Man City treble WOULD top Arsenal’s Invincible season, admits Lauren
Gunners legend concedes that the pain of missing out on the Champions League still lingers despite place in history
hich is a greater achievement; winning the treble or going the whole season unbeaten like the Arsenal Invincibles of 2003-04?
It is a debate which divides supporters and has been reignited with Manchester City on the cusp of becoming only the second English team to claim the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League in a single season.
Both are remarkable feats, but what do players in the Arsenal side of 19 years ago think?
“To be honest, the treble,” says Lauren, who played a pivotal role in the Arsenal team that went unbeaten under Arsene Wenger.
“This is something that, in my opinion, was the only thing that our generation at Arsenal couldn’t manage to do.
“Winning the title without losing any games is something amazing, but winning the Champions League is something extraordinary.
Better achievement? Lauren believes Manchester City can eclipse the Arsenal Invincibles
/ Getty Images“Every year we remember that [unbeaten] season, it comes to our mind that we could not manage to win the Champions League. So, therefore honestly, I believe that the treble is bigger than that.”
Lauren won two Premier League titles and three FA Cups in seven years at Arsenal and was in the team that lost the 2006 Champions League final to Barcelona.
It is the 2003-04 season that he looks back on with regret when it comes to the Champions League. Arsenal were knocked out by Chelsea in the quarter-finals as Jose Mourinho’s Porto went on to be crowned European champions.
“We managed to play in the final against Barcelona, but we didn’t have the experience you need,” says Lauren, speaking on behalf of Stake Review on Casino.Guide.
“Pep Guardiola has won the Champions League with Barcelona, he has been coaching Champions League games every year with Barcelona, Bayern Munich and now City.
“Last year, they got knocked out by Real Madrid. They studied Real Madrid this year and managed to beat them. So you need both top players and to play every single year in the Champions League to have the experience to compete and try to win it.
The fact that we didn’t win the Champions League is in the mind of the majority of Arsenal players from the Invincibles generation
“If you take our Invincibles squad, we didn’t play as long in this competition. We didn’t have that kind of experience. We were very strong in the domestic competitions, but we didn’t have that kind of experience playing every single year in the Champions League.
“We did an unbelievable season winning the Premier League unbeaten. The two years before we won the League at Old Trafford.
“We were the best team, but the fact that we didn’t win the Champions League is in the mind of the majority of Arsenal players from that generation.”
Arsenal Invincible Lauren was talking to Standard.co.uk on behalf of Stake Review on Casino.Guide, where Crypto Casino Stake.com have seen a huge boom