“Master class does not do it justice. This is football from another planet. Who can argue that the best team in the country is that team there – and by quite some distance.” – Andy Gray, English football commentator, on Arsenal’s title win, 25 April 2004 It begins with the title card of ‘Invincibles’ on a pale white newspaper background as Martin Keown, Ray Parlour, Sol Campbell, Jens Lehmann, and of course, Thierry Henry repeat the word ‘Invincibles,’ with vacant stares of nostalgia and pride. The letters of Invincibles then dissolve and “W 26 D 12 L 0” takes up the screen space as Arsene Wenger says something — but his voice is drowned by the rapturous applause from the gathered audience. [caption id=“attachment_2356698” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Fans queue outside Mehboob studios in Mumbai to watch Invincibles documentary aired as part of Puma’s Arsenal kit launch. Vinayakk / Firstpost[/caption] Every fan present at Mehboob Studios in Mumbai for the live screening of ‘Invincibles’ organised by Puma Football – the first of its kind for the movie outside Europe – knew what was coming in the next 60 minutes. They knew Arsenal’s choke at the end of the 2002-03 Premier League season, where the Gunners gifted the title to Manchester United, would be mentioned. Everyone knew the infamous game at Old Trafford in September, 2003 would be dissected. Everyone expected the 4-2 Henry-inspired win over Liverpool at Highbury after exiting from Champion’s League and FA Cup in a space of three days to feature prominently. Everybody waited to cheer when the movie shows the league being won at White Hart Lane against bitter rivals Tottenham. And the entire hall – not just the fans – knew that the Arsene Wenger’s men went through that entire season unbeaten. This documentary, narrated soulfully by Hollywood artist Mark Strong, isn’t about revelations. It isn’t about telling the fans what they already know. The Invincibles movie is about letting the fans relive the memories of what is considered one of the greatest achievements in modern football. It is a trip down memory lane. Five key members of the squad along with manager Wenger - who was mocked as ‘Comical Wenger’ for predicting his team can go unbeaten an year ago - share their thoughts on various events as the season progressed. The movie is well-scripted with key moments of the season being given a good chunk of the run time. Thankfully, the movie avoids turning out to be a highlight reel at any point. One of the stand-out features of the movie is footage from Arsenal’s training ground in London Colney. As Keown and Henry speak in glowing terms about the togetherness in the squad that helped turn a few losses into draws and draws to wins, you get to see the camaraderie between the players as they train. From Parlour The Clown, who Lehmann thought was “an idiot” when they first met, to Dennis Bergkamp and Patrick Vieira nudging each other playfully, you get glimpses of how tightly knit the squad was. [caption id=“attachment_2356732” align=“alignright” width=“380”]  Martin Keown taunts Manchester United’s Ruud Van Nistelrooy after he missed a penalty in dying seconds. An incident that is infamous in the clubs’ folklore. AFP[/caption] It was also fascinating to hear the players talk about – and see footage as well – about taking training as seriously as a match and how it prepared them to pull through on a bad day. An eight-a-side game shows Vieira and Campbell and Parlour throw tackles without holding back as a nervous Arsene looks on from the sidelines. The best part of the movie arguably was the bit about THAT match against Manchester United at Old Trafford. With an apt dramatic score to lift what was in itself a dramatic match, the movie takes us through the Nistelrooy-Vieira incident which saw the Arsenal skipper get a red card that angered Arsenal players, leading to an on-pitch fracas. Keown talks about his “chop” on Nistelrooy after the Dutchman missed an injury time penalty, and how the press and broadcast media had a field day talking about it. “I could not switch on the television over the next few days. I was all over it. Of course, it was not a great example to set for youngsters watching the game around the world, but I am certain the Arsenal fans loved it to bits,” said Keown to a smattering of laughs and claps from the gathered fans. The clever use of blown-up newspaper clippings with typically British headlines – from “Ugly, but the spirit is Gun-ho” to “It’s all GUN so wrong” – adds drama in just the right amount. As does the casual (sometimes a little forced) on-screen demeanour of Henry, Lehmann and Campbell. Lehmann especially had the audience in stitches with his dead-pan humour in the movie. As the footage of delirious fans and overjoyed players celebrated the win against Leicester City at Highbury on the last day of the season, Lehmann said about being an Invincible: “It was alright. We could have done better. 12 draws? That was about five or six too many.” It is difficult to argue that the 2000-odd fans who watched the documentary over two screenings would not have loved every minute of it. When the Sky Sports commentator bellowed out: “Thierry Henry. Side stepping one, side-stepping two… that is brilliant, that is simply stunning. Genius at work and his name is Thierry Henry,” after he floored Liverpool’s defenders at Highbury to score a solo goal that saved the match (and arguably the season), every fan in the hall broke into instantaneous cheer. Even if you’re not an Arsenal fan — you’ll appreciate the greatness of a side — a greatness which hasn’t been replicated in English football since. The very mention of the word Invincibles or the number 49 by the anchor for the event, Paul Masefield, saw the Arsenal fans break into a loud rendition of “49, 49, undefeated. 49, 49, I’ll say. 49, 49 undefeated, playing football the Arsenal way". At one point Paul had to beg the Arsenal fans to shut up and not sing that song, jokingly of course, till the interaction was done and the movie began. Given that, the end of a movie felt a little bit abrupt as it failed to touch on the first nine games of the 2004-05 season that saw Arsenal stretch their unbeaten run to 49 games, eclipsing Nottingham Forest’s record of 42 matches undefeated. Perhaps it was a conscious decision to end the documentary on a high without having to mention the hugely controversial 50th game at Old Trafford which saw Wayne Rooney win a penalty that’s debated in footballing circles till date*. But for better or for worse, that is part of Arsenal legacy and it deserved a mention at least as a footnote. That should not take away anything, however, from a movie which would have sent chills down the spine of Arsenal fans and arguably, fans of the Premier League in general. The atmosphere in the halls, as Martin Tyler would have described was: “Electrifying! Electrifying!” The movie perfectly captures the emotions that fans, players and the manager went through over the course of that season. Invincibility, immortalised in reel. ———- (Editor’s note: The article previously said United won through a solitary Rooney penalty, while it was a 2-0 win in fact. This has now been corrected)
Arsenal’s Invincibles documentary, narrated by Mark Strong, isn’t about revelations. It isn’t about telling the fans what they already know.
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