Would you believe it?
It’s 25 years to the day since Tony Adams sprung the Everton offside trap and fired home a left-footed half-volley to round off a 4-0 victory that secured the 97/98 league title for Arsenal.
Marking the anniversary of a moment already cast in bronze outside Emirates Stadium, the Premier League have confirmed that the legendary defender is the latest Arsenal player to be inducted into its Hall of Fame.
Adams had nine seasons of first team football (and two league titles) under his belt before the Premier League’s inaugural season in 1992/93 and he defied the odds, amidst a raft of off-field issues, to continue as a Highbury mainstay under both George Graham and Arsene Wenger for a further decade.
25 years ago today, @TonyAdams did this… 🎯 pic.twitter.com/BW68ZOIneM
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) May 3, 2023
In total, the lionhearted, one-club man featured 255 times in the competition, scoring 12 goals and helping the Gunners to 115 clean sheets. Across his entire career, he won 12 major honours and was voted the club’s player of the season on three occasions.
Reflecting on the accolade, the former England international said: “I loved being a footballer and I love Arsenal Football Club. Every time I put that shirt on, I felt proud, and it forever holds a special place in my heart.
Tony Adams’ journey, in his own words.#PLHallOfFame | @TonyAdams pic.twitter.com/ukhs1OVmo3
— Premier League (@premierleague) May 3, 2023
“I spent over 20 years of my life at Arsenal and enjoyed being part of several generations at the club and have countless great memories from that time, but scoring the goal that helped us to win our first Premier League title in 1997/98 against Everton was a magical moment and a career highlight for me.
“I’m very pleased to join the Premier League Hall of Fame. It’s an honour to be recognised and voted for by the fans who make the game what it is.”
After Dennis Bergkamp, Thierry Henry, Ian Wright, Patrick Vieira and Arsene Wenger, Adams becomes the sixth Gunner to be included in the Hall of Fame.
Petr Cech, who spent four seasons at Arsenal after making his name at Chelsea, is also included as part of the 2023 intake.
One of the finest goalkeepers to grace the #PL 🧤
A spot in the #PLHallOfFame is yours, @PetrCech! pic.twitter.com/Va0pR6sFwn
— Premier League (@premierleague) May 3, 2023
On his inclusion, Cech said: “When I was a child growing up in communist Czechoslovakia, playing in the Premier League was an unimaginable dream. When I look back to where I started, diving on rock-solid pitches with stones like golf balls, it has been an amazing journey.
“It’s an honour for me to be voted into the Hall of Fame in the best league in the world. That’s really a special recognition and leaves a legacy. I’m proud that fans voted for me and appreciated the way I performed over the years.”
He deserves it. His denigration of Arsene Wenger over the years was unbecoming though.
With hindsight, Wenger is a great man and a legend of the club but he brought some of that denigration upon himself. He was not suited to modern football and was loyal to some real duds at the expense of the club’s progress. His naivity in that 15/16 season and wasting money over Mustafis etc showed he’s lost touch in the market. And then not buying a decent CB or DM since 2004 when it was so obvious was a football crime. He was also mostly against involving former legendary players at the culb and was a complete one man… Read more »
Arsene Wenger not suited to modern football is surely one of the most ludicrous comments I have ever read. I stopped reading any further. 😂😂😂
Evidence is there. He was a revolutionary once but did not stay up to date. Even lost the French market which he had the early access to. Who was the last gem he unearthed? By the end, even when he spent money, signed flawed players who then bacame a burden on the club.
I can’t bring myself to say a negative word about Wenger, but he may be correct. I highly doubt any team in the Premier League would appoint Wenger as their manager in 2023.
That is ageism.
Saw him make his debut on a cold rainy miserable Saturday in November 1983. We were in free fall, having been knocked out of the Milk Cup (League Cup) by Walsall and on a run of defeats that was to culminate in Terry Neill getting the sack. So no one paid much attention when this rather gangly kid took his place alongside David O’Leary, Kenny Sansom and Colin Hill. They began to pay attention, however, when this gangly kid suddenly started shouting at both seasoned internationals O’Leary and Sansom, letting them know in no uncertain terms where the line should… Read more »
I was there too. 2-1 home defeat to Sunderland with a late Tony Woodcock goal. I was also there 2 years later when our own fans threw carrots at him making donkey noises. Can’t believe a 19 year old didn’t let that get to him. I remember before facing free kick on edge of our box he yanked a couple of our guys in the wall by the lapels and screamed in their faces “STAY THERE! FACE IT!” Also remember running on the pitch after a game with my brother when highbury was nearly empty, got behind the dugouts and… Read more »
Lovely stuff!
