2012–13 Arsenal F.C. season

The 2012–13 season was Arsenal Football Club's 21st season in the Premier League and 93rd consecutive season in the top flight of English football. Arsenal participated in the Premier League and the UEFA Champions League, after finishing third in the previous Premier League season. The League Cup however was out of their reach, and despite an entertaining cup run, which included 13 goals scored in two games, Arsenal lost to fourth-division Bradford City in the quarter-finals on penalties. In the FA Cup, Arsenal were knocked out by Championship side Blackburn Rovers in the fifth round. The Champions League also proved fruitless, as despite a valiant effort in Bavaria winning 2–0, they were ultimately knocked out on the away goals rule against Bayern Munich, thus extending their trophy drought for an eighth season. The highest scoring game in their season was the famous 7–5 win in the League Cup (after extra time), where they came back from 4 goals down to beat Reading. Arsenal's highest scoring league win was the 7–3 win against Newcastle United in December; this was also their joint highest-scoring Premier League game of all time. This season, Arsenal finished fourth after having to close another large points gap (like last season) between themselves and their North London rivals Tottenham Hotspur.

Arsenal
2012–13 season
ChairmanPeter Hill-Wood
ManagerArsène Wenger
StadiumEmirates Stadium
Premier League4th
FA CupFifth round
League CupQuarter-finals
UEFA Champions LeagueRound of 16
Top goalscorerLeague:
Theo Walcott (14)
All:
Theo Walcott (21)
Highest home attendance60,112 (vs. Manchester United, 28 April 2013, Premier League)
Lowest home attendance58,351 (vs. Coventry City, 26 September 2012, League Cup)
Average home league attendance59,927
(in all competitions)

Review

Pre-season

Arsenal's pre-season transfers started as early as 30 April 2012, when Arsenal announced they were going to sign German international Lukas Podolski from 1. FC Köln for an undisclosed fee,[1] thought to be around £10.9 million.[2] Podolski officially joined Arsenal when the summer transfer window opened on 1 July.[3] Podolski became the second German player to join the club in the space of a year, following the arrival of Per Mertesacker from Werder Bremen last summer, whom Podolski himself stated, played a big part in the transfer after talking about life at the Emirates.[4] As well as early transfer news, Arsenal had early staff news, whereby, after 48 years of being associated with Arsenal, assistant manager Pat Rice retired at the end of the previous season. He was replaced on the same day by academy team manager, Steve Bould.[5] Pat Rice played a big role at Arsenal, and was highly praised following his retirement by both the players and by manager Arsène Wenger.[6]

Arsenal's pre-season schedule saw them take part in the second Markus Liebherr Cup (in memory of the former Southampton owner Markus Liebherr[7]), hosted by Southampton in two 45-minute matches against what was originally Scottish club Rangers, but was later confirmed to be Anderlecht due to the financial troubles faced by Rangers,[8] and the hosts themselves. The competition was held on 14 July 2012 as a round-robin system with Arsenal winning their first match 1–0 thanks to a close-range finish by Henri Lansbury, and despite losing 5–4 on penalties to Southampton (following a Gervinho 35th-minute equaliser to Jay Rodriguez's 31st-minute opener in regulation time), they had still accumulated enough points to win the cup.

Arsenal then travelled to the Far East, in a tour similar to that they embarked upon before their 2011–12 season. Arsenal started their tour by travelling to Malaysia to play a Malaysia League XI in Kuala Lumpur. After an open-training session (which was attended by 30,000 fans in the previous season),[9] Arsenal scored two late goals from German youngster Thomas Eisfeld and fellow reserve team player Chuks Aneke following Azmi Muslim's opener to win the match 2–1. From there, they travelled to China to play fellow Premier League team Manchester City in Beijing in the inaugural China Cup.[10] With extra significance due to the 2012 Summer Olympics, the match was held at the 2008 Olympic Stadium, and similar to the Malaysia tour, Arsenal attempted to get closer to their Chinese fans.[11] Arsenal ultimately lost 0–2, with two goals in the last five minutes of the first half by Pablo Zabaleta and Yaya Touré to lose the China Cup.

Arsenal then travelled to Hong Kong to play Kitchee, champions of their national league. The game gave the club's huge fan base in Hong Kong the opportunity to see Arsenal play live in an entertaining encounter that ended 2–2 after 90 minutes after Eisfeld equalised late on (which should have led to a penalty shootout, but it was later scrapped). Arsenal played in Hong Kong for the first time in 17 years, addressing their growing commitment to Asia.[12]

They were then going to travel to Nigeria to play the Nigeria national team[13] in their first visit to Africa since visiting South Africa in 1993,[14] however this was later postponed till summer 2013 based on concerns with the host city.[15] Instead, the club sent three first-team players (Bacary Sagna, Mertesacker and new signing Podolski) on 28 July 2012 to engage with supporters in the region.[16]

The last stop on Arsenal's pre-season schedule saw a repeat of last season's pre-season fixture against 1. FC Köln, resulting in an immediate goal-scoring return for new signing Lukas Podolski to his previous home ground. The fixture, which was scheduled six days before the start of the Premier League season, featured the likes of new signings Podolski, Olivier Giroud and Santi Cazorla in a commanding 4–0 win with an early opener from Thomas Vermaelen, a penalty and a close range strike from Podolski in the first half, and a finish from an acute angle from Gervinho in the second half to complete the rout. As the 2012 Olympics were being held in London, it was announced that Arsenal would not host the Emirates Cup tournament as part of their usual pre-season schedule, citing unnecessary increased pressure on London's infrastructure. However, Arsenal chief executive Ivan Gazidis stated that the Emirates Cup would be hosted by Arsenal in 2013, with a host of "top" clubs being lined up already.[17]

Robin van Persie (C), scored 96 Premier League goals in 8 seasons.

As the previous season drew to a close, Arsenal announced the release of seven players on 22 May 2012, five of whom played professionally for Arsenal, including Manuel Almunia, who made 175 first-team appearances for the club (including the 2006 UEFA Champions League Final), and Gavin Hoyte who was the only other released player to receive a first-team cap (against Manchester City on 22 November 2009).[18]

Soon afterwards Arsenal announced their progress on the staffing situation at the Emirates, and despite Steve Bould already being announced as the new assistant manager, the Club officially announced that Bould had indeed been promoted, Neil Banfield would be promoted to being first-team coach, after managing the Arsenal reserve team for the past eight seasons,[19] and that Terry Burton would become the reserve-team manager.[20] On 8 June 2012, Arsenal continued their transfer activity with the sale of Oğuzhan Özyakup to Turkish club Beşiktaş. Although it is undisclosed by Arsenal, Beşiktaş confirmed that a four-year contract had been agreed with Özyakup and a fee of around £405,000 agreed with Arsenal for the 19-year-old midfielder.[21] Arsenal then announced their second "big" transfer of the summer transfer window, with the signing of French striker Olivier Giroud from Montpellier for a reported fee of £12.8 million.[22] Giroud was top scorer in the French league last season and Arsène Wenger stated that he expects him to flourish.[23] He was primarily signed as a back up (rather than a replacement) to golden boot winner Robin van Persie, in a bid to challenge this season's Premier League title and win the club's first trophy for seven years.[24]

On 4 July 2012, however, a transfer saga, similar to the ones of Cesc Fàbregas and Samir Nasri last summer, took a big step as club captain and player-of-the-season[25] Van Persie revealed that he would not renew his Arsenal contract, and would therefore become a free agent at the end of the current season, signalling the end of an eight-year career at the club following his move from Feyenoord in 2004.[26] This eventually led to the confession that Giroud had actually been signed as a replacement for the Dutch talisman.[27] Meanwhile, on 29 June, Arsenal announced that a further seven academy players had signed professional contracts.[28][29]

To signal the intent of reducing surplus players, Arsenal then announced that a £6 million agreement had been reached for the sale of Carlos Vela on 17 July 2012. Vela featured 62 times for Arsenal, scoring 11 goals, and he was the first member of the first-team squad to be sold in the summer transfer window. A week later Arsenal announced that defender Laurent Koscielny had signed a new long-term contract after a series of consistent appearances in the first-team last season. Throughout the summer transfer window, manager Arsène Wenger had promised the club's fans that a headline transfer would be made, so to compete for the title, and this materialised on 7 August, when Spanish midfielder Santi Cazorla signed on a four-year contract for a reported transfer fee of £16.5 million, making him the most expensive player in the history of the club.[30] With the sale of Van Persie being confirmed by the club for a fee thought to be around £24 million,[31] on 17 August Arsenal revealed that Thomas Vermaelen had taken over the captaincy from the Dutchman, with Mikel Arteta being given the position of vice-captain.

August

The Premier League fixture list was announced on 18 June 2012 and it gave Arsenal a home game against Sunderland to open the new season. Both matches last season produced a 2–1 win in Arsenal's favour, which promised an entertaining opening match for the club. Although Arsenal had the better of the chances, they played out a 0–0 draw with the north-eastern club. Shortly after, Arsenal announced that an agreement had been reached with Barcelona for the sale of Alex Song, and two days later, on 20 August 2012, Arsenal announced that he had indeed been sold.[32] Meanwhile, in contrast to last season, Arsenal did not have any other commitments in August apart from competing in the Premier League, with no English contingent participating in the play-off round of the Champions League. This therefore allowed Arsenal ample time to prepare for their next test at the Britannia Stadium in their second game against Stoke City,[33] however it ended as a second successive 0–0 draw, and although their previous defensive frailties were not present throughout August, a goalless month was a cause for concern. Arsenal had no disciplinary issues in their opening two games, which epitomised the controlled, albeit unexciting, start to the season.

