Terry Mancini had an uneviable task when he arrived at Highbury in 1974. He was signed to replace Frank McLintock.
The Double-winning captain joined Queen's Park Rangers the previous year and, understandably, left a huge void in the centre of Arsenal's defence. Mancini, whose nomadic football career had taken him as far afield as Port Elizabeth City, was given the chance fill it.
A Republic of Ireland international, Mancini made his Arsenal debut against West Ham United in October 1974. He became a regular in Bertie Mee's side but the Gunners were in decline after their glorious start to the 1970s had brought success at home and in Europe.
Mancini could not halt that slide down the League table. He made 62 appearances for Arsenal, scoring once, but was part of the team which finished 17th in Division One in 1975/76 - the Club's worst performance in over 40 years.
Mee resigned in the wake of that failure and Mancini, now in his mid-30s, was deemed surplus to requirements by the new man in charge, Terry Neill. Mancini left on a free transfer in September 1976 and ended his career in the United States with the Los Angeles Aztecs.
Terry Mancini
