Arsenal's Best XI Players of the Last Decade

2010s was not a decade that Arsenal fans would like to remember very much. With the long gone ‘The Invincible Era’  the club had not been able to perform steadily in the last decade with only a few memorable moments to cherish throughout the seasons. But that does not mean we don’t have a list of exclusive top Arsenal players that proved their metal at every given point for their team. So we would like to present you with the best Arsenal XI that emerged as powerhouses during the past decade.

1.Goalkeeper – Wojciech Szczesny

Before moving to Juventus, the Polish goalkeeper had contributed immensely to the Arsenal team specially during the last decade’s 2011-12 and 2012/13 campaigns. Wojciech Szczesny fixed his spot as Arsenal’s first choice goalkeeper at the age of 20 following his Premier League debut against Manchester United in 2010. 

Szczesny had impressed the Arsenal fans with his leadership, awareness and even skill on the ball. He entered the team at a time when goalkeeping was not the forte of the Arsenal team and fans wanted this particular strength to join the forces. He put up some exceptional performances to win the ‘golden glove’ in the 2012-13 campaign and at Arsenal he lifted the FA Cup twice and won one Community Shield with the Gunners.

Wojciech was joint-winner – with Petr Cech – of the Golden Glove award in 2013/14. Szczesny is one of only four Arsenal keepers to play at least 100 times in the competition according to the Arsenal site.

Premier League Stats:

Appearances: 132

Conceded goals: 21

Clean sheets: 48

2.Right Back – Bacary Sagna

Sagna consistently played at a top level for Arsenal and was arguably Arsenal’s most underrated player during the doomed title charges in 2010/11 and 2013/14. The 31-year-old right-back spent the past seven seasons with Arsenal after starting his career with French club Auxerre.He opened his account for the Gunners in a London derby against Chelsea in his first season, scoring the first goal of the game in what ended up as a 1-2 defeat.  He won an FA Cup (’13/14) during his tenure in Arsenal. Ending his seven year Arsenal career, Sagna moved to Man. City in 2014.

Sagna has remained a reliable defender on the right side with the pace and distribution skills to jump-start attacks during his time at Arsenal and appeared in at least 29 matches each season.

 

Premier league Stats:

Appearances:213

Goals: 4

Assists : 20

3: Center Back – Laurent Koscielny

Koscielny was an excellent signing for the Gunners and was largely faultless across 353 appearances over the decade. The ex Arsenal captain spent 9 years at Arsenal, joining from Lorient in the summer of 2010 for a fee of around £8m. His partnership with Per Mertesacker was one of the best we’ve seen in modern times.

Koscienly was a popular member of the team at Arsenal and won three FA Cup trophies, as well as two Community Shields but he has a bad reputation for going against the club’s ethics time to time just like in 2019 when he left Arsenal under a dark cloud after refusing to go on the club’s pre-season tour of the United States to force a move to France. 

 

Premier league Stats:

Appearances:255

Goals: 22

Assists: 3

4: Center Back –  Per Mertesacker

The now manager of the Arsenal academy was once the most appreciated center back of the Arsenal team with 221 outings between 2011 and 2018. The  Arsenal legend is often called as the ‘Big Friendly German’ who cleaned up at the back frequently and is considered to be an incredibly intelligent footballer of his time who could use even his lack of certain skills and tactics to make it big. He was an incredible passer in Arsenal with a season average of 90 percent passing accuracy.

At the beginning of the 2013–14 season as Thomas Vermaelen and Mikel Arteta got injured he was named the temporary captain. Mertesacker earned a man of the match award following his great performance in a 1-0 victory over Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League and his performance greatly contributed to the team leading the Premier League at the end of November of the 2013-14 season. He is one of the most beloved Arsenal members of all time. 

Premier league Stats:

Appearances:156

Goals:6

Assists:1

5. Left Back –  Nacho Monreal

Monreal had been one of the most underrated players of Arsenal who showed his eligibility everytime he was at the Emirates with the Gunners. He was able to offer an attacking threat through his extensive ferocious  runs at left-back but was equally good at the defensive side of the game.

In the game against West Brom in the 2016 Premier League, Monreal made the most interceptions (5) and recorded the highest passing accuracy of any defender on the pitch (93%). Monreal made his debut in 2013 and had replaced Kieran Gibbs from the Arsenal line-up after which he became the undisputed first-choice left-back. 

 

Premier League Stats:

Appearances:187

Goals:7

Assists:14

6: Central Midfielder – Aaron Ramsey

Ramsey was one of the most important players of Arsenal who has both extensive defensive and offensive skills with an efficient passing accuracy and comfort on the ball. With a kind of revival he scored more goals in 2013–14 alone than he had in his previous 104 appearances for Arsenal from 2008–2013. The former Cardiff player was bought by Arsenal for a £5million bid and in June 2008 Ramsey was announced as a Gunner.

The Welsh player scored his first goal for the Gunners on the biggest stage of the Champions League. He was then awarded a long-term contract with the Gunners and scored his first Premier League goal in a 4-1 dismantling of Portsmouth in the second game of the 2009/10 season. But his explosive career came to a hiatus in February 2010 when he stood in the receiving end of a horrific challenge from Stoke city’s Ryan Shawcross which caused a double fracture to Ramsey’s lower right leg, breaking both his tibia and fibula. But that didn’t ruin his career as a Gunner because after recovery he finished the 2010/11 season with seven appearances for the Gunners, which included a magnificent strike against Manchester United.

