Invincibles & Near-Invincibles XI

For a long time this season, it looked as if Liverpool would match Arsenal’s record of the 2003/04 season and go the whole season unbeaten.
Then Watford came along and beat them convincingly by 3 goals to nil and that was that. They have played some fantastic football so far this season up until the enforced break due to the Corona virus.

Up to the break, their astonishing record of 27 wins, 1 draw and 1 defeat was quite incredible. The Liverpool side have steamrollered through the season, with unnerving ease. They also won the Club World Championships earlier on this season.

The outbreak of the Corona Virus across the world has resulted in serious illness and death to thousands.
The words of Liverpool’s former manager Bill Shankly seem quite crass at this time. “Some people think football is a matter of life and death. I assure you, it’s much more serious than that”.

Obviously Shankly didn’t mean it in a malicious way but with the season in limbo, there is uncertainty of what will happen next.
The season might end now or carry on in a few weeks time. Most fans have said that Liverpool should be handed the title and others want the season to be declared null and void.

After Liverpool’s defeat to Watford, they have now lost one game. The Arsenal Championship-winning team of the 1990/91 season also lost just one game. Arsenal went all 38 games unbeaten in the 2003/04 season.

I thought that it would be a good idea to put together a Best Eleven from all three teams. I have chosen eleven players from the Arsenal sides of 1990/91 and 2003/04 and also the Liverpool team from this year.
I will be judging the players based on their performances in the seasons mentioned and not for anything else.
The team will play in a 4-4-2 formation (4 defenders, 4 midfielders and 2 strikers).

Goalkeeper:
David Seaman (Arsenal 1990/91), Jens Lehmann (Arsenal 2003/04) Alisson (Liverpool 2019/20)
Out of the three, I personally think that David Seaman should get the nod.
Although both Lehmann and Alisson were both top goalkeepers, they have both got a mistake in them and their form was erratic.
Seaman only conceded 18 goals over the course of the whole league season. He also claimed 29 clean sheets out of 50 games over the 1990/91 season in all competitions. For these reasons, ‘Safe Hands’ takes the number one jersey.

Left back:
Nigel Winterburn (Arsenal 1990/91), Ashley Cole (Arsenal 2003/04), Andy Robertson (Liverpool 2019/20)
Ashley Cole is the winner for me out of these three. He was a fantastic left back, great going forward and equally good at defending.
In the 2003/04 season he played in 32 games and made 5 assists for his team mates. That figure could be a lot higher, but it’s worth noting that goals came from all over the Arsenal team in the 2003/04 season and the assists were equally shared out too.

Right back:
Lee Dixon (Arsenal 1990/91), Lauren (Arsenal 2003/04), Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool 2019/20)
Dixon was Arsenal’s penalty taker and score five times from the spot in the 1990/91 season. Lauren was a tough-nut right back who, just like Ashley Cole, would run forward. He also covered for Freddie Ljungberg when the Swede came in from the right and would go to the centre.
21 year old Trent Alexander-Arnold has been a real sensation at Liverpool in the last couple of years. His electric pace and range of passing means he is my choice as right back for the dream team.

Centre backs:
Tony Adams, Steve Bould (Arsenal 1990/91), Sol Campbell, Kolo Toure (Arsenal 2003/04), Dejan Lovren, Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool 2019/20)
As I said earlier, Arsenal only conceded 18 goals in the whole of the 1990/91 season and that was due to their fantastic back four and goalkeeper.
Tony Adams was one of the best defenders in the league despite ongoing alcohol problems. He served 58 days in prison for a drink-driving offence midway through the 1990/91 season.
Steve Bould was Adams’ partner in the centre of the Arsenal back line in the 1990/91 season and played in every game. His contribution was vital to the Arsenal cause in that Championship-winning season.
Sol Campbell and Kolo Toure were a decent centre back partnership but I think that they were the weakest partnership of the three.
Virgil van Dijk continues to get glowing reviews from fans, pundits and fellow players and quite rightly so. Dejan Lovren gets fewer plaudits but gets on with his job in an efficient and unassuming way.
My centre back partnership for the dream team will be Tony Adams and Virgil van Dijk.

