Dennis Bergkamp Bukayo Saka Thierry Henry Declan Rice Arsenal
Dennis Bergkamp Bukayo Saka Thierry Henry Declan Rice Arsenal
At the peak of their powers in the early noughties, Arsenal secured domestic dominance in history-making style. Not a single defeat was suffered across 38 Premier League fixtures - with 26 wins and 12 draws leaving the north London heavyweights on 90 points.
Nobody before or since has managed to emulate that feat in the English top-flight. A notable entry in the record books will be difficult to erase, with even the likes of Sir Alex Ferguson, Jose Mourinho, Jurgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola falling short in that department.
Arsenal Invincibles 2003-04
Arsenal Invincibles 2003-04
Arsenal returned to top spot last season, following three successive runners-up finishes, with Mikel Arteta looking to build a dynasty at Emirates Stadium to rival that previously established at Highbury.
He has plenty of talent this disposal - including World Cup winners David Raya and Mikel Merino, England superstars Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka, along with commanding centre-halves William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes.
Would any of those make a combined XI if the ‘Invincibles’ of Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp, Patrick Vieria, Ashley Cole, Sol Campball and Robert Pires were factored into the equation?
Would Rice & Saka get into Arsenal's star-studded 'Invincibles' team?
Having worked alongside those iconic figures, Stack - speaking exclusively to GOAL as great football betting odds price up the 2026-27 Premier League campaign - said when asked to mix and match across two generations: “I've done this before actually, just with my two boys because they were questioning the Invincibles. They think we're absolutely rubbish because they never actually saw us in the flesh. They can't quite get their head around who Thierry Henry and Dennis Bergkamp were and what that was like as a front two.
“Look, the game has completely changed. One thing that hasn't changed is winning and Arsenal, in terms of that team, had that mentality of not getting beat. So, overall, I actually think there's a massive argument to say that football has gone backwards.
“When Arsenal, with the Invincibles, you're playing against your Chelsea teams and United, for example, and arguably your Liverpools as well. I can't reel them off to you, there'll be too many but when you're talking about what was in the Premier League at that time with the quality of your Lampards, your Terrys, your Ferdinands, your Drogbas, your Vidics, the list is endless. And I do think it was a lot harder to do it then than it is now, in my opinion.
“I'd hate to go player for player, but I think it'll be a 50-50, I really do. I think there's certain players in that Invincibles team you just can't take out - your Thierrys, your Dennis', your Vieiras, Sol Campbell, for example, Ashley Cole. There's five straight away and then you start throwing Robert Pires in there. I think you'd have Pires on the left instead of what we've got at the moment. I think there's arguments with Gilberto Silva and people like that. He’s won a World Cup, for example.
“If only we could blend them both together. I think we'd have some team, let me tell you that. But this new Arsenal crop of players, they're managed differently. The game's changed, but they're finding ways to win games. They're finding ways to win trophies now, which is obviously a massive positive.”
arsenal
arsenal
David Raya, Jurrien Timber, Saliba or Gabriel, Rice and Saka are among those pushing for inclusion in the ‘Invincibles’ side. The challenge that they face now is becoming winners of multiple titles, while making their own history on the trophy front.
Having suffered another final defeat in 2026, Arsenal are still waiting on a first Champions League crown. Efforts will be made to right that wrong in the upcoming campaign, which is set to get underway on August 21 - after taking on Manchester City in the Community Shield - when playing host to newly-promoted Coventry.