On a transfer deadline day that was dominated by the club's Premier League rivals, Arsenal only announced departures, as first team players Nicklas Bendtner and Park Chu-young departed on season-long loans, to Italian giants Juventus and La Liga club Celta de Vigo respectively. Despite manager Arsène Wenger stating that he is open to transfers before the window closes,[34] Arsenal did not shadow the events of last season, in buying no players in the final week of the transfer window.

September

Arsenal began a series a tough matches against Liverpool at Anfield, where the Gunners registered both their first goals and cards of the season. New signings Lukas Podolski and Santi Cazorla paired up for both goals, as Podolski finished low to the goalkeeper's left in the 31st minute, and Cazorla smashed a near post shot past goalkeeper Pepe Reina in the 68th minute to give Arsenal a commanding 2–0 win over Liverpool. Arsenal continued their unbeaten start with an emphatic victory over Southampton that rested fears over the Gunner's lack of scoring potential. A brace from Gervinho, goals from Podolski and Theo Walcott, and two own goals capped an almost perfect display, with the only error coming from goalkeeper Wojciech Szczęsny, as his spill gifted the visitors a goal, and dealt Arsenal their first defensive blip of the season, in a 6–1 thrashing.

Away from the Premier League, Arsenal started their Champions League campaign with a group stage match against debutants Montpellier at the Stade de la Mosson. Dubbed as favourites, Arsenal did not begin the match in such commanding fashion, as a penalty, conceded by Thomas Vermaelen, was put away by Younès Belhanda in the ninth minute, but two goals in quick succession from Podolski and Gervinho meant Arsenal turned the game around to come out as 2–1 winners, a scoreline that reflected the quality of the two teams. Arsenal's tough month continued, with arguable the toughest test that awaited them in the entire season – an away tie at champions Manchester City. Despite the constant troubles that have come from zonal marking, Arsenal used this technique from set-pieces all throughout the game, which ultimately led to Joleon Lescott's 40th-minute header giving City the lead until Laurent Koscielny's 82nd-minute equaliser, giving Arsenal a deserved draw at the Etihad. The draw extended Arsenal's unbeaten run to five games and earned the team plaudits around the footballing world.

Continuing with the packed fixture list, came another midweek tie against Coventry City in the League Cup. Arsenal fielded a team mixed with experience and young talent in a convincing 6–1 win over the League One outfit. Olivier Giroud opened his account for the club, with a clever finish over goalkeeper Murphy, and goals from youngsters Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Ignasi Miquel, a brace from Walcott, and an instinctive finish by Andrey Arshavin capped a satisfying night for the Arsenal faithful. Arsenal's final game of September came in the form of a visit from table-topping Chelsea side to the Emirates Stadium. Despite Gervinho's strike late in the first half, goals from Fernando Torres and Juan Mata, both from set plays, on either side of the half way mark, highlighted the club's underlying defensive frailties, in an unconvincing display from the Gunners.

October

[[File:Reading 5-7 Arsenal (scoreboard).png|thumb|The Madjeski Stadium scoreboard dictating the historic Arsenal [[win over Reading]] in the League Cup on 30 October 2012]] Arsenal began October with a 3–1 Premier League win against West Ham United at the Boleyn Ground. After conceding an early goal from Mohamed Diamé, Arsenal netted late twice, including Olivier Giroud's first Premier League goal. Following an international break, Arsenal travelled to Carrow Road to face third-bottom Norwich City, and lost 1–0 through a 20-minute Grant Holt goal after a Vito Mannone spill, in an unconvincing display from the Gunners. Their poor form continued in a Champions League clash with Schalke 04, conceding twice in a 2–0 loss (their first at the Emirates in a European group stage match),[35] putting Arsenal second in Group B with three games to play.

Arsenal then produced a respectable performance in their next match against a struggling Queens Park Rangers in the Premier League, thanks to another late goal, this time from Mikel Arteta, following Stéphane Mbia's red card dismissal. Their final game of October was an away League Cup fourth-round tie against Reading, where after having fallen to a four-goal deficit after 37 minutes, goals from Theo Walcott (twice), Olivier Giroud and Laurent Koscielny managed to equalise the match to 4–4 after 90 minutes (despite a controversial 90+6th-minute equaliser, when only four minutes of added time was indicated). Theo Walcott and Marouane Chamakh (twice) then netted in extra time, with Pavel Pogrebnyak scoring an additional goal for Reading, completing one of football's most inspiring comebacks, as well as one of the most remarkable matches in League Cup history (as well as the highest scoring),[36] to a final score of 7–5 to Arsenal, who have never lost to a Reading side in all ten occasions that the teams have met. Arsenal became the first side to have scored over six goals in two consecutive League Cup matches in this record breaking and inspiring display. They were drawn against League Two Bradford City in the quarter-finals and entered November on a high.

November

Arsenal's November started as poorly as September had ended and October had started, and despite a tough test against Manchester United, an unlikely three points for the Gunners did not materialise in a lacklustre performance that only brought about two shots on target, including a late consolation by Santi Cazorla, and a disappointing 2–1 loss at Old Trafford. Arsenal extended their losing streak at Old Trafford to six seasons, in a performance that left Arsenal sixth in the Premier League table, nine points off the top. Arsenal, frustratingly for everyone connected with the club, showed another stuttering performance against table-topping Schalke 04 in the Champions League. They created a 2–0 lead inside 26 minutes with goals against the run of play, from Theo Walcott (following a mix-up in defence) and Giroud, however, Schalke deservedly pegged Arsenal back with goals either side of half time, from Dutch striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and Peruvian Jefferson Farfán, as the Gunners left Gelsenkirchen with a point. The result, which Walcott said Arsenal would have taken before the game,[37] left Arsenal a point and a place behind Schalke, in a widely open group.

Four days later, Arsenal surrendered another two-goal lead, this time created by Lukas Podolski and Giroud, into a 3–2 deficit following a brace (including a penalty conceded by Arteta) for Dimitar Berbatov and a header from Alexander Kačaniklić for Fulham. Giroud scored in the 69th minute to level the game at 3–3, thus making the game the first time he scored in consecutive games, and two goals in one single game, but the Gunners were denied late on after Mark Schwarzer saved a penalty from Arteta which would have given Arsenal a 4–3 lead in the 90+5th minute. The draw meant Arsenal had won only one of the previous six Premier League and Champions League games (L,L,W,L,D,D), which piled more pressure on Arsène Wenger. With an uncanny resemblance to last season, Arsenal entered their first North London derby against Tottenham Hotspur on the back of a poor run of results, while still managing coming out as 5–2 winners against their bitter rivals, who were once again down to ten men. Inside the first 20 minutes, former Gunner Emmanuel Adebayor went from "hero to zero" as he gave Spurs an early lead before getting sent off nine minutes later. This allowed the Gunners a route back into the game, which eventually came from the unlikely source of Per Mertesacker with his first goal for the club inside 25 minutes. Arsenal then finished the half strongly with goals from Podolski and Giroud to give them a 3–1 lead. In the second half, Arsenal soaked up some early pressure from Spurs before Cazorla scored when the team were on a magnificent break. Despite Gareth Bale's goal in the 71st minute, Arsenal made their man-advantage count, as Walcott completed the rout three minutes from the end.

In Arsenal's fifth game of the month, they faced a Montpellier side in poor form, and in a far less entertaining game than the last, Arsenal came out as solid 2–0 winners, with a clean sheet. Two sublime finishes from Jack Wilshere, his first in 725 days,[38] and Podolski, a left-foot volley reminiscent of former captain Van Persie, allowed Arsenal to secure qualification to the knockout stage of the competition, with only the top two places to be settled on the last matchday between the Gunners and Schalke.[39]

Arsenal returned to poor form in their next match however, as they played out a dull 0–0 draw with relegation-threatened Aston Villa, meaning the Gunners lost ground yet again on the top four sides. Yet again, Arsenal played out an uninspiring draw against fellow Champions League-chasers Everton. The game started well for the Gunners, as Walcott scored inside 52 seconds at Goodison Park, but Marouane Fellaini equalised just before the half-hour mark to level the score at 1–1, and so it stayed until the end, as Arsenal finished November in seventh place in the Premier League table.

