THE VITALS:

Team: Arsenal

Brand: Nike

Era: 2007-08 (Used for the 2007-08 Premier League season)

Name/Number: Adebayor #25

CONDITION: EXCELLENT

This Arsenal classic shirt comes to you still in excellent condition in spite of its years! All of the applications including the felt name and numbering print, the sponsor, Nike swoosh and club crest are absolutely immaculate!

DIMENSIONS:

Size: XL Boys

Pit to Pit Measurement: 19 inches

Shirt Length: 27 inches

Made by Nike in their ‘NikeFit’ mould of shirts which they introduced in 2007, these dimensions are more akin a to a size small, so if you usually wear a size small, this shirt could be perfect for you!

DESCRIPTION:

While the home shirt was in the second year of its cycle, the change shirts paid homage to the club legend – Herbert Chapman with the redcurrant colour used to such devastating effect for the 2005-06 season home shirt, being brought back as part of both the away and third Arsenal shirts in 2007-08. The away shirt would see the return of white as their away colours for the first time since the 1966-68 season, however, this edition drew its inspiration from the version used in the late 50’s with its v-neck collar and hoops around the sleeves; meanwhile there was also a grey scripture graphic that was beautifully woven into the background, easily making it one of the standout away shirts of the Nike era! This shirt would be most memorably seen as Arsenal ended AC Milan’s UEFA Champions League title defence with that classic late 2-0 win at the San Siro on 04/03/2008!

THE SEASON:

The 2006-07 season may have heralded the new era of Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium, however, the inconsistencies which have been plaguing them since 2005 continued to stifle the progress of the team as they had to settle for another trophyless season that included 4^th place league finish and a runners-up berth in the Carling Cup Final against Chelsea.

After 7 years of incredible service and memories; Thierry Henry and Arsenal would go their separate ways, with the advances of Barcelona impossible to ignore for another season. He would bid goodbye to the club as would another club legend – Freddie Ljungberg, meanwhile, Jose Antonio Reyes would permanently leave the club to join Atletico Madrid. A new era for the club would see: Eduardo, Bacary Sagna, Lukasz Fabianski and Lassana Diarra all added in the close season, while Cesc Fabregas was made the club’s new captain.

Carrying a 7-match unbeaten run from the 2006-07 season, Arsenal began the 2007-08 campaign with a dramatic 2-1 win over Fulham, before stumbling to a disappointing 1-1 draw away against Blackburn Rovers. From there, ‘The Gunners’ would turn back the years as they enjoyed a fine run of 7 straight victories to lead the way ahead of back-to-back clashes with Liverpool and Manchester United. Both games would end in draws, and it was enough to keep them at the summit of the division and would add another 3 wins and a draw to make it 16 games unbeaten. That run of 23 league games without defeat, extending back to April 2007 finally came to an end when they were upset 2-1 away against Middlesbrough on 09/12/07, however, with 3 wins and a draw to end the year; Arsenal would enter the new year in 1^st place; something they hadn’t done since the 2002-03 season!

Their form showed no sign of abating in 2008; winning 5 of their opening 6 outings, before a nightmare 2-2 draw against Birmingham City on 23/02/2008 which saw Eduardo’s season ended in a game where Arsenal drop the 3 points in the 95^th minute. This would be the first of 5 games in a row without a win, and after losing 2-1 to Chelsea on 23/03/08; they would surrender 2^nd place to the resurgent ‘Blues’. Failure to defeat Liverpool and Manchester United in April would all but end any hope of that once burgeoning title charge, however, they would end the season on a 4-match winning streak to certify 3^rd place – missing out on the title by just 4 points, in fact, their return of 83 points was the highest for a 3^rd place side in the history of the Premier League.

In the domestic cup competitions, the FA Cup would yield another disappointment, where they were sensationally beaten 4-0 by Manchester United in the Fifth Round, only more incredibly was the manner of which they exited the League Cup semi-final; losing the 2^nd Leg against Tottenham Hotspur 5-1 after a 1-1 draw played out in the 1^st Leg!

Their UEFA Champions League adventure would start in the Third Qualifying Round against Sparta Prague where they comfortably won 5-0 on aggregate. Tasked with a group that featured: Salvia Prague, Steaua Bucharest and UEFA Cup champions – Sevilla; Arsenal would have to settle for a 2^nd place finish where their reward was a Last 16 tie versus the holders and perennial favourites – AC Milan. After earning a goaless draw in the 1^st Leg at home, Arsenal would send shockwaves throughout Europe when they eliminated the 5x champions with a 2-0 win at San Siro! Their next challenge would be an all-English affair against Liverpool where sensationally, the tie ended 5-3 on aggregate, albeit, in favour of Liverpool, where Arsenal were just 6 minutes plus stoppage time away from reaching the semi-final on away goals!

The notable players that season were:

Nicklas Bendtner, Emmanuel Adebayor, Eduoardo, Alexander Hleb, Robin Van Persie, Theo Walcott, Lassana Diarra, Thomas Rosicky, Mathieu Flamini, Gilberto Silva, Cesc Fabregas, Abou Diaby, Alex Song, Kolo Toure, William Gallas, Philippe Senderos, Gael Clichy, Bacary Sagna, Kieran Gibbs, Justin Hoyte, Emmanuel Eboue, Jens Lehmann, Manuel Almunia