It’s a shame that stories like this won’t ever be heard about the modern sanitised game. What an experience
Brilliantly put. 👏
The only player to captain a title winning team in three decades. Always admired the way he fought his shortcomings. Finished his career as a very distinguished defender. Great goals, the Everton one and the semi final win over Spurs “Donkey wins the derby”. Plus inspired a dance step on the Full Monty
tony adams, a camel with two legs who is also a bad pundit, and a man who could not save a penalty if his life depended on it are inducted.
Haha, seems like that coma didn’t really make a difference to the statement. He did save that Deeney penalty after the “cojones” comment but overall, you could tell why Chelsea let him go; he was finished.
He certainly wasn’t finished when he first joined Arsenal. Even Mourinho was angry that he was let go. He was brilliant in his first 3 years with us. Sadly he did slow down but was never as terrible as you are making out
Bollocks.
You’re either 15 or a spud. Whichever it is, I’d keep your ignorant comments internalised.
His comment wasn’t articulated very well but he was surely referring to Rio Ferdinand with his comment “a camel with two legs who is also a bad pundit”, not Tony Adams.
Obviously not an Arsenal supporter or a judge of goalkeepers. Cech apart from being one of the best keepers in the world also saved 21 penalties in his career.
Why are you taking your frustrations from Sp*rs sh*ty season on Tony Adams? Go watch the Newcastle highlights again 😂 Lori’s couldn’t handle turning up for the 2nd half, Richarlison taking his shirt off, don’t get me started 😂
Again, he wasn’t talking about Tony Adams. He was talking about Rio Ferdinand.
Mr Arsenal, what a legend. Would love to see a player with his attitude join in the summer, maybe midfield.
I think you’re right. Remember big Tony saying that a teams not complete unless you have at least 7 players willing to fight the opposition in the tunnel. Who are our 7 now?
Xhaka, Ramsdale, White, Gabriel, Saliba, Zinchenko, Partey, Jesus, Martinelli.
We have 9.
Plus the Hale End Boys.
ESR, Saka, Eddie and Balogun.
You wouldn’t want to mess with any of those four, especially Eddie.
That may be true 25 years ago, but not in 2023. How many players willing to fight the opposition in the tunnel do Man City have. The game has moved on from hard men.
Looking back at the successful 97/98 season shows how well we are doing this season. We won the league with 78 points that season. The same points we are on this season with 4 games to go!
Kind of shocking it took this long for him to be inducted. He was here his entire career. He’s the only one completely synonymous with Arsenal.
Not really – it’s only been running for three years and only him, Kompany and Ferdinand are inductees as centre backs. That puts him in a pretty elite bracket of players and recognises him as amongst the best CBs in PL history.
Total legend.
Like Q, above, I remember Adams breaking into the first team as a teenager and almost immediately looking at home. Apart from being a great player he was a great leader. It would be fantastic to have a character like him in the dressing room right now.
And he was brave off the pitch too, confronting his demons and beating them.
Total legend.
Totally agree with you Fatso, Adams was a once in a generation player. Genuine legend.
25 years ago to the day when he scored that goal against Everton, and also 25 years ago today that Manchester City were relegated to the third tier (the old division two).
This is the kind of thing that City fans (Noel Gallagher for one, the dickhead) need reminding.
The Arsenal have been a top division stalwart longer than any of them.
Some Might Say Arsenal deserve to win the league this season so hopefully he doesn’t Look Back in Anger when Man City slip up.
I like what you did there!
25 years is maybe time for another champagne supernova.
In fact, we are the only club never to have been relegated from the top division.
You mean as in;
Q: What does CITY stand for?
A: Conference In Three Years.
Still have my Adams shirt from 92 – still regularly wear it to the local pub here in Aalborg, Denmark, when we’re playing. Still proud as hell to put it on. Arsenal Legend, if there ever was one.
I bumped into him the other day and reminded him that we used to sing Tony adaaams tony adaaams tonyadamsonthewiiing which he’d slightly forgotten
Good times – great man
Legend and why it took so long to induct him is beyond me. As for Wenger he gave us great times but also some of the most embarrassing times as well, so many heavy defeats, losing to Birmingham in the league cup final. I’ve never known a manager like him to cut off his nose to spite his face! Far too stubborn
This is only the third intake of inductees and there’s only been three defenders inducted, including him. It’s recognising him as the creme de la creme of his position in the PL.