December
The Emirates Stadium scoreboard after the 7–3 victory over Newcastle United on 29 December 2012

Arsenal started December losing 0-2 to aSwansea City side under Michael Laudrup, with two goals scored by Michu for Swansea late on, in what the BBC called "Arsenal's worst start to a season under Arsene Wenger".[40] Next up was a Champions League visit to Olympiacos. Consecutive losses were on the cards for Arsenal, as they named a weakened 18-man squad ahead of vital Premier League games for the club. Despite taking a 38th-minute lead with a low drive from Tomáš Rosický, Arsenal surrendered yet another lead with two goals in under 10 minutes from Ioannis Maniatis and Konstantinos Mitroglou to give Olympiacos a 2–1 win. Had Arsenal won the game, they would have gone top of the table, as Montpellier managed a draw against Schalke 04, but instead they finished second, setting up a tough test against Bayern Munich in the last-16.[41]

Arsenal's fortunes turned however, in their next match against high-flying West Bromwich Albion, where a controversial penalty for a perceived dive from Cazorla gifted Arsenal the lead, when it was put down the centre of the goal by Arteta on 26 minutes. Arsenal then doubled their lead, this time on a blatant foul on Oxlade-Chamberlain, with another penalty from Arteta to finish the game 2–0 in Arsenal's favour. It was the Gunners first win in four Premier League games, and it lifted the team up to seventh in the table. Spirits dropped yet again, however, as a near full-strength Arsenal squad humiliatingly crashed out to League Two side Bradford City in the League Cup, 3–2 on penalties, following an 88th-minute equaliser by Thomas Vermaelen, who incidentally missed the final penalty. This left Arsenal with interests in three competitions.

Arsenal then entered the Christmas period with a Monday night fixture against then-bottom Reading. The match ended in a familiar scoreline that lifted the Arsenal fans; 5–2. Cazorla scored his first hat-trick for the club, and also provided an assist for Walcott's goal, and the fifth of the match; Lukas Podolski opened the scoring inside 15 minutes. Arsenal continued their revival with a solid victory over Wigan Athletic with the Gunners recording three consecutive wins for the first time since March last season. An Arteta penalty in the 60th minute gave Arsenal a 1–0 win and raised the team to fourth in the table. Arsenal have a larger break than other teams in the Premier League however, as the West Ham game was postponed due to a tube strike in the London Underground.[42] Arsenal returned to action in style on 29 December against Newcastle by emphatically beating the Tyneside team 7–3. Arsenal were never behind in the game, but were pegged-back three times by two goals from Demba Ba and one from Sylvain Marveaux following goals from Podolski, Oxlade-Chamberlain and Walcott. However, following another two goals from Walcott (to complete his hat-trick), and a brace from substitute Giroud, Arsenal rounded off an impressive display to give confidence to the fans ahead of the crucial month January.

January
Theo Walcott was top scorer of the season at the time he signed his contract

Arsenal started 2013 in disappointing fashion with a result that Wenger called "undeserved":[43] a 1–1 draw against Southampton. Arsenal were gifted their goal with an own goal from Guly do Prado (Arsenal's third of the season, with the previous two also coming against Southampton), after Gastón Ramírez opened the scoring for the Saints. The result was the last of a four-game winning streak ahead of a tough couple of matches against Premier League champions Manchester City, and European champions Chelsea. Arsenal completed their first transfer business of the January transfer window, with the loan of Moroccan striker Marouane Chamakh to West Ham on 4 January 2013.[44] Another loan was announced a day later as Swiss centre-back Johan Djourou joined Hannover 96.[45] Both players had yet to feature in the Premier League this season for the Gunners, and both deals were for the rest of the season. Arsenal started their FA Cup run against Swansea in the third round, and following an uneventful first half, the second half sprung into life as both teams scored late on (Podolski and Gibbs for the Gunners, and Danny Graham for Swansea) after Michu opened the scoring in the 58th minute. The final score of 2–2 meant both teams would play a replay.

A week later, Arsenal slumped to a controversial yet disappointing loss to the champions Manchester City as Koscielny was sent off in the ninth minute after fouling Edin Džeko in the penalty area. Despite missing the resulting penalty, Džeko and James Milner gave City a comfortable 2–0 victory. Vincent Kompany was sent off late in the game leaving both teams with ten players. The stadium rang out in a chorus of jeering at the final whistle, aimed at both the Gunners and the referee. Arsenal turned their fortunes, however, as they progressed 1–0 winners against Swansea City into the FA Cup fourth round. Jack Wilshere buried a shot from outside the penalty area to keep Arsenal's trophy hopes alive. Arsenal fans soon had further encouragement as striker Theo Walcott signed a new contract with the club, for an undisclosed length of time. Arsène Wenger said he was "delighted" to secure the contract of a "strong player and also a great person".[46]

Soon after, Arsenal were subjected to a second consecutive Premier League loss against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. Another poor start resulted in two goals conceded, which was a similar situation as their previous league defeat. Despite Walcott managing to pull one goal back in the second half, the game eventually ended 2–1, leaving Arsenal's hope of finishing in the top four in serious doubt. Some doubt was erased only three days later, as four goals in ten early second-half minutes meant Arsenal romped to a 5–1 victory over West Ham in the rescheduled match, originally to have been played on Boxing Day. Two goals from Giroud, and one each from Walcott, Podolski and Cazorla left the Gunners just four points off their north London rivals Tottenham in fourth. Arsenal then progressed into the fifth round of the FA Cup in another thriller three days later, with a 3–2 victory over Brighton & Hove Albion in the Falmer Stadium. Giroud scored yet another brace, and Walcott scored once to increase his goal tally to 17 for the season, as Arsenal set up a tie against Championship side Blackburn Rovers in the next round.

Back in the Premier League, Arsenal continued their increasingly frustrating habit of starting games slowly, going 2–0 behind against Liverpool inside an hour thanks to goals from Luis Suárez and Jordan Henderson. However, two goals in quick succession from in-form strikers Giroud and Walcott battled Arsenal back to a 2–2 draw. Giroud spurned a late chance to collect a hat-trick of braces and win the game for the Gunners. Following an injury picked up by Kieran Gibbs in that game, Arsenal rushed to complete a late signing of Spanish international left-back Nacho Monreal from Málaga on deadline day, for an undisclosed contract length and fee (thought to be around £8.5 million), though disappointed Gunners fans by not making a move for linked Barcelona striker David Villa.[47]

February

Arsenal started February solidly, with a commanding yet disciplined performance against Stoke. A deflected free kick from Lukas Podolski late in the game and a brilliant display from debutant Monreal left the Gunners in a promising position as teams around them dropped points. For the first time in six attempts, Arsenal climbed the table to fifth with a 1–0 win over Sunderland. Arsenal had plenty of chances throughout the first half and parts of the second, and Sunderland had the chance to equalise in the second-half, but it was Cazorla's ninth goal of the season that was the difference of the two teams. Shortly thereafter, Arsenal announced the loan departure of left-back André Santos to Brazilian club Grêmio until the end of the season.[48] This came after the signing of Spanish international Monreal pushed Santos further down the pecking order. With an upcoming fixture in the Champions League, it was believed that Vermaelen or Gibbs would have to return to play left-back.[49]

Despite the strong start to the month, Arsenal crashed out of the FA Cup with a disappointing 1–0 loss to Championship club Blackburn Rovers. Although their opponents only had three shots on target,[50] Arsenal rued not putting their chances away throughout the game, and left themselves with little hope of ending their trophy drought this season. Three days later, Arsenal resumed their Champions League campaign with a Round of 16 clash against Bayern Munich. In the first leg of a very challenging tie at the Emirates, they slumped to a 3–1 first-leg defeat, with Podolski scoring against his old club to give Arsenal a slight chance (albeit needing three goals at the Allianz Arena) in the second leg. Toni Kroos, Thomas Müller and Mario Mandžukić scored for Bayern. Needing to lift the fans, Arsenal played relegation-threatened Aston Villa in sight of a third-straight win in the Premier League. Arsenal did so with a brace from Santi Cazorla either side of an Andreas Weimann equaliser to stay four points adrift of North-London rivals Tottenham, who they played the following Sunday.

March

However, the North London derby ended in bitter disappointment for the "red side of North London" as Tottenham ran out 2–1 following two goals in quick succession from Gareth Bale and Aaron Lennon late in the first-half, one of which being eventually cancelled out by Mertesacker's second goal for the club (both were against Tottenham this season). Arsenal then had a 10-day wait before their return leg in the Champions League, due to Everton's participation in the FA Cup. Though many resigned the Gunners to defeat, Arsenal had a valiant attempt to knock out their German opponents by winning 2–0 on the night (with a goal inside the first three minutes from Giroud and a goal in the last three minutes of the game from Laurent Koscielny), crashing out on away goals. However, they were the first team to defeat Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena this season and the first team not to concede against Bayern all season, giving huge confidence to the team both defensively and offensively in the final ten "cup-finals" of the Premier League season.[51] Arsenal stepped up once again to Wenger's rallying calls, as Arsenal recorded a second consecutive 2–0 victory in a tough encounter at the Liberty Stadium against Swansea. Goals in the second half from Nacho Monreal – his first for the club – and Gervinho kept Arsenal's top-four hopes alive. Arsenal's next match was after the international break, against a struggling Reading side who Arsenal had already scored 12 goals in two matches against this season (in all competitions). Arsenal made it 12 wins in all 12 games against Reading as goals from Gervinho, Cazorla, Giroud and Arteta ensured the Gunners ran out 4–1 winners (with Hal Robson-Kanu pulling one back for the Royals) and kept up their chase for the top four.

