On This Day – 14th July
Patrick Vieira finally left Arsenal on this day back in 2005, leaving for Juventus for £13 million.
There was a rumour about Vieira leaving Highbury every pre-season for several years and so as an Arsenal fan, I was always prepared for his departure. He was continually linked with Barcelona and Real Madrid and all of the big Italian sides.
The Frenchman’s last kick for Arsenal was converting the winning penalty in the FA Cup Final victory over Manchester United, so it’s fair to say he left us on good terms! It was still sad to see him go and left everyone wanting to know who could replace the midfield collossus.
Luckily, Arsene Wenger had a ready-made replacement in the wings, ready to take over from Vieira in the middle of the Arsenal midfield. That man was young Spaniard Cesc Fabregas, who had established himself in the first-team over the course of Vieira’s final season at Highbury.
As Arsenal moved on without Vieira, they cruised through the group stages of the Champions League and in a twist of footballing fate, drew Juventus in the Second Round!
Cesc Fabregas faced Patrick Vieira in a battle in the centre of midfield at Highbury and totally outplayed the man who he had been brought in to replace.
Arsenal went through 2-0 on aggregate and reached the Final, where they lost 2-1 to Barcelona.
Vieira only stayed at Juventus for the one season, before moving on to Inter Milan where he would spend four years.
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