'Memries' Replayed match vs Arsenal

[Geordie Blade]

A BBC short overview of the controversial goal / replayed match vs Arsenal in 1999.

Obviously highlights how noble Wenger was, and neglects to mention that we were nine minutes away from getting a replay at Bramall Lane, which Arsenal would have hated.

FA Cup: Arsenal v Sheffield United 1999 replay controversy

As the FA Cup returns, BBC Sport looks back at one of the competition's most controversial games - a winning goal from Marc Overmars resulted in Arsenal's fifth-round tie with Sheffield United having to be replayed in 1999.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[SouthStandGBlock]

I was at the game, and I left Highbury feeling that we had been shafted. Someone on the tube said they were replaying it following Wengers after match comments. I thought "like hell they will".

But they did

I wrote to Wenger thanking him for his sportsmanship (although it stopped short of replaying it at BDTBL) and I got a nice reply back, saying he thought it was the right thing to do, and that Arsenal didn't want to win games like this.

Top man.

Traipsed down for the replay, I worked in Northampton at the time, but lightning didn't strike twice.

Memorable though, and I've always respected Wenger for doing it.

26 years ago though . God I feel old

 

[ISZA ⚔️]

I was at the game, and I left Highbury feeling that we had been shafted. Someone on the tube said they were replaying it following Wengers after match comments. I thought "like hell they will".

But they did

I wrote to Wenger thanking him for his sportsmanship (although it stopped short of replaying it at BDTBL) and I got a nice reply back, saying he thought it was the right thing to do, and that Arsenal didn't want to win games like this.

Top man.

Traipsed down for the replay, I worked in Northampton at the time, but lightning didn't strike twice.

Memorable though, and I've always respected Wenger for doing it.

26 years ago though . God I feel old

Was also at both games. Looking back fair play to Wenger. Can you imagine Klopp, Arteta etc doing that now - like fuck they would.

 

[TheFlashingBlade]

I was at the game, and I left Highbury feeling that we had been shafted. Someone on the tube said they were replaying it following Wengers after match comments. I thought "like hell they will".

But they did

I wrote to Wenger thanking him for his sportsmanship (although it stopped short of replaying it at BDTBL) and I got a nice reply back, saying he thought it was the right thing to do, and that Arsenal didn't want to win games like this.

Top man.

Traipsed down for the replay, I worked in Northampton at the time, but lightning didn't strike twice.

Memorable though, and I've always respected Wenger for doing it.

26 years ago though . God I feel old

I was there too and here's a little bit of insider knowledge of what actually happened that day. Not anything that I personally saw or heard in the stands, or even anything that happened on the pitch or on the touchline, but what happened up in the Directors' Box . . .

One of my best mates (an Arsenal fan) was up there, sitting next to David Dein, the Arsenal Vice-Chairman at the time. My mate was helping Arsenal find a new shirt sponsor, their deal with JVC about to end. As soon as Overmars knocked it into the net, David Dein turned to my mate and said "this is a disaster, the name of the club will be mud and it'll wipe millions of the value of the sponsorship deal". He then summoned a minion and dispatched him to the dressing room to ORDER Arsène Wenger to offer a replay!

The right thing to do, my arse! Spirit of the Cup? Spirit of Maximising Commercial Profit, more like!

 

[Gimli]

It was a decent gesture from Wenger but the reality of the game was we got shafted by that ‘misunderstanding’ and the properly correct thing to do would have been to allow us to walk the ball in immediately afterwards, then we could have had our (well deserved) replay, only this time at Bramall Lane

 

[Selly]

Remember the narrative was very much about Kanu "not understanding" the principle of returning the ball - which i might add always struck me as odd for a player with over 60 appearances for Ajax and Inter and had some roots I suspect in the racist "stupid African" trope - but if you assume he made a genuine mistake then fair enough

Marc Overmars however was 18 months into his Arsenal career and splinted fully 50 yards to stick the ball in the net. Kanu got a lot of the critique but Overmars seemed to attract none (which again always struck me as odd).