Laurent Koscielny again scored the crucial goal in Arsenal's final match of the season, similar to last season, that secured Arsenal's top four spot

April

Along with news that Jack Wilshere and Theo Walcott were to return from injury soon, Arsenal fans were given more to cheer about as a spirited performance following Metersacker's sending off against West Brom lifted the Gunners temporarily up to fourth in the table. Two goals from Tomáš Rosický put Arsenal in a commanding position but a penalty scored by James Morrison on 71 minutes made for a nervy end as Arsenal eventually ran out 2–1 winners at The Hawthorns. Arsenal then started a period of three games in a week against Norwich, as a spirited comeback in the last seven minutes of the match ensured Arsenal went third in the Premier League table. Michael Turner opened the scoring for Norwich from a set piece but a trio of goals (including a controversial penalty) was scored by Arteta, Giroud and Podolski, as the Gunners ran out 3–1 winners.

Their next match was against fellow Champions League-chasers Everton, and after early Everton pressure Arsenal settled into the match, but was ultimately unable to score for the first time in 12 games, in a match that ended 0–0. The Gunners resumed their top four fight in a derby against Fulham that saw two men sent off (Steve Sidwell for Fulham and Giroud for Arsenal, who later lost his appeal for it to be rescinded) and an unlikely scorer in Per Mertesacker, as Arsenal won 1–0. Following a guard of honour to the newly crowned champions, Arsenal faced a Manchester United side with former captain Robin van Persie in tow. Theo Walcott scored early as Arsenal showed early signs of brilliance, but the goal was later cancelled out by a penalty, conceded by Sagna, from Van Persie. The match ended 1–1.

May

Arsenal entered a crucial period of the season with a game against newly relegated Queens Park Rangers, as Tottenham and Chelsea would play their game in hand against each other, leaving a straight battle to the top four Champions League qualification spots. Walcott again got the Gunners off to the perfect start with the fastest goal in the Premier League season so far, as well as the 12th fastest goal in Premier League history, after he put the Gunners ahead after 20 seconds. The game petered out, however, but it increased Arsenal's unbeaten run to 8 games, as the Gunners ran out 1–0 winners. Arsenal had a ten-day before their final home game of the season against newly crowned FA Cup winners Wigan in what proved to be a crucial game at both ends of the Premier League table. The game was won 4–1 by the Gunners, after goals from Podolski (2), Walcott and Aaron Ramsey cancelled out Shaun Maloney's free-kick strike. Wigan were subsequently relegated after an eight-year stay in the Premier League,[52] whilst Arsenal left their top four faith in their own hands by staying one point above rivals Tottenham. Although the result also presented an opportunity for an unprecedented "third place play-off", this was not needed following a Chelsea win over Everton, however Arsenal secured fourth spot as a 1–0 win over Newcastle (scored by Laurent Koscielny) meant Arsenal finished the season on 73 points, three more than the previous season and one more above rivals Tottenham. Arsenal thus qualified for the 2013–14 UEFA Champions League.

Following the season's completion, Arsenal revealed their top four players of the season as voted for by Arsenal Football Club members. In fourth place came the Spaniard Mikel Arteta for his consistent performances in the middle of midfield (which included recording the second highest number of passes in the campaign: 2750 at a 92% success rate) with 5% of the votes.[53] In third came Arsenal's top scorer Theo Walcott, whose tally of 21 goals in all competitions bettered that of any of his previous seasons at the club. He also held the feat of most assists of the campaign in an Arsenal shirt, as he deservedly claimed 12.7% of the votes.[54] In second place came Laurent Koscielny after taking over from captain Thomas Vermaelen as a main-stay in the heart of Arsenal's defence. A number of assured performances that included conceded only 5 goals in the final 10 games of the season handed the French defender 13.5% of all the votes.[55] Lastly, Arsenal's Player of Season award went to Spaniard Santi Cazorla, who Arsène Wenger described as "the perfect footballer". With 12 goals and 14 assists, Cazorla announced his arrival in English football with a bang, as he ran away with 55.7% of the votes in the club poll.[56]

Brief Season round-up

Overall, the Gunners had a reasonably successful Premier League campaign, although they failed to end the trophy drought. At season's end, Arsène Wenger promised to make some big signings and spend to get world-class players to help them challenge for trophies in the following seasons.

Key events

Players

Squad information
Further information: Arsenal F.C. § Players
N
 Pos.
 Nat.
 Name
 Age
 EU
 Since
 App
 Goals
 Ends
 Transfer fee
 Notes
1 GK Wojciech Szczęsny23EU 2007 106 0 2015[74] Youth system
2 MF Abou Diaby27EU 2006 (Winter) 178 19 undisclosed[75] £2.0M[76]
3 DF Bacary Sagna30EU 2007 236 4 2014[77] £7.5M[78]
4 DF Per Mertesacker28EU 2011 71 3 2015[79] £8.0M[80]
5 DF Thomas Vermaelen (captain)27EU 2009 129 15 2015[81] £10.0M[82]
6 DF Laurent Koscielny27EU 2010 119 10 undisclosed[61] £8.5M[83]
7 MF Tomáš Rosický32EU 2006 182 22 2014[84] £6.8M[85]
8 MF Mikel Arteta (vice-captain)31EU 2011 81 12 2015[86] £10.0M[87]
9 FW Lukas Podolski27EU 2012 42 16 2016[2] £10.9M[88]
10 MF Jack Wilshere21EU 2008 97 5 2018[89] Youth system
11 DF André Santos30Non-EU 2011 33 3 undisclosed[90] £6.2M[91] On loan to Grêmio
12 FW Olivier Giroud26EU 2012 47 17 undisclosed[22] £12.8M[59]
14 FW Theo Walcott24EU 2006 (Winter) 263 63 undisclosed[46] £9.0M[92]
15 FW Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain19EU 2011 59 6 undisclosed[93] £12.0M[94]
16 MF Aaron Ramsey22EU 2008 150 11 undisclosed[95] £4.8M[96]
17 DF Nacho Monreal27EU 2013 (Winter) 11 1 undisclosed[72] £8.5M[47]
18 DF Sébastien Squillaci32EU 2010 39 2 2013[97] £3.3M[97]
19 MF Santi Cazorla28EU 2012 49 12 undisclosed[30] £16.5M[62]
20 DF Johan Djourou26EU 2003 144 1 2015[98] Youth system On loan to Hannover 96
21 GK Łukasz Fabiański28EU 2007 67 0 undisclosed[99] £2.0M[100]
22 MF Francis Coquelin22EU 2008 43 0 undisclosed[101] Youth system
23 MF Andrey Arshavin31Non-EU 2009 (Winter) 144 31 2013[102] £15.0M[103]
24 GK Vito Mannone25EU 2005 23 0 2014[104] £0.35M[105]
25 DF Carl Jenkinson21EU 2011 35 0 undisclosed[106] £1.0M[106]
26 MF Emmanuel Frimpong21EU 2009 16 0 undisclosed[107] Youth system On loan to Fulham
27 FW Gervinho25Non-EU 2011 63 11 undisclosed[108] £10.5M[109]
28 DF Kieran Gibbs23EU 2007 106 3 undisclosed[110] Youth system
29 FW Marouane Chamakh29EU 2010 67 14 undisclosed[111] Free On loan to West Ham United
30 FW Park Chu-young27Non-EU 2011 6 1 undisclosed[112] £1.8M[113] On loan to Celta Vigo
31 MF Ryo Miyaichi20Non-EU 2011 (Winter) 2 0 undisclosed[114] Free
52 FW Nicklas Bendtner25EU 2004 157 45 undisclosed[115] Youth system On loan to Juventus
MF Denílson25Non-EU 2006 153 10 undisclosed[116] £3.5M[117] On loan to São Paulo
FW Joel Campbell20Non-EU 2011 0 0 undisclosed[118] £0.9M[119] On loan to Real Betis
  • Last updated: 19 May 2013
  • Source:Arsenal F.C. and footballdatabase.com (for EU passport, country as international player, contract ending and transfer fee)
  • Ordered by squad number.

