Previous Villa v Arsenal matches (Villa Park)

[StuartL]

Think Villa Park has been a good venue for us over the years except when playing Man Utd in the Cup there.

Saw my first live trophy won by Arsenal there - the Mercentile Credit Trophy in 1988 - no European competition thanks to the scousers so the top 8 played each other in a knock out cup, which we won at Villa Park 2-1 from memory.

Also saw an FA Cup reply there v bin dippers after a 1-1 draw at Anfield when we had a stunning Marwood winning goal chalked off for no reason after outplaying Liverpool for much of the game (which paved the way for a more vital match later that season) then drew again at Highbury 0-0.
On scoring an equalizer our fans in the side stand (Doug Ellis ?) went bonkers and I actually ended up celebrating on top of the Liverpool dug out This was also the game that saw a sandwich chucked from the crowd at Dalglish, which he then picked up and threw back.

A couple of Arsenal's most memorable goals have been scored there

Rocky with a typical spectacular goal at about 2.30 in a comprehensive 0-3 away win

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOMZyqbKP5U

and Pires' sublime strike that Belfast Boy has as his avatar

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ELbLywum6ug

Anyone else got favourite memories re Villa park to share ?

[northbank123]

Used to go nearly every year to Villa Park and don't think I saw us lose there - was the last time when Santa fell off the roof Boxing Day 1998 or 1999?

2001/02 was fantastic - watching Pires score that class goal and mug off that smug prick Schmeichel along the way was superb, and Seaman's penalty save at 1-0 was top drawer too. Remember it being a fairly huge game in the context of the title race. I also remember another game (maybe Invincibles season) that we won 2-0 because we scored from a quick free-kick and a penalty for 'impeding' (not long after they'd stopped giving indirect FKs in the box for obstruction) and typical Brummies were moaning about it.

The 1999 and 2004 FA Cup semis were obviously low points, and the 2-2 Boxing Day 2008 game summed up Arsenal of 2008-2012 to me - utterly spineless with no determination whatsoever. We were extremely fortunate to be 1-0 somehow at half-time and then we scored a superb second and were all over them but we took the piss (easing off and missing sitters) and inevitably succumbed to the slightest pressure they exerted towards the end.

The 2004/05 game was a strange one too. We killed them off in the first half hour or so going 3-0 up with ruthless attacking play but it wasn't long after the Cole/Chelsea thing had surfaced and I remember thinking at that game that I wouldn't be watching this team together for much longer.

[Ziegler1988]

The two matches I've been to at Villa Park

http://youtu.be/hOs2Gf0rhd8
We blew the 2-0 lead though......

http://youtu.be/E5rSEDmdjEM

[VoiceOfReason]

The 2004/05 game was a strange one too. We killed them off in the first half hour or so going 3-0 up with ruthless attacking play but it wasn't long after the Cole/Chelsea thing had surfaced and I remember thinking at that game that I wouldn't be watching this team together for much longer.

Agreed - that game had a very strange feel to it. We were essentially out of the title race by then, yet we were still capable of playing like one of the best teams in the world, as we did in that opening half against Villa. It was quite depressing actually. The Invincibles season had come and gone, the 49-game run was over, we'd just been beaten 4-2 by Man Utd at Highbury, and we were out of the title race - yet it was hard to fathom why, and to take it all in. Especially when we were still playing some amazing football. For all his sins, Cole's goal that day is one of my favourite Arsenal goals of all-time. One-touch football at its best, and what a finish: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XDLnbFwBtZc

Am I right in thinking that we still haven't lost to Villa up there since December 1998? We've defnitely had some good memories there over the years. The surprise 4-0 drubbing of them on Easter Monday 1995; the already-mentioned 2-1 win en route to the double in 2002; Henry's quick free-kick the following year (remember the uproar over that?); and more recently, the 4-2 win there in 2010.

[northbank123]

That Bergkamp touch would be unreal for anybody else but is the type of class he demonstrated all game every week.