Later he was soon considered an Arsenal legend with his performances in the 2013/14 campaign and winning two FA Cup finals.

 

Premier League Stats:

Appearances:262

Goals:40

Assists:51

7: Central Midfielder – Santi Cazorla

An all time fan favorite Santi Cazorla,a winner of two FA Cups and two Community Shields in his six years at Arsenal, was a very important asset to the club. The Spaniard  joined Arsenal from Malaga for a reported £15 million transfer fee in the summer of 2012 following an impressive season in La Liga. 

By structure, a petite midfielder with his smooth footwork and bullseye passing accuracy, Cazorla produced stunning displays on a consistent basis. Cazorla  scored 12 times and made 14 assists across all competitions in his first season at the club, playing both centrally and out on the left, showcasing his versatility with the ball. He was picked up as the Arsenal Player of the Season award in his first campaign at The Emirates. His midfield strategy and his speciality in dead ball in FA Cup Championships are what makes him one of the most dangerous players in the last decade of Gunners.

Arsenal fans would surely remember that FA Cup final free-kick in 2014 which helped the Gunners to victory against Hull City. That was the magic of Santi Cazorla.

 

Premier League Stats:

Appearances:129

Goals:25

Assists:35

8: Right Winger – Theo Walcott

Walcott can be considered as Arsenal’s one of the best wingers of all time. With incredible qualities of uncontrollable pace, creativity and composure in front of goal Walcott was a world class player who almost averaged a goal contribution every 2.13 games for the Gunners. The English footballer’s 2012/13 season in Arsenal shirt was the most iconic of all.

In his 32 Premier League games in 2012/13, the flying winger scored 14 goals and contributed with 12 assists. Also the game against Newcastle is definitely the showstopper where Walcott scored a hat-trick and provided two assists leading the Gunners to a stunning 7-3 win. After 12 years Arsenal’s longest serving player had left to join Everton in a transfer. 

Premier League Stats:

Appearances:270

Goals:65

Assists:49

9: Left Winger – Alexis Sanchez

Alexis Sanchez was undisputedly an excellent component to the team of Arsenal. His control over the ball was prolific and he magnificently tackled opponents and scored more than one goal in a game on 15 occasions, including two hat-tricks.His first season in the team ended with silverware, with the Gunners winning the FA Cup following a 4-0 win over Aston Villa in the final and Sanchez got on the scoresheet with a stunning strike from 25 yards. The Chilean was named the club’s Player of the Year, with 25 goals and 12 assists. In his final full season at the Emirates Stadium, Sanchez scored 30 goals in all competitions, 24 of those coming in the Premier League.

Sanchez was absolutely world-class in north London and scored 80 goals including two FA Cup final strikes in three and a half seasons and therefore during his three and a half years in north London Sanchez was being hailed as the best player to grace the club since Arsenal legend Thierry Henry. 

Premier League Stats:

Appearances:122

Goals:60

Assists:27

10: Center Attacking midfielder – Mesut Ozil

Ozil arrived at the Emirates Stadium in September 2013 from Real Madrid for a bid of £42.5million making him the third highest fee in British football for a 24 year old talented midfielder. He was the assist machine with 19 assists in a single campaign in the 2015/16 season becoming the joint second-most productive Premier League player in a season.

He broke several long-standing assist records along the way, including becoming the fastest player to reach 50 Premier League assists in 141 games in 2018.Ozil’s first goal for Arsenal came against Napoli in the Champions League the very next month since his debut at Arsenal. With winning the 2014 FA Cup beating Hull City in the final at Wembley, Ozil went on to win a total of three FA Cups with Arsenal, repeating the feat in 2015 and 2017. Due to his terrific performance at the club his contract was renewed by the Arsenal management making him the highest paid player in their history back in January 2018 with reported wages of £350,000-a-week. 

 

Premier League Stats:

Appearances:184

Goals:33

Assists:58

11: Striker – Robin van Persie

After moving into North London, Persie was handed his international debut in the summer of 2005 and then gradually instilled into the Arsenal first team by Arsene Wenger who aspired to make Persie from a left Winger to an efficient forward. He faced many injuries during the Arsenal times but besides that he was a terrific player with speciality in explosive free kicks.

In the 2008-09 season he was named the club’s player of the season after scoring 20 goals and started the following campaign in tremendous fashion. Later Van Persie was made captain of Arsenal and then the success began in ending the season as the Premier League’s top scorer as the Gunners overhauled Tottenham to finish third and guarantee another season in the Champions League. In the 2011 season remaining the most injury free since he joined the Gunners, Persie played his greatest number of 48 games and scored almost twice as many goals of 37 as in any previous season. His achievements for Arsenal as a striker are priceless be it his sensational volley at Charlton or his equally stunning strike against Everton in the 125th match. 

The 2012/13 season saw his captaincy period where he scored 37 goals in all competitions and claimed 13 assists. He won the Golden Boot and was named PFA Player of the Season and FWA Footballer of the Year. 

 

Premier League Stats:

Appearances:194

Goals:96

Assists:47

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