Reserve squad
Further information: Arsenal F.C. Reserves and Arsenal F.C. Academy
As of 5 February 2013.[120][121][122]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
36 GK  ARG Emiliano Martínez
38 DF   SUI Martin Angha
39 FW  ENG Zak Ansah
40 DF  ESP Héctor Bellerín
41 DF  MAR Samir Bihmoutine
42 DF  GHA Daniel Boateng
43 GK  ENG Reice Charles-Cook
44 MF  ENG Craig Eastmond
45 MF  NED Kyle Ebecilio
46 MF  GER Thomas Eisfeld
47 MF  GER Serge Gnabry
48 DF   SUI Sead Hajrović
49 DF  ENG Isaac Hayden
50 MF  EIR Conor Henderson
51 FW  ENG Benik Afobe
No. Pos. Nation Player
53 MF  ENG Jernade Meade
54 DF  ESP Ignasi Miquel
55 DF   SUI Elton Monteiro
56 FW  JAM Nigel Neita
58 MF  ENG Josh Rees
60 GK  ENG James Shea
62 FW  ENG Sanchez Watt
63 MF  ENG Jordan Wynter
64 MF  ENG Nico Yennaris
65 MF  ENG Jack Jebb
66 FW  ENG Austin Lipman
67 FW  ENG Chuba Akpom
68 GK  MKD Dejan Iliev
71 DF  ENG Brandon Ormonde-Ottewill

In
# Position Player Transferred from Fee Date Team Source
9 FW Lukas Podolski 1. FC Köln Undisclosed (~ £10,900,000)[2] 30 April 2012 First-team [123]
12 FW Olivier Giroud Montpellier Undisclosed (~ £12,800,000)[59] 26 June 2012 First-team [22]
19 MF Santi Cazorla Málaga Undisclosed (~ £15,000,000)[62] 6 August 2012 First-team [30]
17 DF Nacho Monreal Málaga Undisclosed (~ £8,500,000) 31 January 2013 First team [72]

Total spending: Undisclosed (~ £47,200,000)

Out
# Position Player Transferred to Fee Date Team Source
MF Jeffrey Monakana Preston North End Free transfer (Released) 29 May 2012 Academy [124]
DF Ben Glasgow Stoke City Free transfer 7 June 2012 Academy [125]
53 MF Oğuzhan Özyakup Beşiktaş £405,000 8 June 2012 Reserves [21][126]
50 FW Rhys Murphy Telstar Free transfer (Released) 9 June 2012 Reserves [18][127]
MF Alban Bunjaku Sevilla Free transfer 28 June 2012 Academy [128]
DF James Campbell Stoke City Free transfer (Released) 28 June 2012 Academy [18]
45 DF Gavin Hoyte Dagenham & Redbridge Free transfer (Released) 10 July 2012 Reserves [18][129]
FW Carlos Vela Real Sociedad £5,000,000 17 July 2012 First-team [60]
DF Pedro Botelho Atlético Paranaense Free transfer 25 July 2012 Reserves [130]
1 GK Manuel Almunia Watford Free transfer (Released) 31 July 2012 First-team [18][131]
47 GK Sean McDermott Sandnes Ulf Free transfer (Released) 8 August 2012 Reserves [18][132]
35 DF Kyle Bartley Swansea City £1,000,000 16 August 2012 First-team [133][134]
10 FW Robin van Persie Manchester United £25,000,000 17 August 2012 First-team [31][135]
17 MF Alex Song Barcelona £15,000,000 20 August 2012 First-team [32][65]
MF Henri Lansbury Nottingham Forest £1,000,000 28 August 2012 Reserves [136]
38 DF George Brislen-Hall Inverness C.T. Free transfer (Released) 30 August 2012 Reserves [18][137]

Total income: Undisclosed (~ £47,405,000)

Loan out
# Position Player Loaned to Date Loan expires Team Source
MF Denílson São Paulo 6 July 2012 End of the season First team [138]
FW Joel Campbell Real Betis 11 July 2012 End of the season First team [139]
FW Benik Afobe Bolton Wanderers 3 August 2012 1 February 2013 Reserves [140]
31 MF Ryo Miyaichi Wigan Athletic 13 August 2012 9 March 2013
(due to injury)		 First team [141][142]
FW Wellington Ponferradina 15 August 2012 End of the season Reserves [143]
MF Samuel Galindo Lugo 23 August 2012 End of the season Reserves [144]
DF Daniel Boateng Oxford United 28 August 2012 1 January 2013 Reserves [145]
FW Philip Roberts Inverness C.T. 30 August 2012 End of the season Reserves [137]
30 FW Park Chu-young Celta Vigo 31 August 2012 End of the season First team [67]
52 FW Nicklas Bendtner Juventus 31 August 2012 End of the season First team [66]
MF Chuks Aneke Crewe Alexandra 7 September 2012 21 January 2013 Reserves [146]
50 MF Conor Henderson Coventry City 21 September 2012 22 December 2012 Reserves [147]
MF Craig Eastmond Colchester United 27 September 2012 27 January 2013 Reserves [148]
62 FW Sanchez Watt Colchester United 27 September 2012 27 January 2013 Reserves [148]
26 MF Emmanuel Frimpong Charlton Athletic 19 November 2012 1 January 2013 First team [68]
29 FW Marouane Chamakh West Ham United 4 January 2013 End of the season First team [44]
20 DF Johan Djourou Hannover 96 5 January 2013 End of the season First team [45]
26 MF Emmanuel Frimpong Fulham 25 January 2013 End of the season First team [71]
MF Chuks Aneke Crewe Alexandra 31 January 2013 End of the season Reserves [149]
MF Samuel Galindo Wilstermann 7 February 2013 End of the season Reserves [150]
FW Benik Afobe Millwall 7 February 2013 7 March 2013
(due to injury)		 Reserves [151][152]
11 DF André Santos Grêmio 11 February 2013 End of the season First team [48]
FW Anthony Jeffrey Stevenage 1 March 2013 1 May 2013 Academy [153]
Spending

Undisclosed (~ £47,200,000)

Income

Undisclosed (~ £47,405,000)

Net expenditure

Undisclosed (~ £205,000)

Club

Coaching staff
This is Arsène Wenger's 17th season with Arsenal.
The retirement of Pat Rice allowed the promotion of Steve Bould and Neil Banfield.
Position Staff
Manager Arsène Wenger
Assistant manager Steve Bould1
First team coach Boro Primorac1
Neil Banfield1
Goalkeeping coach Gerry Peyton
Fitness coach Tony Colbert
Craig Gant
Physiotherapist Colin Lewin
Ben Ashworth
Declan Lynch
Kit manager Paul Johnson
Vic Akers
Paul Akers
Masseur Darren Page
Performance analyst Ben Knapper
Club doctor Gary O'Driscoll
Chief scout Steve Rowley

Last updated: 1 October 2012
Source: Arsenal F.C.

1 Steve Bould and Neil Banfield were confirmed as the assistant manager and first team coach respectively, following the retirement of Pat Rice, however Boro Primorac will continue in his position as first team coach.[19]

Kit

Supplier: Nike / Sponsor: Fly Emirates

Home
Home alt.[154]
Away
Away alt.[155]
Third
Goalkeeper 1
Goalkeeper 2
Goalkeeper 2 alt.
Goalkeeper 3
Goalkeeper 3 alt.

Kit information

Nike released a new set of home, away and goalkeeper kits for the 2012–13 season. The club reverted to their traditional crest, after using an anniversary crest last season.

  • Home: During the final years with Nike, Nike ditched the white sleeves the club's well known for. The shirt has a white wide stripe on each sleeve, flanked by two dark red, narrower stripes. It has a red V-neck collar which is the same colour as the primary shirt colour. The shirt is complemented by white shorts with a dark-red trim, and white socks with a red horizontal stripe. Red socks with white horizontal stripe were used in some away games. Arsenal revealed that the kit would be used for two season as two final season of Nike.
  • Away: Arsenal's new away kit, was revealed on 12 July 2012, with the much speculated purple and black hooped kit being officially confirmed.[156] The reason behind the kit was to commemorate Arsenal's past, enhancing the "royal" theme from the Diamond Jubilee to remind Arsenal fans of the Royal Arsenal that once existed through the colour purple. The shirt featured red cuffs and detailing, and additionally featured hoops of different width on the arms. The purple and black hooped socks, bearing one red stripe each, paid tribute to Chapman's legacy and his introduction of hooped socks, which according to him, was said to make it easier for his players to pick each other out on the pitch. The hoops and red trim on the sleeves was designed the kit a modern and unique flavour to distinguish the club from others in the Premier League.
  • Third: Arsenal's yellow and maroon 2010–11 away kit was retained as a third kit yet again.
  • Keeper: Nike launched a new set of goalkeeper strips for the 2012–13 season. The primary strip was predominantly green featuring several tones of the same colour on the arms. The alternatives were pink and gold, based on the same template.


Kit Usage
  • Away: Arsenal's unique away kit produced mix fortunes for the club on the road. Worn in eight games during the season it saw them crash out of the League Cup on penalties to Bradford City, yet whilst still ultimately going out of the competition thanks to a 3–1 defeat at the Emirates, it saw them win 2–0 away to Bayern Munich in the Champions League knockout stages. An early 2–0 win at Anfield against Liverpool in the league saw the only other victory in this shirt. Draws came at Stoke, Southampton and Swansea (FA Cup) whilst three defeats came away to Manchester United, Olympiacos and the previously mentioned game against Bradford City.[157]

Other information
The Emirates Stadium is the second largest stadium in the Premier League.
Chairman Peter Hill-Wood
Ground (capacity and dimensions) Emirates Stadium (60,355 / 113x76 metres)

Updated to match played 11 May 2010
Source: Arsenal F.C.