Looking at where Henry had the ball how on earth can the ball be in the back of the next 3 touches later? Christ we were scary going forward

[SteveO 35]

Although the result ended up disappointingly my fondest memory of that scumhole is without doubt this

Absolute quality that £42m can't buy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hOs2Gf0rhd8

Love to see one of our other players start a move 70 yards from goal and finish it off like that

[arseofacrow]

A lot of visits to Villa Park - and more or less eventful every time.

I just remember that the Villa area is a shithole. And the pubs are shitholes with one notbale exception, although I can't remmeber what that one's called .

The game in 94/95 - paid at the gate for that one and if my memory serves me right, we were in the bottom half of the table at the time. Think Hartson (who was playing very well) and Wright scored goals.

[northbank123]

Every year you can bet at least two pubs in the vicinity of the ground will have closed down. No loss really, complete dives.

And to be fair SteveO that goal was sheer quality. Unfortunately that and the Derby thunderbolt are just about the only clips you can offer in defence of Abou (waiting to be proved wrong )

[arseofacrow]

Every year you can bet at least two pubs in the vicinity of the ground will have closed down. No loss really, complete dives.

And to be fair SteveO that goal was sheer quality. Unfortunately that and the Derby thunderbolt are just about the only clips you can offer in defence of Abou (waiting to be proved wrong )

to be fair to steveO, video recording hadn't been invented when Diaby last played.

[topcat]

Used to go nearly every year to Villa Park and don't think I saw us lose there - was the last time when Santa fell off the roof Boxing Day 1998 or 1999?

I think it was boxing day 1998...Tragic that was, 2-0 up at half time and we were all laughing and cheering when the santa started going all over the place thinking he was still in control, then all I remember was how silent the whole place went when he hit the floor.

Fucking ended up 3-2 to villa too!

[SteveO 35]

Used to go nearly every year to Villa Park and don't think I saw us lose there - was the last time when Santa fell off the roof Boxing Day 1998 or 1999?

I think it was boxing day 1998...Tragic that was, 2-0 up at half time and we were all laughing and cheering when the santa started going all over the place thinking he was still in control, then all I remember was how silent the whole place went when he hit the floor.

Fucking ended up 3-2 to villa too!

That cocky gel-boy Gregory was in charge of them at the time....the Redknapp of the era. An overrated wanker full of his own self importance. Did fuck all after Villa - small time arsehole

[Henry Norris 1913]

remember the 4-2 a couple of years ago; we just lost a two-nil lead the match before in the NLD and lost, and we were fucking livid when those small time *word censored* were singing tottenham this and tottenham that to wind us up, a certain sign of a small club mentality from the veelah fans. And it happened again when villa got it to 2-2, but when jack scored the fourth to seal the win we were going mental, a young lad stood in the gangway when everyone was rushing onto the pitch got mullered and was bleeding pretty badly and crying. His dad was just sat there at full time crying because he was so relieved he was ok in the end, just a little bump but that stayed with me. Fucking stopped me from going mental when I saw him, still a good day though

[Bunting14]

Going back to the 80s apart from Woodcock's 5 goals I remember a League Cup quarter final where we drew 1 all. We must have had 8000 there. Lost the replay at home where I think Paul Mariner had to play at centre half.

[Theoperator]

Like many I remember it as a happy hunting ground,

Thought I was clever and splashed out a lot for tickets in 1998, last match of the season, and I fancied we would be winning the league that day but we had ALREADY won the league, so the team wasnt much to write home about, pretty poor game and we lost 1-0 with Dwight Yorke scoring about his last goal for them with a really annoying dinked penalty

Well remember the 2-4 match, was pretty important in view of the capitulation against the Scum , wasnt that long ago, 3 years was it?- was a very happy day, which i hope was instrumental in satisfying my kids to be certified Gooners

[StuartL]

So.....any more happy memories of matches gone by. ?