Best European Away Day

This story first appeared in the December edition of the Arsenal Magazine.

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DAN TOLHURST
Head of Football Media Operations at Arsenal

Over the years I’ve been really lucky, because it’s a privileged position to work so closely with the team and the media on matchdays, especially for a great club like ours. Picking one standout game is tough – and there are many that I will always remember, like my first Champions League trip, which was to Panathinaikos in 1998.

In that match in Athens, we were already out of the group and played a very young and inexperienced team, but played really well and won 3-1. I can remember it was freezing that night, something that caught everyone by surprise. Then there was a memorable match at Barcelona a year later, where we drew 1-1 and Davor Suker – being a former Real Madrid player – received the most deafening reception I think I’ve ever heard when he came off the bench. Bayern Munich’s old Olympic Stadium was an iconic one to visit, and I remember the team lost there in 2001, but qualified anyway due to other results. After the game, many of our players huddled around a TV monitor in the tunnel to watch the other match finish, and that’s a memory I’ll never forget.

Gilberto’s early goal at PSV in 2002 in a match we won 4-0 still sticks in my mind, as does Thierry Henry’s perfect hat-trick of left foot, right foot and header in that same season at Roma. Winning 5-1 at Inter was absolutely amazing, and so was defeating Real at the Bernabeu in 2006.

But after thinking it through for quite a while, I have to go for another match from that year – the semi-final second leg at Villarreal. The atmosphere in the stadium was phenomenal that night. El Madrigal is a pretty small ground, I think with a capacity of just over 20,000. In English terms, the only one I can compare it to is probably Loftus Road, because of the proximity of the streets to the stands and the stands to the pitch.

It took us absolutely ages to get through the streets on the way to the ground. The place was like a sea of yellow, with everyone singing Yellow Submarine. You could really feel that it was a special night for both clubs. So the surroundings were already special, but the emotions at the end of the game were something else. I didn’t actually see Jens Lehmann’s penalty save from Riquelme as I was in the tunnel getting ready for the post-match media commitments for the manager and players.

At the end of every game, about 10 minutes before the final whistle, we go down to the tunnel to liaise with the broadcasters. But I knew something had happened because I could hear this muffled cheer, not loud enough to signify that something good had happened for the home team, but coming from our fans. I saw the save on a monitor and not long after, the players were running down the tunnel celebrating.

It was a really unique feeling that night, particularly because when you get to a Champions League semi-final, you almost expect to go to one of the biggest stadiums around Europe. But I think playing that second leg at such a tight stadium made it even more special. It was such a proud moment for all Arsenal fans and everyone associated with the club.

WILLIAM SPARKS
Avid travelling supporter who also works in the Arsenal Museum 

I’ve seen a couple of special matches on the road with Arsenal in Europe, and I almost picked our last-gasp win at Anderlecht in 2014, when Kieran Gibbs and Lukas Podolski scored late on to turn a defeat into a victory.

But in the end I’ll plump for our win at Olympiacos last season. My friend and I booked the trip after we lost 5-1 at Bayern Munich a couple of matchdays before. We knew at that stage that the Olympiacos game would probably be make or break, and having to win it by two goals made it all the more difficult. But away games aren’t solely about the football.

The city itself was fantastic and it was interesting to take in some of the local culture too, and to visit the Acropolis. I found Athens very welcoming and with a certain charm to it. Culturally it’s a really interesting place and, as a lover of Greek food, I wasn’t disappointed.

I can remember walking into the ground and being hit by this sense of how important the game was. Having qualified beyond the group stage for 15 straight seasons, we were in real danger of losing that record to a side that had already beaten us at the Emirates. The Olympiacos fans put on a big display before the game and all seemed totally up for it – there was this massive red and white tifo, plus fireworks and what seemed like choreographed chanting. The atmosphere in the stadium was fierce, so for the team to stand up to that and deliver a performance like they did was really impressive.

I remember when we took the lead, I just had this feeling that we would do it. The players seemed to be 100 per cent focused and structured, while remaining efficient when going forward. Olivier Giroud’s first goal gave everyone belief. The fans were really behind the team from the start too. Everyone was unified in their support for the team. Of course Giroud would be the hero, and I felt that he made a huge statement that night. He proved his ability to score important goals for Arsenal and, as soon as he completed his hat-trick by slotting in that penalty, you just felt this massive surge of relief in the away end. After he scored it, we spent the next 20 minutes or so singing the theme tune from The Great Escape.

Having had such a poor start to the group, to qualify in the fashion we did was really special. We were kept in the ground for quite a while after the final whistle but, to be honest, after a win like that, nobody took much notice. The atmosphere in the away end was special – everyone singing Giroud’s Hey Jude tribute song for about 40 minutes after full time. It was great fun and a really nice moment to be a part of.