Interview
[Arsenal Media](/author/arsenal-media-2) 05 Feb 2026
Patrick Vieira needs little introduction.
Our midfield colossus in the title-winning teams of 1998, 2002 and 2004, he captained the Invincibles to the latter triumph, cementing his place in our history books as one of our most influential and greatest-ever players.
Catching up with the French World Cup winner, he recalled some memorable Premier League seasons and a particularly fearsome rivalry with recent opponents, Manchester United.
**After joining us in August 1996, just after your 20th birthday, your debut came a month later against Sheffield Wednesday as a 28th-minute substitute after Ray Parlour had to go off injured. What are your memories of that match?**
I remember being told to warm up and then I was straight on due to Ray’s injury. I didn’t have much time to think about it really, which I think was the best way. We were 1-0 down at the time and went on to win 4-1 so everything went well. The scenario of the game was a perfect one for me to introduce myself to the fans.
**Wrighty scored a hat-trick in that game, and the side included lots of big characters, like the famous back four, Ray, Paul Merson. How did it feel to come into that side?**
It was perfect for me I think, because people like Wrighty, Ray, Tony, Bouldy, Dave Seaman, Martin… all of them, they had something in common, in that they all loved Arsenal and they all wanted to finish their career at the club.
That was something for me that was really, really special. It was a very good learning process to see what Arsenal meant to those guys. It helped me to really understand the Premier League and really understand Arsenal.
**You scored a brilliant last-minute equaliser against Derby a couple of months later at Highbury – a great way to endear yourself to our supporters…**
The goal was a case of being at the right place at the right time, but I instantly loved the passion of being on the field, wearing the shirt, expressing myself. I loved the competitiveness of the Premier League, I just wanted to play as much as I could straight away. I could sense very early on that there was something that the fans loved about me, which I was really grateful for.
**It must have been helpful to have had Arsène Wenger to guide you in those early days?**
Of course, because when you have young players coming through like that, not everything is perfect. But the manager and the players really helped me to grow up as a player.
**Your second season ended in an incredible double, going on a remarkable 10-game winning run to win the league. How did it feel when you were in one of those spells?**
It was about not accepting losing and how, as a team, you’re going to challenge yourself to be competitive game after game, and this is a really difficult thing to do.
In my time at Arsenal, we had a really good togetherness where we weren’t scared to say the truth to each other, because we accepted at that time the opinion of our teammates if we weren’t performing at the level that we wanted to be. I think that group as well had the humility. We knew that there are no easy games, wanted to do well and we also had a lot of players at the peak of their games – that is important as well to perform.
We had players with the individual quality that we knew that even if we were going through a difficult period, they had the quality to do something, to score goals or to create the goals. Teams built with character, personality, competitiveness and individual quality.
**Did Arsène understand that the players would speak to each other if the levels dipped, so he didn’t always feel he had to?**
No, he didn’t have to because we were mature enough and I think we had players on the field that took responsibility. and we had players on the field that were putting their head where the opposition were putting their feet.
We had players that did not accept to lose games, who didn’t accept to lose a simple challenge. That kind of desire to compete, to win new challenges, that is something we had as individual players.
**What was it like winning the title at Old Trafford in 2002?**
There was no sweeter place to win it at that time. We went there with high confidence and belief and we knew that at the same time they would do everything for us not to win it there. So we were prepared mentally to face a very difficult game and I think we managed it quite well. Winning the title was exceptional, and fantastic that it meant we had won another double too.
But the rivalry between the two teams then made it sweeter. It was intense between the captains, the managers… everyone. But we were confident and I remember Sylvain’s goal so well and all of the celebrations afterwards.
**That rivalry with United, do you think the two teams almost spurred each other on because you knew you had to be better than the best?**
United was the best team in the country, and we knew that if we wanted to win the title, you have to finish in front of them. We had teams that were prepared to challenge United. We weren’t scared at all about going to Old Trafford.
We had a manager who wasn’t scared to be in front of Alex Ferguson and to stand up for himself. We had players who didn’t care about the reputation of the United players. We wanted to confront them, to challenge them, because we had character and personality in our team. I also think those games did really well to promote the Premier League. I enjoyed every single game that we played against United. We won, we lost, but it was always really difficult and really challenging.
**Those games were so competitive, I think fans are sometimes surprised when they see all the players of that era getting on so well now…**
I think there is respect, because when we played them, it wasn’t an easy game. They were as good as we were, as competitive as we were and you had to be at your best in those games to have a chance of winning.
I knew that when I was playing against Roy Keane I had to beat him to allow ourselves to have a chance of winning the games. I knew when Dennis was facing one of their defenders, there was an individual battle that was helping the collective to perform.
So every single one of those games was really challenging. That great competitiveness led to respect. That is why when we see each other and we are talking about those games, there is respect there from both sides.
**The Invincibles season has been spoken about so many times, but have you ever managed to put your finger on why we managed to take that extra step and claim the gold trophy?**
If I had to say something, it would be that we never took anything for granted and also that, as a group, we loved spending time together and wanted to achieve something special together.
Of course, when you have a team, it’s always the individual that’s scoring the goals, making the save, making the tackles. But we had a common goal and we had a huge respect for each other as a team and I think that team had the extra competitiveness too.
**Brilliant individuals and an unbreakable spirit – that’s quite the combination.**
Yes, and the brilliance helped us get out of a lot of situations. We needed a Thierry or a Dennis or a Jens or a Sol to get us out of certain situations. But at the end, it was the fact we wanted to compete together and for each other that made the difference.
**You left for Juventus in 2005, but had another season in the Premier League in 2010/11 with Manchester City. Had the league changed much in that time?**
It had completely changed in terms of Man City being a force and Arsenal being in a kind of transition period, and I think the pace of the game over the last 20 years has definitely changed. It’s faster. Overall, it feels even more difficult to win the league now than when you played in the Premier League, because of the strength of so many teams…
The Premier League is more competitive now because when you’re looking at how much Arsenal have to compete against, you’re looking at Liverpool, you’re looking at Chelsea, you’re looking at Newcastle, City, Villa – and more teams.
When you start the season, you may have six or seven teams that are competing to finish in the top three. A few years ago it was Arsenal and Manchester United, then it was Chelsea and United, then it was City, Chelsea, then City, Liverpool. You always had one or two teams, but now you may have six or seven teams who can finish in the top three.
**With so many teams at a very high standard, is it impossible for a team to ever go invincible again?**
No. I think records are there to get beaten, and I believe a team can do it. When? That would be the question, but I believe it’s possible for it to be done again.
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