Squad statistics

Appearances and goals
As of 14 May 2013
No. Pos Nat Player TotalPremier LeagueFA CupLeague CupChampions League
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
1 GK Wojciech Szczęsny 33025+004+001+003+00
2 MF Abou Diaby 15010+103+000+001+00
3 DF Bacary Sagna 31025+002+001+003+00
4 DF Per Mertesacker 44333+133+001+006+00
5 DF Thomas Vermaelen 39125+402+00117+00
6 DF Laurent Koscielny 34420+523+001+015+01
7 MF Tomáš Rosický 1637+322+000+102+11
8 MF Mikel Arteta 43634+062+000+007+00
9 FW Lukas Podolski 421625+8111+111+006+04
10 MF Jack Wilshere 33220+502+211+003+01
11 DF André Santos [L] 1203+501+001+001+10
12 FW Olivier Giroud 471724+10114+021+124+32
14 FW Theo Walcott 432124+8142+212+053+21
15 FW Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain 33211+1412+001+113+10
16 MF Aaron Ramsey 47221+1511+201+004+31
17 DF Nacho Monreal 1119+111+000+000+00
18 DF Sébastien Squillaci 100+000+000+001+00
19 MF Santi Cazorla 491237+1122+101+007+00
20 DF Johan Djourou [L] 200+000+002+000+00
21 GK Łukasz Fabiański 504+000+000+001+00
22 MF Francis Coquelin 2203+802+003+003+30
23 MF Andrey Arshavin 1110+700+002+010+20
24 GK Vito Mannone 1309+000+000+004+00
25 DF Carl Jenkinson 21014+001+001+005+00
26 MF Emmanuel Frimpong [L] 200+000+001+100+00
27 FW Gervinho 26712+651+001+004+22
28 DF Kieran Gibbs 34123+402+111+003+00
29 FW Marouane Chamakh [L] 420+000+001+221+00
30 FW Park Chu-young [L] 000+000+000+000+00
31 MF Ryo Miyaichi 000+000+000+000+00
36 GK Emiliano Martínez [R] 200+000+002+000+00
38 DF Martin Angha [R] 200+000+001+000+10
46 MF Thomas Eisfeld [R] 100+000+000+100+00
47 MF Serge Gnabry [R] 400+100+001+100+10
52 FW Nicklas Bendtner [L] 000+000+000+000+00
53 MF Jernade Meade [R] 200+000+000+101+00
54 DF Ignasi Miquel [R] 310+100+002+010+00
64 DF Nico Yennaris [R] 100+000+001+000+00
  • Source:

[R] – Reserve team player [L] – Out on loan [S] – Sold

Top scorers
Place Position Nationality Number Name Premier League FA Cup League Cup Champions League Total
1 FW 14 Theo Walcott 14 1 5 1 21
2 FW 12 Olivier Giroud 11 2 2 2 17
3 FW 9 Lukas Podolski 11 1 0 4 16
4 MF 19 Santi Cazorla 12 0 0 0 12
5 FW 27 Gervinho 5 0 0 2 7
6 MF 8 Mikel Arteta 6 0 0 0 6
7 DF 6 Laurent Koscielny 2 0 1 1 4
8 DF 4 Per Mertesacker 3 0 0 0 3
Own Goals 3 0 0 0 3
MF 7 Tomáš Rosický 2 0 0 1 3
11 FW 29 Marouane Chamakh 0 0 2 0 2
MF 15 Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain 1 0 1 0 2
MF 16 Aaron Ramsey 1 0 0 1 2
MF 10 Jack Wilshere 0 1 0 1 2
15 MF 23 Andrey Arshavin 0 0 1 0 1
DF 28 Kieran Gibbs 0 1 0 0 1
DF 54 Ignasi Miquel 0 0 1 0 1
DF 17 Nacho Monreal 1 0 0 0 1
DF 5 Thomas Vermaelen 0 0 1 0 1
TOTALS 72 6 14 13 105

Disciplinary record
Number Nationality Position Name Premier League FA Cup League Cup Champions League Total
6 DF Laurent Koscielny 1 2 0 0 2 0 2 0 5 2
12 FW Olivier Giroud 5 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 '6 '1
10 MF Jack Wilshere 5 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 6 1
4 DF Per Mertesacker 3 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 4 1
25 DF Carl Jenkinson 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 1
8 MF Mikel Arteta 6 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 8 0
16 MF Aaron Ramsey 5 0 1 0 0 0 2 0 8 0
5 DF Thomas Vermaelen 3 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 6 0
19 MF Santi Cazorla 1 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 4 0
28 DF Kieran Gibbs 2 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 4 0
27 FW Gervinho 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 3 0
9 FW Lukas Podolski 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 3 0
7 MF Tomáš Rosický 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 3 0
3 DF Bacary Sagna 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 3 0
14 FW Theo Walcott 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0
29 FW Marouane Chamakh 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 2 0
22 MF Francis Coquelin 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 2 0
2 MF Abou Diaby 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0
17 DF Nacho Monreal 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0
1 GK Wojciech Szczęsny 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0
23 MF Andrey Arshavin 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
46 MF Thomas Eisfeld 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0
36 GK Emiliano Martínez 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0
15 MF Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
18 DF Sébastien Squillaci 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0
TOTALS 46 5 4 0 6 0 26 0 82 5

Captains
No. P Name Country No. games Notes
5 DF Vermaelen 35 Club captain
8 MF Arteta 15 Club vice captain
20 DF Djourou 2 On loan to Hannover 96
4 DF Mertesacker 1

Last updated: 19 May 2013
Source: Competitive match reports.
Competitive matches only
Matches started as captain only
Country: FIFA nationality; No.: Squad number; P: Position; Name: Player name; No. Games: Number of games started as captain.

Pre-season and friendlies
14 July 2012[7][8] M. Liebherr Cup Arsenal 1 – 0
(45-minute match)		 Anderlecht Southampton
18:45 BST Lansbury  34' Report Stadium: St. Mary's Stadium
Referee: Dermot Gallagher (Ireland)
14 July 2012[7] M. Liebherr Cup Southampton 1 – 1
(45-minute match)
(5–4 p)		 Arsenal Southampton
20:00 BST Rodriguez  31' Report Gervinho  35' Stadium: St. Mary's Stadium
Referee: Phil Crossley (Kent)
Penalties
Fox
Rodriguez
Seaborne
Chaplow
Hammond 		André Santos
Coquelin
Olsson
Eastmond
Ebecilio
Note: Arsenal win the Markus Liebherr Cup
21 July 2012[158] Boreham Wood 1–3 Arsenal XI Calahide City
15:00 BST Riza  13' Report  72' (pen.) Watt
 78' (pen.) Akpom
 85' Olsson		 Stadium: Meadow Park
24 July 2012[9] Malaysian XI 1–2 Arsenal Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
21:45 MST
(14:45 BST)		 Azmi  45+2' Report  87' Eisfeld
 90' Aneke		 Stadium: Bukit Jalil Stadium
Attendance: 58,362
Referee: Suhaizi Shukri (Malaysia)
27 July 2012[11] China Cup Manchester City 2–0 Arsenal Beijing, China
20:00 CST
(13:00 BST)		 Zabaleta  41'
Y. Touré  44'		 Report Stadium: Bird's Nest Stadium
Attendance: 52,000
Referee: Howard Webb (South Yorkshire)
28 July 2012[159] Stevenage 0–0 Arsenal XI Stevenage
15:00 BST Report Stadium: Lamex Stadium
Attendance: 1,068
29 July 2012[12] Kitchee 2–2 Arsenal So Kon Po, Hong Kong
17:00 HKT
(10:00 BST)		 Yago  8'
Cancela  28'		 Report  24' Walcott
 77' Eisfeld
 80' André Santos		 Stadium: Hong Kong Stadium
Referee: Liu Kwok Man (Hong Kong)
1 August 2012[160] Dartford 2–1 Arsenal XI Dartford
19:45 BST Crawford  36'
Hayes  81'		 Report  49' (pen.) Watt Stadium: Princes Park
Attendance: 2,211
4 August 2012[161] Chesham United 2–6 Arsenal XI Chesham
15:00 BST Watters  46', 73' Report  4', 16' Roberts
 13' Neita
 57' Jebb
 70' Akpom
 89' Lipman		 Stadium: The Meadow
5 August 2012[13] Nigeria Postponed Arsenal Abuja, Nigeria
16:00 WAT
(16:00 BST)		 Report Stadium: Abuja National Stadium
12 August 2012[162] Köln 0–4 Arsenal Cologne, Germany
17:00 CEST
(16:00 BST)		 Report  6' Vermaelen
 15' (pen.), 43' Podolski
 62' Gervinho		 Stadium: RheinEnergieStadion
Attendance: 32,500

Last updated: 12 August 2012
Source: Arsenal F.C.

