George Graham called him “my colossus”; Arsène Wenger described him as a “professor of defence”. Fans honoured him as “Mr. Arsenal”. Today, we remember Arsenal’s greatest defender, the one, the only Tony Adams.
Adams has definitely gone down as an Arsenal great, knowing that a tall bronze casted figurine of him stands outside the North Bank. So allow me to take you back to the good old days, the days when Arsenal were lead and captained by arguably one of the best defenders to ever kick a football.
Tony Adams signed for Arsenal as a schoolboy in 1980. His first team debut came on 5th November 1983 against Sunderland, just four weeks after his 17th birthday. Adams only became a regular as of the 1985/1986 season. He won his first major trophy in 1987 in the Football League Cup final against Liverpool at England’s grandest football stage, Wembley.
The defenders progression was quick; he became Arsenal’s youngest ever skipper when he was given the captaincy at just the age of 21. Adams proved that his shoulders were big enough to carry Arsenal’s heavy cannon and remained captain until he hung up his boots, 14 years later.
Alongside Lee Dixon, Nigel Winterburn and Steve Bould, the England international was part of the “famous four”, which was known for its well-disciplined use of the offside trap under former manager George Graham.
He was the complete defender – perfectly timed tackles, read the game better than anyone else, and had the aerial aggression of a hawk. He was the defender every attacker shivered upon hearing his name.
Adams was not always admired. In his early days as Arsenal captain, he had to endure plenty of hate, the Daily Mirror depicted Adams with donkey ears the morning after he scored at both ends in Arsenal’s 1-1 draw at Manchester United. Opposing fans trolled him but it was not late before he responded.
While fans were mocking and making fun of him, Adams’ medals and trophies were stacking up. His strong discipline of the defence lead Arsenal in the League Cup in 1986/1987 and then to the First Division championship twice; the first in 1988/1889 in that famous final game win over Liverpool; the second in 1990/1991 where Arsenal fell short from being unbeaten, losing once all season.
Adams scored 48 goals during his stay at Highbury and plenty of them were very important ones. His headers that beat Totteham at Wembley in 1993 and Torino in the Cup Winners’ Cup quarter-final will live forever in every Gooner’s memory. The image of Adams lifting a trophy became a usual one, and everyone got used to seeing Mr. Arsenal celebrating cheerfully with a trophy above his head.
The arrival of Wenger in 1996 changed Adam’s style of playing. Under Graham, the player was incited to be direct meanwhile, Wenger favored a more expansive style, allowing the defenders to go forward in support of their attacking teammates. Adams shined in both styles of play but he flourished under Wenger, rightfully adapting to his role as a defender helping in attack. This approach was most fruitful on the final day of the 1997/1998 season when Adams struck a shot into the corner, guiding Arsenal to the podium once again. Who doesn’t remember Adams’ celebration in front of a crazy North Bank crowd? Despite being hammered with injuries in his 30s, Adams managed to finish on a high note, clinching the title at the Old Trafford in 2002.
The famous number 6 that has been worn by Arsenal’s greatest guardian now belongs to the highly-rated Laurent Koscielny. Him being my favorite player, I pray day and night for him to follow the footsteps of everyone’s favorite, and hopefully glorify the number 6 jersey that’s been held so high for so long.
