Arsenal in 2007-08: When the trophy drought should have ended

Everything was going smoothly. So smoothly in fact, that Arsene Wenger himself may have been surprisingly pleased at how well his Arsenal side were doing. Following a 2-0 win over Blackburn in February 2008, it seemed Arsenal were destined for a first league title in four years, as they established a five-point lead at the top of the table with 12 games remaining.

Of course, five points isn’t a huge lead, but Arsenal simply looked unstoppable at the time. They were unbeaten at home, had suffered only one defeat in 26 league games and were scoring for fun with 54 goals at the time. To say the season was a success at that moment was an understatement, as no one would have predicted Arsenal in that position in preseason.

The fact that a virtual unknown in Eduardo Da Silva was being brought into a strike force that contained an injury-prone Robin van Persie, a raw Emmanuel Adebayor and a young Nicklas Bendtner all but confirmed that view. The only other notable signing was another unknown from France in Bacary Sagna.

The season didn’t start off well either as in the opening game, a mistake from Jens Lehmann saw David Nugent open the scoring at the Emirates as Fulham led 1-0. The Gunners fought back however, as an 84th minute penalty from Van Persie was converted before Alexander Hleb scored the winner in the dying moments of the game to give Wenger a winning start to the season. One can imagine any other result might have seen Arsenal start the season differently.

Then of course, there was Cesc Fabregas, enjoying an undoubted breakthrough season, not only increasing in influence with each game but adding a goalscoring touch to his game as his figures at the time were a remarkable four goals and five assists in nine league games - he was just 20 at the time too. A young Mathieu Flamini also took advantage of an injury to Gilberto Silva to consolidate his place in the midfield alongside Fabregas, forming one of the most formidable midfield partnerships in the league, while other players like Sagna, Hleb and Tomas Rosicky were all flourishing.

The real test would come soon. An away trip to Anfield against Liverpool followed by a home encounter against champions, Manchester United. Wenger’s side went 1-0 down to Liverpool courtesy a Steven Gerrard freekick early in the first half, with many people thinking it was finally time for Arsenal to be shaken back to reality. However, Fabregas equalized with ten minutes remaining and his ecstatic celebration somewhat symbolized Arsenal’s new found resilience -- they weren’t going to be losing anytime soon.

From that point on, Arsenal continued to dominate in the league. They won 11 of their next 15 games, including back-to-back wins over Chelsea and Spurs (to complete another double over their neighbours). They suffered only one loss in that period - a 2-1 away loss to Middlesbrough but it appeared just a blip if anything, as they were without Flamini, Fabregas and Hleb.

Adebayor was still continuing his hot streak with 19 goals in 24 league games while Fabregas continued to show why he was the best midfielder in the league with seven goals and 12 assists in 22 league games. He might have been whispering it, but Wenger must have thought he was about to achieve the impossible.

Then it happened. Eduardo, who was just hitting his stride in the goalscoring department, suffered a double leg fracture after a mistimed tackle from Birmingham defender, Martin Taylor. It was a traumatic moment, not only for Eduardo but the whole Arsenal team as they were in distress, calling for the medical team. One got the feeling that something changed at that moment for Arsenal, especially when it came to their mental strength. Birmingham took the lead soon after, before young Theo Walcott broke his league duck and scored a brace. Maybe Arsenal were going to do it. Just maybe, Arsenal would show their resilience once again and increase their lead at the top of the table to eight points. It wasn’t to be.

Gael Clichy conceded a penalty in the last minute as Birmingham equalized. Eduardo’s season was over, with Rosicky and Van Persie already injured in that period. Morale was at an all time low. Gallas, the captain, kicked an advertising board and had a tantrum, sulking on the pitch at full time, not getting up until Wenger told him to. It sent a message to Chelsea and Man United that Arsenal might just crumble.

They did well to defy the odds and exceed expectations. In a season where they were unbeaten at home, suffered just three losses, led the table for the majority of the season as well as playing some brilliant football, it all ended in heartbreak. They say the final table doesn’t lie but Arsenal fans could be forgiven for arguing against that.

"Quality-wise, we've been remarkable the whole season. We lost a 100m race by a fraction of a second,” Wenger said. "It doesn't mean we have not made a good 100m. To have a great 100m, you need three or four who compete for the final place.”

Watch that season's story in this fantastic compilation by youtube channel enweya2.