Left winger:
Paul Merson (Arsenal 1990/91), Robert Pires (Arsenal 2003/04), Sadio Mane (Liverpool 2019/20)
All three have very strong cases to feature on the left wing. Paul Merson was my hero when I was growing up and was a great goalscorer and also a scorer of great goals. He played up front as well as out on the left so has versatility on his side.
Robert Pires was sensational in the Invincibles season. He scored a very impressive 14 times from out on the left wing. He also chipped in with 11 assists in the 36 games that he played in.
Sadio Mane can play up front as well as on the wing, just as Paul Merson could in the early 90’s for Arsenal. The Senegalese international has come up with 14 goals and 8 assists in 26 games this season.
Purely for the skill, speed and all-round play, I think that Robert Pires should take the position out on the left wing for the dream team.

Right winger:
Anders Limpar (Arsenal 1990/91), Freddie Ljungberg (Arsenal 2003/04), Mo Salah (Liverpool 2019/20)
Anders Limpar joined Arsenal as virtually unknown to Arsenal fans in the summer of 1990. He signed from Italian club Cremonese and scored 11 times in 34 appearances in his first season at Highbury.
Freddie Ljungberg featured in 30 league games for Arsenal in their Invincible season, scoring 4 and making 5 assists. He was a very attacking winger but his best season for Arsenal was two seasons earlier. In that season he was Arsenal’s Player of the Year.
Mo Salah can play as a winger or up front. With 16 goals in 26 games, he is the most prolific of the 3 right wingers by some distance. He also made 6 assists until the enforced break. Salah is the man for the dream team.

Central midfielders:
Paul Davis and Michael Thomas (Arsenal 1990/91), Gilberto Silva and Patrick Vieira (Arsenal 2003/04), Georginio Wijnaldum, Jordan Henderson (Liverpool 2019/20)
Davis and Thomas were grafters in the Arsenal midfield but only shared five goals between the two of them.
Gilberto Silva and Patrick Vieira were a real midfield force to be reckoned with in the 2003/04 season. Gilberto was a bit of an unsung hero in the Invincibles team with many of his team mates stealing the limelight. He was still a World Cup winner though, having won the 2002 tournament with Brazil.
Vieira was well-known by the 2003/04 season and was a World-Class central midfielder. A tough-tackling, no-nonsense midfielder who captained the history making side.
Liverpool have had several central midfielders over the course of the season; I have chosen Wijnaldum and Henderson as the central misdfield pair.
Wijnaldum and Henderson are both hard-working midfielders with Wijnaldum able to play in every position in midfield.
Henderson is the current captain at Liverpool and has scored 3 goals and made 5 assists in 25 games. He has been at Anfield since 2011.
My two choices for the Dream Team are Gio Wijnaldum and Patrick Vieira. Vieira gets the award for his strength and experience, Wijnaldum for his versatility.

Strikers:
Alan Smith and Kevin Campbell (Arsenal 1990/91), Thierry Henry and Dennis Bergkamp (2003/04), Divock Origi and Roberto Firminho (Liverpool 2019/20)
Alan Smith finished this season as top goalscorer in the League. He had also won the Golden Boot two seasons previously when Arsenal won the League.
Kevin Campbell was a young up-and-coming striker in 1990/91 and it was in that season he came into his own. He was a strong striker who was difficult to out-muscle off the ball and also had a lot of pace.
Thierry Henry became Arsenal’s top goalscorer and will probably hold that record for many years to come. He finished the 2003/04 season with an incredible 39 goals in all competitions. 30 of his goals came in the League and he played in all but one of the League matches.
Dennis Bergkamp was one of the greatest players to have ever played for Arsenal. He had everything and was just an incredible player. He had amazing vision, a fantastic range of passes, was two-footed and scored some incredible goals too.
Divock Origi is hardly prolific having scored only three goals in the League this season. It is perhaps unfair that Sadio Mane and Mo Salah are out on the wing for this Dream Team but I have chosen them to be wingers.
Roberto Firminho has played in every one of Liverpool’s League games this season and scored 8 times. The Brazilian has also chipped in with 7 assists.
I may be biased but I think that the only option for the strike partnership is Dennis Bergkamp and Thierry Henry. Henry for his goalscoring and Bergkamp is his ideal strike partner.

And there we have it! The Invincibles and Near-Invincibles XI. Please let me know in the comments field below whether you agree or disagree with my choices.