The week Arsenal's invincibles weren't invincible
24Three days before one of the biggest matches of English football in 2004, Arsenal’s treble dreams were over.
Arsene Wenger and Arsenal had ran through everybody in the Premier League and with eight matches remaining were still unbeaten, needing just three more wins to confirm a third league title in six years.
Manchester United, the current English champions, had eliminated them from the FA Cup semi-final courtesy of a Paul Scholes winner.
Arsenal had lost before in this season: to Middlesbrough in a League Cup semi-final and to Inter Milan and Dynamo Kiev in the Champions League group stages.
Those defeats, however, mattered very little in the grand scheme of things.
So, reeling from a failure to retain their FA Cup for a third successive year, Arsenal returned home to Highbury to meet Chelsea in a Champions League quarter final.
1-1 from the first leg at Stamford Bridge, Arsenal had the away goals advantage and were favourites to not only win the tie but the entire tournament for the first time.
Especially so after Real Madrid and AC Milan were both dumped out of the Champions League in the last eight.
It left a pool containing Porto, Deportivo and Monaco – with a London side to join them in the final four.
In the end, Arsenal’s mini-capitulation continued, with Wayne Bridge’s late winner confirming their exit.
Chelsea would have to wait a further eight years for a Champions League and whilst Arsenal remained invincible and won the Premier League, they are still yet to win the Champions League.
#AFC #CFC #UCL
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Voice: Jake Doyle (@jakedoyle93)
Illustrations: Jake Doyle (@jakedoyle93)
Words: Jake Doyle (@jakedoyle93)
Edit: Jake Doyle (@jakedoyle93)
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