Jagged Wings

Chapter 103 Goodbye!Highbury!

In the Champions League, Arsenal made great strides all the way to the final.

In the league, although there are various off-court factors interfering with Chelsea, in addition to the overall sluggish state of the players, accusations and punishments such as suspension, diving, and fines put Chelsea under heavy pressure.Coupled with being blocked from joining G14 and unable to get the support of UEFA, Chelsea can be said to have pursued troops before and intercepted them later.

But in the end they still successfully defended the title with an advantage of 8 points, and Manchester United's harvest was in the League Cup, beating Wigan Athletic 4-0 in the League Cup final.

There is still the last round of the league, but Arsenal's league ranking is still not settled.

In the 37th round, although Arsenal sent a substitute lineup, in the crazy cheers of the home fans, the substitute players united as one, and drew 1:1 with Tottenham in the away game, continuing their unbeaten league home game. record, but fourth-ranked Tottenham still lead Arsenal by one point.

The suspense is saved until the last game!
Against Wigan, Arsenal, who have no way out, must strive to win!
And this game is also the last game at Highbury Stadium!
To be able to finish the season at home and see off at Highbury is great for the team and great for the fans.

A few hours before the start of the game, many fans came outside the Highbury Stadium one after another: grandpas, middle-aged couples, children...

There are even a lot of people who come with their families - all of them are Arsenal fans.

Today, the majority of Arsenal fans are here to see off the old stadium!
Many people were holding a flower when they entered the arena.

Not only the fans, but also many Arsenal players are reluctant to leave.

After all, they have been fighting here for several years or more than ten years.

For example, Henry, he played in this stadium for eight years, and the eight years almost covered a player's peak period.Henry dedicated his best years to Highbury, and now he is going to go away again...

He is very emotional about this stadium!

"Welcome to Arsenal's Highbury Stadium! We are here to broadcast live the last game of the 2005-2006 Premier League season. Apart from Arsenal's Champions League qualification for next season, this game has other One theme - farewell! Through the aerial view of the helicopter, we can clearly see that Highbury Stadium is now full, remember this shot, this is the last time Highbury Stadium appeared in front of them. Now , everyone is waiting for the referee to blow the kick-off whistle for this game!"

Before the start of the game, the fans, led by the on-site host, shouted various slogans.

When Henry led the Arsenal players into the field from the tunnel.Highbury was boiling for the first time and everyone was on their feet, cheering for their hero.

In such an environment, the players can burst out 120% of their energy to remember more and greater honors for themselves and the fans.

After the players from both sides took their positions, the referee looked at the big screen and adjusted the watch again. Then he stretched out his hands and gave a long whistle, and the game started!

"Let's take a look at Arsenal's starting lineup for the last game, goalkeeper No. 1 Lehmann; four people on the back line, from right to left: No. 27 Eboue, No. 28 Toure, No. 20 Sunder Rose, No. 16 Flamini; the four midfielders are: No. 13 Hleb, No. 15 Fabregas, No. 19 Gilberto, No. 9 Reyes, two forwards: No. 14 Henry, 10 Bergkamp."

As soon as the game opened, Henry seemed extraordinarily energetic, as if he wanted to bid farewell to Highbury Stadium with his excellent performance.

Reyes knew what Henry wanted, so he didn't choose to shoot himself at the most critical moment, but...pass the ball!
Since Reyes almost attracted the attention of all Wigan Athletic defenders, when he passed the football to Henry, there was no defensive player around the core of Arsenal!

How could Henry refuse the great gift that came to his door?Swipe the football directly into the goal!
Henry was very excited after scoring the goal. He lifted his jersey to reveal the T-shirt he had prepared a long time ago.

There was an earth-shattering cheer in the stands.

It reads:

Goodbye, Highbury!We love you forever!
After bidding farewell to Highbury Stadium with a goal, Henry ran back and hugged Reyes again: "Thank you, Antonio! Do you have any requests?"

Reyes used an assist in exchange for others' gratitude and return to him.

"I think...you let go..." Reyes stammered, "You're strangling me..."

"Hey!" Henry let go of his hand quickly.

While Henry's goal gave Arsenal an immediate lead, it seemed Wigan were there to spoil the game, and their next two goals silenced Highbury.

Anxious Arsenal fans, on the other hand, did everything they could to keep an eye on the dynamics of the other game, with West Ham scoring first before Tottenham leveled before half-time.It's fine, don't worry too much over there.