And yes, as gracious as a reply at Highbury was, they should have allowed us to walk it into their net immediately, and having not done so, offered the replay at the lane. Not sure it would have changed the result - this was a Steve Bruce team - in fact him threatening to take the players off is arguably the only decent thing he did whilst at Utd.

 

[Large Mendonca]

Remember the narrative was very much about Kanu "not understanding" the principle of returning the ball - which i might add always struck me as odd for a player with over 60 appearances for Ajax and Inter and had some roots I suspect in the racist "stupid African" trope - but if you assume he made a genuine mistake then fair enough

Marc Overmars however was 18 months into his Arsenal career and splinted fully 50 yards to stick the ball in the net. Kanu got a lot of the critique but Overmars seemed to attract none (which again always struck me as odd).

And yes, as gracious as a reply at Highbury was, they should have allowed us to walk it into their net immediately, and having not done so, offered the replay at the lane. Not sure it would have changed the result - this was a Steve Bruce team - in fact him threatening to take the players off is arguably the only decent thing he did whilst at Utd.

This.

I attended the replay and brought back a balloon with the words "Overmars is bent" written on it, from the game, for a 3 y/o Small Mendonca.

 

[Silent Blade]

My dad's last away match.

 

[sheff_blade90]

was the game on a sunday or Saturday? because i was 8 at the time & i have vague memories of being at my nans house. watching final score as it all kicked off

 

[Large Mendonca]

was the game on a sunday or Saturday? because i was 8 at the time & i have vague memories of being at my nans house. watching final score as it all kicked off

Saturday from memory, and i'm sure the replay was 10 days later on a Tuesday night.

 

[Wards]

Went to both games. Remember it threatening to spill over a bit outside after the first one - loads of gloating Arsenal fans trying to give it the big un' on the tube. Like the OP says it felt like the replay should've been played at the Lane but that was never going to happen.

 

[ISZA ⚔️]

Like the OP says it felt like the replay should've been played at the Lane but that was never going to happen.

The fact we got any sort of rematch was astounding.

 

[sheff_blade90]

it understandable why it was at Highbury. because if a hypothetical cup game at lane. got called off due to waterlogged pitch at HT. we would be fuming if the tie got switched

 

[Blade for Sale]

it understandable why it was at Highbury. because if a hypothetical cup game at lane. got called off due to waterlogged pitch at HT. we would be fuming if the tie got switched

That ridiculous argument only makes sense if it was a couple of our players who somehow managed to smuggle 20,000 litres of water into the ground and deliberately flooded the playing surface

 

[KLF]

I was there too. I remember just after the goal, we were all asking Seaman to let one in for us. He looked really apologetic and embarrassed and kind of just shrugged like he didn't know what to do. He knew that his team mates were in the wrong.

 

[More Bladier than thou]

I just bought the shirt for £60 aswell. Reyt happy. This game is only thing that i remember about the shirt

 

[Hodgesleftpeg]

Fair play to them for the rematch but they shouldve played with the same team and if memory serves me
Right, they played a stronger team for the rematch..

 

[Champagneblade]

Remember the narrative was very much about Kanu "not understanding" the principle of returning the ball - which i might add always struck me as odd for a player with over 60 appearances for Ajax and Inter and had some roots I suspect in the racist "stupid African" trope - but if you assume he made a genuine mistake then fair enough

Marc Overmars however was 18 months into his Arsenal career and splinted fully 50 yards to stick the ball in the net. Kanu got a lot of the critique but Overmars seemed to attract none (which again always struck me as odd).

And yes, as gracious as a reply at Highbury was, they should have allowed us to walk it into their net immediately, and having not done so, offered the replay at the lane. Not sure it would have changed the result - this was a Steve Bruce team - in fact him threatening to take the players off is arguably the only decent thing he did whilst at Utd.

Yep. 10 mins away from a replay at the Lane where we’d beat them 2 seasons back.

Getting another 90 minutes at home was hardly the graceful offer they wanted it to come over as.

The time to save face was to allow it to be walked on from kick off. It was self-preservation for them from there both off the field and on it.