The Senegalese born Frenchman joined Arsenal in 1996 for just £3.5million, representing a bargain in anyone’s books. Vieira won three Premier League titles and four F.A Cup successes in just nine years at the club.
Vieira and his Arsenal side incredibly went 49 Premier League games unbeaten, which included a whole League campaign in 2003-04. Having forged a fantastic partnership with Emmanuel Petit in his early years at the club, Vieira was vital for Arsenal at both ends of the pitch.
Even nine red cards at Arsenal doesn’t diminish was a fantastic player Vieira was for Arsenal. The fact the Gunners have yet to win a trophy since his exit speaks volumes of his importance at Arsenal. He had a brief spell at Manchester City towards the end of his career, collecting another FA Cup winner’s medal.
5) Gianfranco Zola (Chelsea 1996-2003)
Was recently voted Chelsea’s greatest player of all time, by the fans of the club, and you can’t doubt he deserves that tag. A bargain £4.5million transfer from Parma in 1996, one of many Ruud Guillit foreign moves during his spell in charge of Chelsea.
Zola won numerous cup competitions; 2 F.A Cups; 1 League Cup; 1 Super Cup and a Cup winners Cup. Premier League success eluded Zola during his time with Chelsea; however his class was never in doubt.
Zola so famously scored what the then Chelsea manager Claudio Ranieri manager dubbed a ‘magic goal’ versus Norwich City in the F.A Cup in 2002. Zola bowed out from Chelsea by guiding Chelsea into fourth place and the Champions League.
4) Thierry Henry (Arsenal 1999-2007)
Thierry Henry joined Arsenal in 1999 as a forward being played out on the wing, and left as a the clubs top scorer of all time.
Following an 11million move from Juventus in 1999, it took Henry a while to adjust to life in England however once he found his feet at times he was unplayable. During his time at Arsenal he won 2 Premier League Titles and 3 FA Cup’s.
He was part of the unbeatable side of the 2003-04 side that saw the Gunners go the whole league campaign unbeaten. And following Patrick Vieira’s departure he became captain of Arsenal in 2005. He scored the last ever goal at Highbury, celebrating by famously kissing the ground.
Famously he spurned a couple of good chances in the clubs only ever European Cup final appearance as Arsenal lost 2-1 to Barcelona in 2006. A year later he joined the Catalan giants, leaving behind an incredible legacy at the club.
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