Competitions

Overall
Competition Started round Final
position / round		 First match Last match
Premier League — 4th 18 August 201219 May 2013
League Cup 3rd round Quarter-finals 26 September 201211 December 2012
FA Cup 3rd round 5th round 5 January 201316 February 2013
UEFA Champions League Group stage Round of 16 18 September 201213 March 2013

Updated to match played 19 May 2013
Source: Competitions

Premier League
Main article: 2012–13 Premier League

League table
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
2 Manchester City 38 23 9 6 66 34 +32 78 Qualification for the Champions League group stage
3 Chelsea 38 22 9 7 75 39 +36 75
4 Arsenal 38 21 10 7 72 37 +35 73 Qualification for the Champions League play-off round
5 Tottenham Hotspur 38 21 9 8 66 46 +20 72 Qualification for the Europa League play-off round
6 Everton 38 16 15 7 55 40 +15 63
Source: Premier League
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Play-offs (only if needed to decide champion, teams for relegation or teams for UEFA competitions).[163]

Results summary
OverallHomeAway
PldWDLGFGAGDPtsWDLGFGAGDWDLGFGAGD
38 21 10 7 72 37  +35 73 11 5 3 47 23  +24 10 5 4 25 14  +11

Last updated: 19 May 2013.
Source: Premier League

Results by round
Round123456789101112131415161718202122221912425262728303132322923435363738
GroundHAAHAHAAHAHHAAHHAAHAHAHHHAHAAHAHHAHAHA
ResultDDWWDLWLWLDWDDLWWWWDLLWDWWWLWWWWDWDWWW
Position11128358796786671075456666665555553434444
Updated to match(es) played on 19 May 2013. Source: Competitive Matches
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss
Notes:

Matches
18 August 2012 1 Arsenal 0–0 Sunderland London
15:00 BST Report Stadium: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 60,078
Referee: Chris Foy
26 August 2012 2 Stoke City 0–0 Arsenal Stoke-on-Trent
13:30 BST Huth  16'
Wilkinson  64'		 Report Stadium: Britannia Stadium
Attendance: 27,072
Referee: Lee Mason
2 September 2012 3 Liverpool 0–2 Arsenal Liverpool
13:30 BST Škrtel  47'
Shelvey  90+1'		 Report  6' Mertesacker
 27' Arteta
 31' Podolski
 68' Cazorla		 Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 44,932
Referee: Howard Webb
15 September 2012 4 Arsenal 6–1 Southampton London
15:00 BST Hooiveld  11' (o.g.)
Podolski  31'
Gervinho  35', 71'
Clyne  37' (o.g.)
Walcott  88'		 Report  45' Fox Stadium: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 60,097
Referee: Kevin Friend
23 September 2012 5 Manchester City 1–1 Arsenal Manchester
16:00 BST Lescott  40'
García  90+2'		 Report  82' Koscielny Stadium: Etihad Stadium
Attendance: 47,318
Referee: Mike Dean
29 September 2012 6 Arsenal 1–2 Chelsea London
12:45 BST Ramsey  35'
Gervinho  43'
Vermaelen  53'		 Report  20' Torres
 39' Oscar
 48' David Luiz
 53' Mata
 90+3' Ramires		 Stadium: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 60,101
Referee: Martin Atkinson
6 October 2012 7 West Ham United 1–3 Arsenal London
17:30 BST Diamé  21',  21'
Reid  36'
Taylor  85'		 Report  41' Giroud
 45+1' Gervinho
 77',  77' Walcott
 83' Cazorla		 Stadium: Upton Park
Attendance: 34,974
Referee: Phil Dowd
20 October 2012 8 Norwich City 1–0 Arsenal Norwich
17:30 BST Holt  19',  62'
Johnson  24'
Hoolahan  55'
Turner  71'		 Report Stadium: Carrow Road
Attendance: 26,825
Referee: Lee Probert
27 October 2012 9 Arsenal 1–0 Queens Park Rangers London
15:00 BST Giroud  60'
Arteta  84'		 Report  56' Granero
 80' Mbia
 87' Taarabt		 Stadium: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 60,103
Referee: Anthony Taylor
3 November 2012 10 Manchester United 2–1 Arsenal Manchester
12:45 GMT Van Persie  3',  60'
Young  29'
Cleverley  37'
Rooney 45',  81'
Evra  67'
Anderson  72'		 Report  14'  69' Wilshere
 83' Arshavin
 90' Arteta
 90+5' Cazorla		 Stadium: Old Trafford
Attendance: 75,492
Referee: Mike Dean
10 November 2012 11 Arsenal 3–3 Fulham London
15:00 GMT Giroud  11', 69'
Podolski  23'
Ramsey  60'
Arteta 90+5'		 Report  29', 67' (pen.) Berbatov
 40' Kačaniklić
 41' Sidwell
 90+5' Baird		 Stadium: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 60,093
Referee: Phil Dowd
17 November 2012 12 Arsenal 5–2 Tottenham Hotspur London
12:45 GMT Mertesacker  23'
Podolski  42',  80'
Giroud  45+1'
Cazorla  60'
Walcott  90+1'		 Report  11',  18' Adebayor
 45' Lennon
 66' Sandro
 71' Bale		 Stadium: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 60,111
Referee: Howard Webb
24 November 2012 13 Aston Villa 0–0 Arsenal Birmingham
17:30 GMT El Ahmadi  22' Report Stadium: Villa Park
Attendance: 34,607
Referee: Lee Mason
28 November 2012 14 Everton 1–1 Arsenal Liverpool
19:45 GMT Fellaini  28'
Gibson  30'
Oviedo  70'		 Report Walcott  1'
Gibbs  21'		 Stadium: Goodison Park
Attendance: 37,141
Referee: Michael Oliver
1 December 2012 15 Arsenal 0–2 Swansea City London
15:00 GMT Vermaelen  85' Report  88', 90+2' Michu Stadium: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 60,098
Referee: Mark Clattenburg
8 December 2012 16 Arsenal 2–0 West Bromwich Albion London
15:00 GMT Arteta  26' (pen.), 64' (pen.)
Giroud  54'
Mertesacker  67'		 Report  54' Olsson
 58' Brunt
 78' Reid		 Stadium: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 60,083
Referee: Mike Jones
17 December 2012 17 Reading 2–5 Arsenal Reading
20:00 GMT McAnuff  39'
Le Fondre  66'
Kébé  71'		 Report  14' Podolski
 32', 35', 60' Cazorla
 72' Wilshere
 80' Walcott		 Stadium: Madejski Stadium
Attendance: 24,125
Referee: Anthony Taylor
22 December 2012 18 Wigan Athletic 0–1 Arsenal Wigan
12:45 GMT Maloney  86' Report  41' Wilshere
 60' (pen.) Arteta		 Stadium: DW Stadium
Attendance: 21,754
Referee: Jon Moss
29 December 2012 19 Arsenal 7–3 Newcastle United London
17:30 GMT Walcott  20', 73', 90+2'
Chamberlain  50'
Podolski  64'
Giroud  85', 87'		 Report  43', 69' Ba
 59' Marveaux
 90' Santon		 Stadium: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 60,087
Referee: Chris Foy
1 January 2013 20 Southampton 1–1 Arsenal Southampton
17:30 GMT Ramírez  34'
Schneiderlin  63'
De Ridder  86'		 Report  41' (o.g.) Guly Stadium: St Mary's Stadium
Attendance: 31,743
Referee: Lee Probert
13 January 2013 21 Arsenal 0–2 Manchester City London
16:00 GMT Koscielny  9'
Vermaelen  45+1'
Wilshere  64'		 Report 10',  32' Džeko
 21',  55' Milner
 72' Clichy
 75' Kompany
 76' García
 86' Barry		 Stadium: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 60,107
Referee: Mike Dean
20 January 2013 22 Chelsea 2–1 Arsenal London
13:30 GMT Mata  6',  66'
Lampard  16' (pen.)
Cole  87'		 Report  16' Szczęsny
 58' Walcott		 Stadium: Stamford Bridge
Attendance: 41,784
Referee: Martin Atkinson
23 January 2013 23 Arsenal 5–1 West Ham United London
19:45 GMT Podolski  22'
Giroud  47', 57'
Cazorla  53'
Walcott  54'		 Report  18' Collison
 42' Vaz Tê		 Stadium: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 60,081
Referee: Andre Marriner
Note: This match was rescheduled from Boxing Day 2012.
30 January 2013 24 Arsenal 2–2 Liverpool London
19:45 GMT Cazorla  25'
Giroud  64',  85'
Walcott  67'
Mertesacker  90'		 Report  5' Suárez
 60' Henderson
 73' Gerrard		 Stadium: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 60,089
Referee: Kevin Friend
2 February 2013 25 Arsenal 1–0 Stoke City London
15:00 GMT Podolski  78' Report  70' Whelan
 77' Wilkinson
 88' Shawcross		 Stadium: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 59,872
Referee: Chris Foy
9 February 2013 26 Sunderland 0–1 Arsenal Sunderland
15:00 GMT Cattermole  2'
Bramble  63'
Larsson  66'
Colback  76'		 Report  9'  62' Jenkinson
 35' Cazorla
 83' Walcott		 Stadium: Stadium of Light
Attendance: 46,402
Referee: Anthony Taylor
23 February 2013 27 Arsenal 2–1 Aston Villa London
15:00 GMT Cazorla  6', 85'
Diaby  37'		 Report  36' Lowton
 66' Delph
 68' Weimann		 Stadium: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 60,079
Referee: Martin Atkinson
3 March 2013 28 Tottenham Hotspur 2–1 Arsenal London
16:00 GMT Adebayor  19'
Vertonghen  29'
Bale  37'
Lennon  39'
Walker  90+7'		 Report  30' Ramsey
 51' Mertesacker		 Stadium: White Hart Lane
Attendance: 36,170
Referee: Mark Clattenburg
16 March 2013 30 Swansea City 0–2 Arsenal Swansea
15:00 GMT De Guzmán  26' Report  74' Monreal
 83' Arteta
 90+1' Gervinho		 Stadium: Liberty Stadium
Attendance: 20,583
Referee: Jon Moss
30 March 2013 31 Arsenal 4–1 Reading London
15:00 GMT Gervinho  11'
Cazorla  48'
Giroud  67'
Arteta  77' (pen.)		 Report  32' Guthrie
 69' Robson-Kanu		 Stadium: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 60,082
Referee: Chris Foy
6 April 2013 32 West Bromwich Albion 1–2 Arsenal West Bromwich
15:00 BST Morrison  71' (pen.)
Jones  78'
Ridgewell  86'		 Report  20', 50',  36' Rosický
 25' Ramsey
 65' Koscielny
 70' Mertesacker
 83' Arteta		 Stadium: The Hawthorns
Attendance: 26,144
Referee: Howard Webb
13 April 2013 33 Arsenal 3–1 Norwich City London
15:00 GMT Sagna  34'
Arteta  85' (pen.)
Giroud  88'
Podolski  90+2'		 Report  57' Turner
 84' Bunn
 90+3' Snodgrass		 Stadium: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 60,095
Referee: Mike Jones
16 April 2013 29 Arsenal 0–0 Everton London
19:45 BST Arteta  56'
Monreal  90+4'		 Report  28' Gibson
 35' Pienaar
 70' Barkley		 Stadium: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 60,071
Referee: Neil Swarbrick
20 April 2013 34 Fulham 0–1 Arsenal London
15:00 BST Sidwell  12' Report  43' Mertesacker
 52' Arteta
 76' Ramsey
 90' Giroud		 Stadium: Craven Cottage
Attendance: 25,700
Referee: Andre Marriner
28 April 2013 35 Arsenal 1–1 Manchester United London
16:00 BST Walcott  2',  33'
Sagna  43'
Chamberlain  81'		 Report  17' Jones
 24' Rafael
 28',  44' (pen.) Van Persie
 30' Evans
 65' Valencia		 Stadium: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 60,112
Referee: Phil Dowd
4 May 2013 36 Queens Park Rangers 0–1 Arsenal London
17:30 BST Derry  64'
Jenas  78'		 Report  1' Walcott
 60' Monreal		 Stadium: Loftus Road
Attendance: 18,178
Referee: Jon Moss
14 May 2013 37 Arsenal 4–1 Wigan Athletic London
19:45 BST Podolski  11', 68'
Walcott  63'
Ramsey  71'		 Report  45',  55' Maloney
 52' Alcaraz		 Stadium: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 60,068
Referee: Mike Dean
19 May 2013 38 Newcastle United 0–1 Arsenal Newcastle upon Tyne
16:00 BST Gutiérrez  22' Report  39' Rosický
 52' Koscielny
 81' Gibbs		 Stadium: St James' Park
Attendance: 52,354
Referee: Howard Webb

