | Arsenal | London |
| Stadium: White Hart Lane |
| 24 October 1987 12 | Arsenal | 2–1 | Derby County | London |
| Stadium: Highbury |
| 31 October 1987 13 | Newcastle United | 0–1 | Arsenal | Newcastle |
| Stadium: St James' Park |
| 14 November 1987 15 | Norwich City | 2–4 | Arsenal | Norwich |
| Stadium: Carrow Road |
| 21 November 1987 16 | Arsenal | 0–1 | Southampton | London |
| Stadium: Highbury |
| 28 November 1987 17 | Watford | 2–0 | Arsenal | London |
| Stadium: Vicarage Road |
| 5 December 1987 18 | Arsenal | 3–1 | Sheffield Wednesday | London |
| Stadium: Highbury |
| 13 December 1987 19 | Coventry City | 0–0 | Arsenal | Coventry |
| Stadium: Highfield Road |
| 26 December 1987 21 | Arsenal | 0–2 | Nottingham Forest | London |
| Stadium: Highbury |
| 28 December 1987 22 | Wimbledon | 3–1 | Arsenal | London |
| Stadium: Plough Lane |
| 1 January 1988 23 | Portsmouth | 1–1 | Arsenal | Portsmouth |
| Stadium: Fratton Park |
| 2 January 1988 24 | Arsenal | 0–0 | Queen's Park Rangers | London |
| Stadium: Highbury |
| 24 January 1988 26 | Arsenal | 1–2 | Manchester United | London |
| Stadium: Highbury |
| 13 February 1988 27 | Arsenal | 2–1 | Luton Town | London |
| Stadium: Highbury |
| 27 February 1988 28 | Arsenal | 4–0 | Charlton Athletic | London |
| Stadium: Highbury |
| 6 March 1988 29 | Arsenal | 2–1 | Tottenham Hotspur | London |
| Stadium: Highbury |
| 19 March 1988 30 | Arsenal | 1–1 | Newcastle United | London |
| Stadium: Highbury |
| 26 March 1988 31 | Derby County | 0–0 | Arsenal | Derby |
| Stadium: Baseball Ground |
| 30 March 1988 32 | Oxford United | 0–0 | Arsenal | Oxford |
| Stadium: Manor Ground |
| 2 April 1988 33 | Chelsea | 1–1 | Arsenal | London |
| Stadium: Stamford Bridge |
| 4 April 1988 34 | Arsenal | 2–0 | Norwich City | London |
| Stadium: Highbury |
| 9 April 1988 35 | Southampton | 4–2 | Arsenal | Southampton |
| Stadium: The Dell |
| 12 April 1988 36 | West Ham United | 0–1 | Arsenal | London |
| Stadium: Upton Park |
| 30 April 1988 38 | Sheffield Wednesday | 3–3 | Arsenal | Sheffield |
| Stadium: Hillsborough Stadium |
| 2 May 1988 39 | Arsenal | 1–1 | Coventry City | London |
| Stadium: Highbury |
| 7 May 1988 40 | Everton | 1–2 | Arsenal | Liverpool |
| Stadium: Goodison Park |
Football League Cup edit
| 23 September 1987 Second round (1st Leg) | Doncaster Rovers | 0–3 | Arsenal | Doncaster |
| Stadium: Belle Vue |
| 6 October 1987 Second round (2nd Leg) | Arsenal | 1–0 (4–0 agg.) | Doncaster Rovers | London |
| Stadium: Highbury |
| 27 October 1987 Third round | Arsenal | 3–0 | Bournemouth | London |
| Stadium: Highbury |
| 17 November 1987 Fourth round | Arsenal | 3–0 | Stoke City | London |
| Stadium: Highbury |
| 20 January 1988 Quarter-Final | Sheffield Wednesday | 0–1 | Arsenal | Sheffield |
| Stadium: Hillsborough Stadium |
| 7 February 1988 Semi-Final (1st Leg) | Everton | 0–1 | Arsenal | Liverpool |
| Stadium: Goodison Park |
| 24 April 1988 Final | Arsenal | 2–3 | Luton Town | London |
| Hayes, Smith | Stadium: Wembley Stadium Attendance: 95,732 |
FA Cup edit
Arsenal entered the FA Cup in the third round proper, in which they were drawn to face Millwall.
| 9 January 1988 Third round | Arsenal | 2–0 | Millwall | London |
| Hayes, Rocastle | Stadium: Highbury Attendance: 42,083 |
| 30 January 1988 Fourth round | Brighton & Hove Albion | 1–2 | Arsenal | Brighton |
| Richardson, Groves | Stadium: Goldstone Ground Attendance: 26,467 |
| 20 February 1988 Fifth round | Arsenal | 2–1 | Manchester United | London |
| Smith, o.g. | Stadium: Highbury Attendance: 54,161 |
| 12 March 1988 Sixth round | Arsenal | 1–2 | Nottingham Forest | London |
| Rocastle | Stadium: Highbury Attendance: 50,157 |
See also edit
References edit
- ^ James, Josh (18 June 2013). "All-time Arsenal". Arsenal F.C. Archived from the original on 22 June 2023. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
- ^ Ross, James; Heneghan, Michael; Orford, Stuart; Culliton, Eoin (25 August 2016). "English Clubs Divisional Movements 1888–2016". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Archived from the original on 22 June 2023. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
- ^ a b c d Soar, Phil (2011). Arsenal: The Official Illustrated History, 1996-2011. Hamlyn. pp. 104–106. ISBN 978-0600623533.
- ^ a b c d e Soar, Phil; Tyler, Martin (1995). Arsenal: Official History. London: Hamlyn. pp. 211–213. ISBN 0600588262.
- ^ Tanner, Rob (8 November 2019). "'I'm not going to play against Arsenal, am I?!' – when Alan Smith joined Arsenal from Leicester, then played for Leicester against Arsenal". The Athletic. Archived from the original on 27 May 2022.
- ^ Spurling, Jon. All Guns Blazing: Arsenal in the 1980s. Aureus Publishing.
- ^ James, Josh (2018). Arsenal: The Complete Record. deCoubertin Books.
- ^ Pye, Steven (13 August 2020). "When Alan Shearer scored a hat-trick on his full debut – while on £35 a week". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 31 October 2023.
- ^ "Today in history: Alan Shearer becomes the youngest player to score hat-trick". Modern Ghana. 1 March 2022. Archived from the original on 30 April 2022.
- ^ English teams were banned by UEFA from its competitions from season 1985–86 until 1990–91 because of the Heysel Disaster.