Arsenals Invincible French Winger
But not the one you might think
Welcome back to Football Icons.
The Invincible Arsenal team were full of household names - from Henry, Viera, Pires and Bergkamp they weren't shorts of incredible players but one name is often overlooked - Sylvain Wiltord. The French winger/ striker will always be loved by Arsenal fans and in the four years he was at the club had a huge impact in the most successful period of Arsenals recent history. He was part of a plethora of French players brough to the club by manager Arsene Wenger and will always be fondly remembered for one goal in particular.
Player Profile
Name: Sylvain Wiltord
Date of Birth: 10th May 1974
Nationality: French
Position: Striker/ Winger
Premier League Clubs: Arsenal
Premier League Appearances: 106
Premier League Goals: 31
Premier League Assists: 16
Overview
Wiltord was a French midfielder who started his career at Rennes before making his move to Arsenal in 2000 where he spent four successful years. Mainly played as a right winger, he could also be found joining Henry as a second forward, both for Arsenal and France where he also received 92 caps and scored 26 goals. A diminutive attacker, Wiltord was an intelligent footballer who was good at finding space on the pitch. He was an excellent finisher and often managed to sneak in between defenders on get on the end of rebounds to find the net on a regular basis. His career wasn't short of trophies, including two Premier League trophies, two FA Cups and of course Euro 2000 with the French national team.
Memorable Moments
Anyone who thinks of Sylvain Wiltord, will immediately think back to that midweek night at Old Trafford, in the iconic Gold, SEGA sponsored Arsenal kit where he scored the only goal in the game that won them the 2002 league title. This was in the Premier league era when Manchester United and Arsenal were competing against each other every season and one of the two clubs had won the league title for the past 6 seasons. If you havent watched that goal for a while, give yourself a little reminder here. This was the first league title that Arsenal had won for four years and Wiltord had played a significant part in achieving it with 10 league goals in 33 appearances.
At the time, Wiltord was a record signing for Arsenal after they had paid Bordeaux over £13m for his services, and this goal alone will have paid back every penny in the eyes of all Arsenal fans. You also can't speak about Wiltord and his time at Arsenal without speaking about that invincible season in 2003/04. He was more of a bit part player in this season, but he still picked himself up a winners medal and a place in history of the club.
Rather appropriately too, as we're off the back of a first half goal haul from Cole Palmer this week, one of Wiltord's most iconic Arsenal moments was his first half hattrick against West Ham in 2001 - the first player to do so in the Premier League era. Wiltord got all three goals for Arsenal in a 3-0 win against the hammers.
Wiltord also won two FA cup trophies while at Arsenal in 2002 and in 2003. Wiltord started the 2002 FA final as Arsenal beat Chelsea 2-0 at the Millennium stadium in Cardiff and assisted that famous Ray Parlour goal. Wiltords reverse pass into Parlour played him into space and the Romford Pele curled a beauty into the top corner past Carlo Cudicini. I’ve watched that goal a few times over the years and still don’t think Parlour will score. It is “Only Ray Parlour” after all! Wiltord also won an FA medal in 2003 however he started on the bench in this game, only coming on in the 77th minute to replace Dennis Bergkamp. Arsenal beat Southampton 1-0 in an unmemorable final for a neutral but highly memorable for Sylvain Wiltord and his Arsenal team mates who won the trophy in back to back seasons.
Finally, whilst it might not have been in the Premier League, we can't speak about Wiltord without mentioning his equalising goal in the final of Euro 2000 which ultimately helped the French team win the competition. France beat Italy 2-1 in Rotterdam with Wiltord coming off the bench in the 58th minute to score and make it 1-1 in the 4th minute of added time at the end of the match. France went on to get the winner in extra time and seal a World cup and Euro double after they had won the World cup in their own backyard in 1998.
Opinion
Wiltord gets lost in the history of time, purely due to the number of exciting attacking players Arsenal had during this period, but I think he needs to be shouted about. He was only at Arsenal for four years but he felt like a winner and some of his crucial contributions to Arsenals success during that time suggest we was exactly that. He was always a threat and had a little bit of Ian wright about him in terms of his playing style. While he wasn’t as prolific as Wright, the runs Wiltord would make and some of his finishes were very similar to those scored by the Arsenal legend.
Did you know?
Arsene Wenger once called a team meeting at Arsenal to complain about players being consistently late for training. Half way through the meeting...the door opens and who walks in late? Sylvain Wiltord! Clearly someone didn't get the memo
Where are they now?
Wiltord is actually rarely seen in the football world these days and hasn't played a role as a coach or player since he retired at Nantes in 2012. Most recently he has taken up a passion for the sport Padel and is now coaching aspiring young players and promoting the sports growth.
Tell us your memories
As always we want to hear from you. Arsenal fans in particular, tell us what you thought about Wiltord? Is he a club legend or not quite at that level?
Next week
Next week, we dive into the Premier league story of a midfielder who quietly pulled the strings for one of the Premier League's most exciting teams of the 90s. He was known for his leadership, late runs into the box, and never-say-die attitude. Can you guess?