Pain in the Arsenal
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Ranking the 5 best Arsenal central defenders of all-time

By Adam Schultz

26 Dec 2000: Tony Adams celebrates his goal for Arsenal during the FA Carling Premier League match against Leicester City played at Highbury in London. Arsenal won the game 6-1. \ Mandatory Credit: Mike Hewitt /Allsport
26 Dec 2000: Tony Adams celebrates his goal for Arsenal during the FA Carling Premier League match against Leicester City played at Highbury in London. Arsenal won the game 6-1. \ Mandatory Credit: Mike Hewitt /Allsport /
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Arsenal defender David O’Leary in action during a Canon League game against Liverpool at Highbury, London, 8th September 1984. Arsenal won the match 3-1. (Photo by Getty Images)
Arsenal defender David O’Leary in action during a Canon League game against Liverpool at Highbury, London, 8th September 1984. Arsenal won the match 3-1. (Photo by Getty Images) /

2. David O’Leary

If there ever was a player who showed what hard work and dedication could get you, despite not being the most gifted or the smartest player on the pitch, David O’Leary was it. His loyalty to the club saw him play a club record of 722 matches in red and white.

He was a consistent customer for the best part of two decades, and even when father time started calling and the younger players took his spot, he didn’t sook or moan but worked even harder to fight for his place.

https://twitter.com/Arsenal/status/991642263368368128?s=20&t=5Tqkz3dTG4UMzQpFS7w-Cg

Originally a central defender, due to his persistence, he was shifted out to right-back for the latter stages of his career, and it worked wonders. Never one for throwing in the towel, true dedication to his craft earns him the number two spot on the list.

Oh, and he also won his fair share of trophies, too, six in fact. Two league titles, along with two FA Cups and two League cups.

He was a true blue-collar player, who was never the centre of attention or the headline grabber, but who went about his business in the background and carved a superb career built off the back of extremely hard work.

Continued on next slide…

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