Last updated: 19 May 2013
Source: Arsenal F.C.
Note: Premier League fixtures not listed due to copyright

FA Cup
Main article: 2012–13 FA Cup
6 January 2013 Third round Swansea City 2–2 Arsenal Swansea
13:30 GMT Michu  58'
Bartley  79'
Graham  87'		 Report  35' Ramsey
 81' Podolski
 83',  84' Gibbs		 Stadium: Liberty Stadium
Attendance: 18,848
Referee: Howard Webb
16 January 2013 Replay Arsenal 1–0 Swansea City London
19:30 GMT Wilshere  86' Report Stadium: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 58,359
Referee: Mark Clattenburg
26 January 2013 Fourth round Brighton & Hove Albion 2–3 Arsenal Brighton
15:00 GMT López  12'
Barnes  33',  73'
Ulloa  62'		 Report  16', 56',  56' Giroud
 67' Ramsey
 85' Walcott		 Stadium: Falmer Stadium
Attendance: 27,113
Referee: Michael Oliver
16 February 2013 Fifth round Arsenal 0–1 Blackburn Rovers London
15:00 GMT Coquelin  80' Report  11' Orr
 72' Kazim-Richards
 89' Goodwillie		 Stadium: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 60,070
Referee: Mike Dean

Last updated: 16 February 2013
Source: Arsenal F.C.

League Cup
Main article: 2012–13 Football League Cup
26 September 2012 Third round Arsenal 6–1 Coventry City London
19:45 BST Giroud  39', 51'
Chamberlain  56'
Arshavin  63'
Walcott  74', 90'
Miquel  80'		 Report  49' Brown
 78' Ball		 Stadium: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 58,351
Referee: Mike Jones
30 October 2012 Fourth round Reading 5–7 (a.e.t.) Arsenal Reading
19:45 GMT Roberts  12'
Koscielny  18' (o.g.)
Leigertwood  20',  71'
Hunt  37'
Morrison  110'
Pogrebnyak  115'		 Report  33' Miquel
 45+2', 90+6', 120+1' Walcott
 55',  103', 120+4' Chamakh
 64',  78' Giroud
 87',  89' Koscielny
 114' Martínez
 117' Eisfeld		 Stadium: Madjeski Stadium
Attendance: 23,980
Referee: Kevin Friend
11 December 2012 Quarter-finals Bradford City 1–1 (a.e.t.)
(3–2 p)		 Arsenal Bradford
19:45 GMT Thompson  16'
Wells  68'
Doyle  90+4'
Hanson  120'		 Report  8' Gervinho
 88',  92' Vermaelen		 Stadium: Valley Parade
Attendance: 23,971
Referee: Mike Dean
Penalties
Doyle
Jones
Darby
Connell
Jones 		Cazorla
Chamakh
Wilshere
Chamberlain
Vermaelen

Last updated: 11 December 2012
Source: Arsenal F.C.

UEFA Champions League
Main article: 2012–13 UEFA Champions League

Group stage
Main article: 2012–13 UEFA Champions League group stage § Group B
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Schalke 04 6 3 3 0 10 6 +4 12 Advance to knockout phase
2 Arsenal 6 3 1 2 10 8 +2 10
3 Olympiacos 6 3 0 3 9 9 0 9 Transfer to Europa League
4 Montpellier 6 0 2 4 6 12 −6 2
Source:
18 September 2012 1 Montpellier 1–2 Arsenal Montpellier, France
19:45 BST Belhanda  9' (pen.),  84'
Yanga-Mbiwa  41'		 Report  1' Diaby
 16' Podolski
 18' Gervinho		 Stadium: Stade de la Mosson
Attendance: 27,522
Referee: Carlos Velasco Carballo (Spain)
3 October 2012 2 Arsenal 3–1 Olympiacos London, England
19:45 BST Koscielny  29'
Gervinho  42'
Podolski  56'
Ramsey  90+4'		 Report  45+1' Mitroglou
 62' Contreras		 Stadium: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 60,034
Referee: Svein Oddvar Moen (Norway)
24 October 2012 3 Arsenal 0–2 Schalke 04 London, England
19:45 BST Vermaelen  15'
Arteta  48'
Ramsey  70'
Gervinho  71'		 Report  15',  86' Afellay
 39' Höger
 76' Huntelaar		 Stadium: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 60,049
Referee: Jonas Eriksson (Sweden)
6 November 2012 4 Schalke 04 2–2 Arsenal Gelsenkirchen, Germany
19:45 GMT Matip  25'
Fuchs  41'
Huntelaar  45+2'
Farfán  67'
Jones  77'		 Report  18' Walcott
 21' Cazorla
 26' Giroud
 62' Podolski		 Stadium: Veltins-Arena
Attendance: 50,000
Referee: Nicola Rizzoli (Italy)
21 November 2012 5 Arsenal 2–0 Montpellier London, England
19:45 GMT Cazorla  39'
Wilshere  49'
Giroud  53'
Podolski  63'
Koscielny  76'		 Report  66' Bedimo
 83' Deplagne		 Stadium: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 59,760
Referee: Fırat Aydınus (Turkey)
4 December 2012 6 Olympiacos 2–1 Arsenal Piraeus, Greece
19:45 GMT Fesa  51'
Maniatis  64'
Mitroglou  73'		 Report  38' Rosický
 54' Coquelin
 64' Szczęsny
 65' Squillaci
 90+2' Chamakh		 Stadium: Karaiskakis Stadium
Attendance: 30,000
Referee: Alberto Mallenco (Spain)

Knockout phase
Main article: 2012–13 UEFA Champions League knockout phase
Round of 16
19 February 2013 First leg Arsenal 1–3 Bayern Munich London, England
19:45 GMT Vermaelen  15'
Sagna  22'
Arteta  25'
Podolski  55',  66'
Ramsey  67'		 Report  7' Kroos
 21',  58' Müller
 36' Schweinsteiger
 77' Mandžukić
 89' Lahm		 Stadium: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 59,974
Referee: Svein Oddvar Moen (Norway)
13 March 2013 Second leg Bayern Munich 0–2
(3a – 3 agg.)		 Arsenal Munich, Germany
19:45 GMT Lahm  57'
Martínez  83'
Gómez  89'		 Report  3',  73' Giroud
 44' Gibbs
 62' Rosický
 80' Mertesacker
 83' Cazorla
 86',  87' Koscielny		 Stadium: Allianz Arena
Attendance: 66,000
Referee: Pavel Královec (Czech Republic)

Last updated: 13 March 2013
Source: Arsenal F.C.

Notes

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