The eyes of the fans returned to this game, how could Arsenal allow them to disturb this farewell game at Highbury?
At the end of the first half, after Henry made a breakthrough from the wing, the Wigan Athletic defender made a clearance error. Reyes swung his foot from outside the penalty area and smashed the football into the goal!
There were thunderous cheers at the scene!

"Henry defeated Ruud van Nistelrooy and won the league's top scorer for the year in a row; while Reyes used 28 assists to win the No. 2 assists, which was double the number of Lampard!"

"The assist king assists the shooter king, and the shooter king presents flowers to assist the king. Who is not afraid of such an Arsenal? Who is invincible?"

narrator Martin - Taylor excitedly shouted.

"For the fans, the biggest achievement of Arsenal this season is not reaching the Champions League final, but... seeing the full cooperation of a new and old leader!"

In the course of the season, the club has successfully renewed the contract with Reyes, which means that Reyes will continue to stay in the team for at least the next four seasons. Rose, Van Persie and others, in this case, Arsenal next season is really worth looking forward to...

Reyes, who scored the equalizer in Highbury's final game, was so excited that he rushed to the cameras and roared before turning and hugging his team-mates.

Shortly after the start of the second half, bad news came from another pitch. West Ham veteran Sheringham missed a penalty. Fortunately, it was still a draw.Almost at the same time, Henry seized a mistake from the Wigan defenders to give Arsenal the lead again.

"Goooooooooooooal! King of Highbury! Twice!"

The farewell show at Highbury continues!
In the 74th minute, Reyes broke into the penalty area and won a penalty kick. The captain of Arsenal took the penalty kick and completed a hat-trick.

After the hat-trick, the great No. 14 got down on his knees and kissed the familiar grass at Highbury. There is no better way to say goodbye than this.

Two minutes later, news came from another field that Tottenham were behind, and Highbury went crazy!
The last minute of the game was mixed with joy, excitement, tension and worry.In the end, Arsenal defeated Wigan Athletic with a score of 1:4 at their home court, and Tottenham on the other side did not come back. They were squeezed to the fifth position by Arsenal at the last moment.

The moment the final whistle blew, the passion of the fans was completely released, and Highbury became a sea of ​​red. In 93 and 2010 games, Highbury, loaded with countless glory and dreams of Arsenal, is a beautiful and unforgettable memory in the hearts of fans.

For Wenger, saying goodbye to Highbury with a game victory couldn't be better.In this way, the players can face the next Champions League final with a good mood.

For Arsenal fans, it couldn't be better to bid farewell to Highbury Stadium with a victory.

After the game, the Arsenal team thanked the fans and bid farewell to Highbury Stadium.Then, Highbury quickly entered the commemoration ceremony, and all the fans changed into red and white T-shirts according to the area allocated before the game, decorating the entire Highbury as a warm home.

Henry and Wenger accepted the centenary stadium commemorative prize from the stadium manager in the middle of the pitch. Wenger got the symbol of the arsenal - a gold mountain cannon, while Henry, as the greatest scorer in the history of Highbury, got the A pair of golden boots engraved with Highbury.The little fans off the court held up small posters, which read: "Henry don't go!" All the players put on casual sportswear, walked slowly around the court, and raised their hands to the people around them. The fans paid tribute and thanked them for their traditions from generation to generation, guarding Highbury for a century.

The fans threw the flowers in their hands from the stands one after another, saying goodbye to the Highbury Stadium that had accompanied them for decades.

Reyes was also among the crowd of players circling the stadium, and his affection for the stadium was not as deep as that of Henry, after all, he only stayed here for one and a half seasons.More often, he witnessed the end of an ancient stadium like a bystander.

Smith, the chief announcer of Highbury Stadium, said with emotion: "I have been here for 25 years, and what I see are the best fans in the world, as well as the best players in the world. You are part of my life, thank you You." The one-hour commemorative ceremony saw 4 fans witness the final act of the football palace at Highbury.

With the countdown of all fans: 10, 9, 8... 3, 2, 1; fireworks flew along the four sides of the stadium into the London sky at dusk, Highbury officially ended its 93-year historical mission and announced its retirement!
It will be rolled out in a week, and then an apartment complex and a plaza will rise here.

*********
It has been a long time since the game ended, and the reluctant fans have dispersed.

When the last lights went out, the Highbury Stadium fell into silence.

After 93 years of wind, frost, rain and snow, the stadium closed its doors and came to the end of its life.

The 2005-2006 season of the English Premier League is over, but Arsenal's season is not over, they still have a Champions League final to play!
(End of this chapter)